# Huckabee's 2016 bid **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [May 5, 2015, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318 "2015-05-05T15:48:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/61 "2015-05-24T14:06:33Z")
The Kochs and the other rich folks want immigration reform. Why isn’t immigration reform happening? Because unlike the Democratic Party, the regular folks get some say in the GOP. And there’s a lot of skepticism about immigration in the Democratic Party’s voter base. THey just don’t get to be heard. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/62 "2015-05-24T14:07:41Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > As I understand it, [they didn’t go to the police](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/05/23/josh-duggars-record-destroyed-police_n_7428762.html). They did contact a policeman who was a family friend for advice, and he warned Joshua about his behavior. The kid was 14. He was not going to jail in any case. But this is about Huck. There really shouldn’t be anything controversial about him standing by the family. There is no evidence that Joshua is a sexual predator as an adult. He committed sins, he repented those sins. There’s nothing here that calls for longtime friends of the Duggar family to ostracize them. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/63 "2015-05-24T14:11:17Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > The Kochs and the other rich folks want immigration reform. Why isn’t immigration reform happening? Because unlike the Democratic Party, the regular folks get some say in the GOP. And there’s a lot of skepticism about immigration in the Democratic Party’s voter base. THey just don’t get to be heard. Meh. The Democratic leadership wants things that they don’t get their members to support. Whether a party can walk in lockstep or not, (one trait that the Republicans had and are losing that the Democrats never had), is not a sign of who “controls” the party, which was you claim. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/64 "2015-05-24T14:11:22Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > The criticism of Huck here is that he’s standing by the family of a man who molested underage girls as a boy. It does not appear that the family swept it under the rug. Even accounting for their wealth and influence, there was no way a 14 year old was going to prison for these offenses. They dealt with the problem and he realizes that his behavior was inexcusable. > > If Huckabee didn’t stand by them, he wouldn’t be much of a Christian. The sinner has repented. Other people who have supposedly repented are still required to register as a sex offender for the rest of their lives. Obviously, religion didn’t stop Josh then, why believe him now? Do you really believe he only touched each girl once and never again? ---
**Author:** ![Stately\_Greek\_Automaton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aca169/32.png) [@Stately\_Greek\_Automaton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stately_Greek_Automaton)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/65 "2015-05-24T14:32:12Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > They did contact a policeman who was a family friend for advice, and he warned Joshua about his behavior. > > The kid was 14. He was not going to jail in any case. > > But this is about Huck. There really shouldn’t be anything controversial about him standing by the family. There is no evidence that Joshua is a sexual predator as an adult. He committed sins, he repented those sins. There’s nothing here that calls for longtime friends of the Duggar family to ostracize them. [The police officer they reported to was himself later convicted over child pornography charges.](http://www.newsmax.com/TheWire/josh-duggar-scandal-sex-19-kids-and-counting/2015/05/21/id/645983/) [Huckabee appointed judge expunges records regarding the complaint.](http://reverbpress.com/news/us/cover-huckabee-appointed-judge-loses-police-report-child-molester-josh-duggar/) Sure, you can go and say that any one of these occurrences could just be a fluke, but at some point it’s going to get hard to deny a pattern. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/66 "2015-05-24T14:36:04Z")
If he was an adult, I’d believe that he probably was still doing it. He was a kid. As for registering as a sex offender, minors should not have to register as sex offenders for life. With rare exceptions, such as murder with malice and premeditation, nothing one does as a minor should hang over them their whole life, at least not as far as the legal system goes. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/67 "2015-05-24T14:40:35Z")
> [@Stately\_Greek\_Automaton](#): > > [The police officer they reported to was himself later convicted over child pornography charges.](http://www.newsmax.com/TheWire/josh-duggar-scandal-sex-19-kids-and-counting/2015/05/21/id/645983/) > > [Huckabee appointed judge expunges records regarding the complaint.](http://reverbpress.com/news/us/cover-huckabee-appointed-judge-loses-police-report-child-molester-josh-duggar/) > > Sure, you can go and say that any one of these occurrences could just be a fluke, but at some point it’s going to get hard to deny a pattern. The only pattern I see is that Huck might be a little naive, which is to be expected in a devout Christian. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/68 "2015-05-24T14:49:16Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > If he was an adult, I’d believe that he probably was still doing it. He was a kid. > > As for registering as a sex offender, minors should not have to register as sex offenders for life. With rare exceptions, such as murder with malice and premeditation, nothing one does as a minor should hang over them their whole life, at least not as far as the legal system goes. He was 14, hardly a kid. He was old enough to know he was doing wrong. What happened to his faith? He couldn’t pray away the temptation? Again: do you really believe he only touched each girl once and once only? > [@adaher](#): > > The only pattern I see is that Huck might be a little naive, which is to be expected in a devout Christian. Great, just what we need in a President. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/69 "2015-05-24T14:51:06Z")
