WASHINGTON, DC—Though he is mentioned derisively as a “second-tier” presidential candidate, former Arkansas Governor and Republican presidential aspirant Mike Huckabee is quietly making gains in New Hampshire, the earliest primary state.

Debra Vanderbeek signed on last week to run Huckabee’s New Hampshire operations.  Venderbeek served as chief of staff for former Rep. Jeb Bradley and is an experienced Republican political hand.

“I was surprised to see Deb go with Huckabee,” one Republican state legislator told The Daily Acts.  “That fact alone is enough to get me to take a second look at him.  I respect Deb’s judgment.”

Vanderbeek is said to know all the significant activists in the Granite State.  She also has meaningful relationships with the opinion drivers and party honchos. Does her support foretell of a Jeb Bradley endorsement for Huckabee?  It’s unlikely, sources tell The Daily Acts.  Bradley is viewed as a moderate, while Huckabee is carving out a niche as a social conservative.

Nevertheless, Huckabee’s good news continued last week when rumors circulated throughout New Hampshire that former Executive Councilor and one-time Republican congressional candidate Bill Cahill had signed on, as well.  Cahill is an inveterate networker with close ties to all factions of the Republican coalition in New Hampshire. Cahill is a board member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Huckabee’s new high-powered New Hampshire team may already be paying dividends.  He will be in Republican vote-rich Bedford today at the home of Doug and Shannon McGinley for one of those fabled Granite State living room “meet & greets.” Shannon McGinley is a heavily sought after pro-life activist and organizer.  She was previously assumed to be a supporter of Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, but recent questions about the timing and authenticity of Romney’s pro-life conversion are said to have convinced her that Huckabee is the more reliable choice.

• 
• 
• 
• 

Rate this story

Distrust		Trust

1. 1. Ian Repley Tue Aug 14 2007 5:52 PM

   Huckabee is an adroit public speaker. He communcates his message in life-like, cogent terms, with compelling examples like the story he told (at the Ames Straw Poll) of what his then-11-yo daughter entered into the "Comments" section of a Visitors Book after visiting the Yad Vashem holocaust museum: “Why didn't somebody do something?”
   
   Very effective. Huckabee is all about calling his listeners to "do something," to awaken them to their own empowerment, and summon them to action in order that "Main Street," and not "Wall Street," will prevail in guarding the values and beliefs upon which the Republic was founded.
   
   Huckabee puts his listeners at ease, and reassures them, articulating clear concepts in a natural, easy style (no doubt something well-cultivated as a pastor). He’s not angry or demanding, like a Ron Paul, nor is he as “rigidly-scripted” as Romney, and his large brown eyes peer through a humble demeanor, drawing a striking contrast to a somewhat mechanical-squinty Brownback. One can easily imagine sitting comfortably with this man over a cup of coffee at the Main Street Cafe.
   
   Most importantly, Huckabee convinces many that he is ONE with the FairTax grassroots movement. While many - like Romney, and others, who are invested in the current income tax system - seek to demagog ( http://snipurl.com/taxpanelrebutted ) the well-researched FairTax plan, its acceptance in the professional / academic community ( http://snipurl.com/econsopenletter ) continues to grow. Renown economist Laurence Kotlikoff believes that failure to enact the FairTax - choosing instead to try to "flatten" what he deems to be a non-flattenable income tax system - will eventuate into an irrevocable economic meltdown ( http://snipurl.com/meltdowninprogress ) because of the hidden aspects of the current system that make political accountability impossible.
   
   Romney's recent WEAK response to FairTax questioning on “This Week with Geo. Stephanopoulos ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW4fa6Z_4Po )” drew a sharp contrast between Huckabee and all other presidential front-runners who will not embrace it. Huckabee understands that what's wrong with the income tax can't be fixed with "a tap of the hammer, nor a twist of the screwdriver." That his opponents cling to the destructive Tax Code, the IRS, preserving political power of granting tax favors at continued cost to - and misery of - American families, invigorates his campaign's raison d'etre.
   
   Of the FairTax, Huckabee asserts that it's...
   
   • SIMPLE, easy to understand
   • EFFICIENT, inexpensive to comply with and doesn't cause less-than-optimal business decisions for tax minimization purposes
   • FAIR, FLAT, and FAMILY FRIENDLY, loophole-free, and everyone pays their share
   • LOW TAX RATE is achieved by broad base with no exclusions
   • PREDICTABLE, doesn't change, so financial planning is possible
   • UNINTRUSIVE, doesn't intrude into our personal affairs or limit our liberty
   • VISIBLE, not hidden from the public in tax-inflated prices or otherwise
   • PRODUCTIVE, rewards - rather than penalizes - work and productivity
   
   A detailed benefits analysis of the plan (from The FairTax Book) explains Huckabee's ardent advocacy:
   
   FOR INDIVIDUALS:
   • No more tax on income - make as much as you wish
   • You receive your full paycheck - no more deductions
   • You pay the tax when you buy "at retail" - not "used"
   • No more double taxation (e.g. like on current Capital Gains)
   • Reduction of "pre-FairTaxed" retail prices by 20%-30%
   • Adding back 29.9% FairTax maintains current price levels
   • FairTax would constitute 23% portion of new prices
   • Every household receives a monthly check, or "pre-bate"
   • "Prebate" is "advance payback" for monthly consumption to poverty level
   • FairTax's "prebate" ensures progressivity, poverty protection
   • Finally, citizens are knowledgeable of what their tax IS
   • Elimination of "parasitic" Income Tax industry
   • NO MORE IRS. NO MORE FILING OF TAX RETURNS by individuals
   • Those possessing illicit forms of income will ALSO pay the FairTax
   • Households have more disposable income to purchase goods
   • Savings is bolstered with reduction of interest rates
   
   FOR BUSINESSES:
   • Corporate income and payroll taxes revoked under FairTax
   • Business compensated for collecting tax at "cash register"
   • No more tax-related lawyers, lobbyists on company payrolls
   • No more embedded (hidden) income/payroll taxes in prices
   • Reduced costs. Competition - not tax policy - drives prices
   • Off-shore "tax haven" headquarters can now return to U.S
   • No more "favors" from politicians at expense of taxpayers
   • Resources go to R&D and study of competition - not taxes
   • Marketplace distortions eliminated for fair competition
   • US exports increase their share of foreign markets
   
   FOR THE COUNTRY:
   • 7% - 13% economic growth projected in the first year of the FairTax
   • Jobs return to the U.S.
   • Foreign corporations "set up shop" in the U.S.
   • Tax system trends are corrected to "enlarge the pie"
   • Larger economic "pie," means thinner tax rate "slices"
   • Initial 23% portion of price is pressured downward as "pie"
   increases
   • No more "closed door" tax deals by politicians and business
   • FairTax sets new global standard. Other countries will follow
   
   While passionately supporting FairTax, Huckabee understands that, if elected President, Congress will have to present the bill for his signature. His call to action goes beyond his candidacy, Main Street will have to demand ( http://snipr.com/scrapthecode ) that their legislators deliver the bill.

Sign up or login to post comments.