Huckabee Positioning Himself for 2012

Although the title of the First Read piece is "Huck on Gay Rights", the story deals with Mike Huckabee's thoughts on a lot of subjects, all of which seem to be positioning him for another run in 2012:

In an interview with a student publication at The College of New Jersey, Mike Huckabee advocated strongly against gay rights, including civil unions, even adoptions by gay couples, saying, “Children are not puppies. This is not a time to see if we can experiment and find out, how does this work?” He added on comparisons on gay marriage and civil unions to people who use drugs and who are polygamists. “You don’t go ahead and accommodate every behavioral pattern that is against the ideal,” he said. “That would be like saying, well, there are a lot of people who like to use drugs, so let’s go ahead and accommodate those who want to use drugs. There are some people who believe in incest, so we should accommodate them. There are people who believe in polygamy, so we should accommodate them.” Huckabee said civil unions are "not necessary." “I think there’s been a real level of being disingenuous on the part of the gay and lesbian community with their goal of civil unions,” he said. He added that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," "touches an extraordinarily small group of people," and therefore should not be repealed.

 He also criticized Mitt Romney's Massachusetts health-care plan as a "dismal failure." “Essentially ‘Obamacare’ and what Massachusetts has is virtually identical,” Huckabee said, adding that the Massachusetts plan has "resulted in huge cost increases, exponentially beyond what was projected."

Charlie Cook notes his impressions of the Southern Republican Leadership Conference. On Newt Gingrich: "His baggage might keep him out of the race or limit his ability to win the nomination, but watching him in action leaves a strong impression he has as much raw ability and political instincts as the rest of the field combined."

On Palin: "Palin is catnip for the Republican base. Watching her flirt and tease with GOP audiences leaves the impression that she uses her femininity much the same way California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger does his masculinity. Palin doesn’t compete with Gingrich for the minds of GOP voters, but she sure goes after their hearts — and she does it with a sassiness that is fun for even those who don’t like her."

Huckabee may have designs on 2012 but I think his results will be even worse than his showing in 2008. He'd be better off to stay with the TV show.