IT’s not ideal, but all Presidents are going to have their faults. We survived Jimmy Carter we can survive Mike Huckabee. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/70 "2015-05-24T14:57:17Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > If he was an adult, I’d believe that he probably was still doing it. He was a kid. > > As for registering as a sex offender, minors should not have to register as sex offenders for life. With rare exceptions, such as murder with malice and premeditation, nothing one does as a minor should hang over them their whole life, at least not as far as the legal system goes. You might also remember that the youngest victim was only 5. That’s not curious, that’s fucking _sick_. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/71 "2015-05-24T14:58:05Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > The only pattern I see is that Huck might be a little naive, which is to be expected in a devout Christian. The main problem I have is that as Governor, he showed that he did not give a damn about the poor. I would not expect a Republican to be an advocate for the poor, but supposedly Christians are. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/72 "2015-05-24T14:59:30Z")
Actually, one of the main conservative criticisms of Huck is how he raised taxes and increased spending on things like education as governor. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/73 "2015-05-24T15:11:01Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Actually, one of the main conservative criticisms of Huck is how he raised taxes and increased spending on things like education as governor. Yeah. who could even think about voting for someone who increased spending on education? What good is education when it’s all in the Bible? ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/74 "2015-05-24T15:37:00Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > They did contact a policeman who was a family friend for advice, and he warned Joshua about his behavior. Help me understand. Did they go to him as a friend, for advice, or did they go to him as a police officer, to file a report? These are two very different actions. Did the officer follow protocol for reports about sexual abuse of a minor? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/75 "2015-05-24T16:36:31Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Actually, one of the main conservative criticisms of Huck is how he raised taxes and increased spending on things like education as governor. Huckabee eventually signed a minimum wage bill, raising the state minimum wage by a enormous $1.25 in 2006. During his opposition of it, he sarcastically asked, “Six dollars? Why not twenty dollars?” Regarding Carter, I was afraid that that if something horrendous happened, a Russian missile launch, for example, that he would “trust in G-d”, and do nothing. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/76 "2015-05-24T17:18:46Z")
If Huckabee was dumb enough to associate with a _child molestation issue_, he’s dead politically. He should have run from that room, never looking back. That’s way too much baggage for any candidate to carry. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/77 "2015-05-24T19:19:54Z")
But certainly, the person who aspires to be the President of the U.S. of A., as a naive christian, can be excused from Palling Around([SIZE=1]tm[/SIZE]) with child molesters. 😕 It’s as though we would expect more from him if he weren’t christian. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/78 "2015-05-24T23:07:35Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Is someone out there suggesting criminal charges for any member of the Duggar family? And going to the police isn’t exactly a coverup. Besides, this is Arkansas we’re talking about, where governors and sexual predation with the help of state troopers is considered normal. Oh, you mean the “troopergate” scandal for which [the reporter apologized?](http://web.archive.org/web/20080614124146/http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/03/10/brocks.remorse/) The troopers whom the reporter later found to be not credible witnesses? That scandal? Huckabee may be a nicer guy than most Christian fundamentalists. But that’s faint praise. He has no chance at the nomination and even less at the election. Good thing, too, as we don’t need to declare war on Ireland. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/79 "2015-05-24T23:24:50Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Help me understand. Did they go to him as a friend, for advice, or did they go to him as a police officer, to file a report? These are two very different actions. Did the officer follow protocol for reports about sexual abuse of a minor? No, the officer did not file any reports. And I really really hope that they didn’t know about his own crimes before they sent their son to him. But, you know, it’s not ideal. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2015, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318/80 "2015-05-24T23:52:43Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Oh, you mean the “troopergate” scandal for which [the reporter apologized?](http://web.archive.org/web/20080614124146/http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1998/03/10/brocks.remorse/) The troopers whom the reporter later found to be not credible witnesses? That scandal? Thanks, I wondered what the hell he was posting about. :dubious: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/huckabees-2016-bid/719318.md?page=5)