Posted on 11/12/2007 7:05:46 PM PST by Eric Blair 2084
When it comes to describing former Arkansas Governor turned Presidential candidate there is no shortage of labels. Nanny stater, global warming alarmist, pro-life Democrat, religious leftist, open border illegal alien apologist and fiscal liberal. We can now add another description. Flip flopper.
Before pushing and ultimately signing a statewide smoker ban in Arkansas private restaurants in April of 2006, Huckabee was vehemently opposed to smoker bans.
In October of 2001, less than 2 months after the attacks of 9/11, the "public health" and sheeple/tobacco control movement responded to the call and came to the aid of their fellow Americans. Mourning the over 3,000 dead citizens, fearing an imminent repeat attack and worried over the dozens of anthrax letters being sent around the country, the "public health" community analyzed the situation and decided on a swift and forceful action plan to remedy the problem...they would ban smoking in Arkansas restaurants. That would solve everything.
There was only one thing standing in their way. A very large obstacle at the time, in the form of Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee who stymied the smoke nazis with common sense that is typically heard from conservatives and libertarians.
Responding to the anti-tobacco crusader's claims that smoking in restaurants was a public health concern in the same vain as health code violations in the kitchen, Huckabee forcefully responded.
"You can't look at a plate and tell if it's got E.coli or salmonella," Huckabee said, mentioning two common causes of food-borne illness. "You can't look at the plate and know how it was washed and under what temperature the water was heated.
"But you can walk in and say, 'Do you have a nonsmoking section?'
"If they say, 'No,' then you say, 'Thank you very much, but I'll be taking my business elsewhere.'"
Anti-tobacco was livid.
On October 26, 2001 Huckabee decided not to approve a state Board of Health proposed regulation that would have banned smoking in restaurants.
The well funded anti-smoking cartel was not pleased that the Governor didn't buy their public health nonsense.
"That's a real simple issue," Huckabee said. "One relates to the unseen issues of food preparation, where the public has no ability to ascertain cleanliness. The public is not allowed to go into the kitchen and make an inspection, so the Health Department does that on their behalf.
"The smoking issue is one in which it's part of the atmosphere of the customer, not the atmosphere of the kitchen. It's a very clear distinction to me. That's a ridiculous kind of association some have tried to make."
Of course, this was all before Huckabee survived his near death experience at the hands of that global health menace...Kentucky Fried Chicken Original Recipe.
After being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, Huckabee lost 110 pounds and became a health activist, penning a motivational book "Quit Digging Your Grave With a Knife and Fork".
Good for him. Nothing wrong with getting healthy and than encouraging others to do the same. Richard Simmons made a living doing it.
The only difference is that Simmons didn't have the power of the State behind him. Politicians who use the bully pulpit to legislate and coerce their citizens into better health for the sake of saving taxpayer money on medical entitlement programs like Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP are a dangerous breed.
Mike Huckabee used to get it. He was for it, before he was against it. Letting his personal trauma and experience impact his ability to make rational judgements makes him unfit for higher office.
You’re preaching to the choir, my friend, preaching to the choir.
Right now it is far easier for me to eliminate those I will not support..........of course that has always been my way of doing things.
Huckabee is a dangerous man. Good thing he has no chance to be POTUS. I sure as heck don’t want him as a
(VICE) President either.
In many ways there is no single better litmus test for “Do you get America?” than to find out one’s views on smoking bans. Private property, free enterprise, limited government, individual responsibility — all are completely pissed on by the smoking nazi’s among us.
I don’t care what you have to say about anything else, if you tell me you think smoking bans in private businesses are a good thing, then I think less of you as a person and, all emotion and opinion aside, I can objectively discern that you hate America.
To that end, I actually welcome discussion around me about the bans. Any other policy topics, esoteric or practical, are no longer needed. When you want to see if some one loves or hates America, just ask them how they feel about smoking bans.
The only "going after" people of that description is to shake their hand warmly and welcome them to the welfare program.
VP Huck = President in charge of Vice.
“It’s not a coincedence that the same politicians who support smoker bans and tobacco tax increases for the greater good are always ideological leftists.”
Never fails.
I was hoping that this day would never come and Huck would just retire and go away. He seems like a nice guy and he means well. He thinks it’s the Gubmints job to take care of people (IOW he’s a liberal). The MSM has done a bang up job of pimping him to socons at the expense of Fred, Duncan Hunter. Real conservatives who threaten the Hildabeast. That is what the 3 Huckabee supporters on FR don’t understand.
MEMO
TO: Traditionalist rural Christian voters in Iowa
FROM: LA Times, NY Times, Washington Post, Salon
RE: Mike Huckabee
DATE: November 11, 2007
Dear Bible Thumping toothless rednecks,
Please remember to vote for the tax raising, environmentalist wacko, nanny state sheeple controlling, smoker banning, open border third world American killing candidate we tell you to vote for in the primary....Mike Huckabee. He is pro life and he talks about Jesus. That should be good enough for you.
Thank you,
The Elitist left wing media
He makes the third Pubbie candidate I wouldn't vote for in any circumstance.
Rudy Toot, Traitor McCain and the Hucksterberry.
Very well said. Global warming and smoker bans are litmus test issues.
If a candidate buys into it there can only be two reasons:
A. He/she is too stupid to recognize bogus studies and junk science when they see it(which makes him too dumb to have power) or
B. They know that it is BS but they go along anyway for the greater good, which makes them more dangerous than A.
He’s not the first governor to go after twinkies. Just ask pandy. She’s from NJ. lol
“VP Huck = President in charge of Vice.”
Kentucky Fried Chicken can KILL!!
I find Huckabee to be truly annoying :-)
PS: Huckabee is clearly a B.
He may be a lot of things but he is certainly not stupid.
He got religion on health and bought into the idea that tobacco/sheeple control with smoker bans and high cig taxes will coerce the sheeple to quit for their own good.
I’m from the DPRNJ also.
The twinkie banners Karcher and Panter were voted out.
“Very well said. Global warming and smoker bans are litmus test issues.
If a candidate buys into it there can only be two reasons:
A. He/she is too stupid to recognize bogus studies and junk science when they see it(which makes him too dumb to have power) or
B. They know that it is BS but they go along anyway for the greater good, which makes them more dangerous than A.”
They are what I use as well. A & B are perfect. LOL!
I fought the smoking ban when he was against it and fought it again when he was for it.
Too bad he pulled a "Kerry".
They were the smoker banning, foie gras banning, trans fat banning assemblymen/women public serpents who “represent” me by throwing me out of bars.
Now they have been thrown out of office. I thought seriously about running against them myself.
Then I figured correctly that my donations and wiseass activism would be a better tool for change. These things have a funny way of working themselves out. Call it Karma.
But 3 of the NJ public serpents who voted for the smoker ban here have already been indicted.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.