Presidential Profile: Populist Huckabee gains ground with religious approach

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=2835&u_sid=10198953

Published Sunday | December 2, 2007
Presidential Profile: Populist Huckabee gains ground with religious approach
BY ROBYNN TYSVER
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

VINTON, Iowa — Global warming is not a political issue for Mike Huckabee. It's a religious one.

An ordained Southern Baptist minister, Huckabee doesn't recoil at capping greenhouse emissions. He says that's because he lives in God's house.

"I believe that God is the creator of the Earth. He owns it. I'm his guest. It's not mine. I have a responsibility to take good care of it," he tells about 80 people packed into a room at the Kirkwood Learning Center in Vinton, located between Cedar Rapids and Waterloo in eastern Iowa.


In Huckabee's own words: "My faith is my life — it defines me. My faith doesn't influence my decisions, it drives them. For example, when it comes to the environment, I believe in being a good steward of the earth. I don't separate my faith from my personal and professional lives."


Huckabee is shaking up the Republican presidential race in Iowa. His underfunded campaign has climbed in public opinion polls to challenge frontrunner Mitt Romney.

His spiritual roots and longtime opposition to abortion and same-sex marriage — he favors constitutional amendments outlawing both — may be fueling the rise, with Huckabee touting himself as the "Christian leader" and "authentic conservative."

Like GOP televangelist and presidential candidate Pat Robertson in 1988, Huckabee erects no barrier between faith and politics. He says unequivocally that his spiritual beliefs drive his political beliefs, including his concern about poverty and his compassion for illegal immigrants.

FULL story at link.

[TwilightGardener]

1. I am baffled as to why this seems to be selling for 2008. Totally baffled.