Poll: Huckabee up nationally

Richmond Times Dispatch ^ | 12/8/2007 | WIRE REPORTS

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Mike Huckabee has vaulted from nowhere into second place in the Republican presidential race, a nationwide poll showed yesterday.

The surge by the former Arkansas governor has come with support from evangelicals, Southerners and conservatives, and largely at the expense of former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson, according to the national survey by The Associated Press and Ipsos.

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani remains the front-runner at 26 percent among Republican and GOP-leaning voters, about where he has been since spring.

Huckabee has 18 percent, up from 10 percent in an AP-Ipsos survey a month ago and 3 percent in July. Arizona Sen. John McCain has 13 percent, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney 12 percent and Thompson 11 percent. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.

Giuliani also remains the favorite of voters age 18 to 24. In a separate Harvard University Institute of Politics poll, he has the support of 26 percent, compared with 15 percent for McCain.

Among Democrats, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama was the choice of 38 percent of young voters and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton was next at 33 percent.

Obama: The Illinois senator is already reaping the benefits of Oprah Winfrey's high-wattage celebrity backing.

Thousands of Iowans have flocked to his office for tickets for two events today in Iowa. The campaign declines to say how many tickets have been distributed but says no one will be turned away from the unique opportunity to attract new voters.

Clinton: The New York senator yesterday turned to 32 former U.S. ambassadors and diplomats appointed to top positions by then-President Bill Clinton and confirmed by a Republican-led Senate to endorse her diplomatic skills as first lady.

The backers included former career diplomat Joe Wilson, the Iraq war critic who previously served as ambassador to Gabon; former Michigan Gov. James Blanchard, who served in Canada; former House Speaker Tom Foley, D-Wash., who served as ambassador in Japan, and former Sen. Walter Mondale, D-Minn., who also served in Japan.

Thompson: Campaigning in Ohio yesterday, the former Tennessee senator criticized rival Huckabee, saying it was "surprising" a presidential candidate wouldn't know about a newly released intelligence report that said Iran suspended its nuclear weapons program in 2003.

Huckabee told reporters earlier this week he was not aware of the National Intelligence Estimate report on Iran.

Thompson has been tripped up by news events himself. In September, he said he was not aware that the Supreme Court had decided to hear arguments on the constitutionality of lethal injection.

Early in his campaign, Thompson sidestepped a question about the Terri Schiavo right-to-die case, saying he didn't remember the details.

McCain: The Arizona senator yesterday said in New Hampshire that if he loses his bid for the Republican nomination, he'll return to the Senate. McCain would have two more years left in his fourth term.

[Ol' Sparky]

I say.... GO Romney!!

Despite the fact that he was about to accomplish in Massachusetts things Hillary Clinton could only dream of:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1938508/posts

When you've drunk Romney's kool aid reality becomes inverted: 1. He's a conservative. He is? How did he get elected to the most liberal state in the U.S.? 2. He's the only one who can beat Hillary. He is? Polls show any of the Republican candidates could but that Romney is the least likely . 3. He's a smart money man. He is? How come experts are calling his health care plan a fiscal Frankenstein at birth? How come almost every Massachusetts' city and town has rejected it as unaffordable?

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As we've shown in numerous exposes that the media continue to ignore, Mitt achieved what Hillary couldn't. Hillary couldn't get a government health care plan established. Mitt did. She could never get abortion as a health care benefit. Mitt did. Hillary couldn't get gay marriage instituted. Mitt did.