Mike Huckabee:

“There’s a lot of similarities in that it is about the pursuit and you have to be patient and you have to persevere and you have to realize that sometimes you can hunt all day and it doesn’t look like you’re gonna come out with a thing and then the biggest buck in the whole woods comes out and you take it two minutes before the end of shooting time.”

He continued: “In our campaign, a lot of people didn’t think we were even in the game, and here we are at the end of the time leading up to caucuses and we proved that if you just stay out there in the woods, keep your gun ready, it might turn out okay.”

He then went on to do something no responsible hunter would ever do. He fired shots over the heads of the reporters:

In the first 30 minutes, Huckabee, Saltzman and a friend shot three birds. Their last shot flew over the heads of reporters, one of whom cried out: “Oh my God! Oh my God! Don’t shoot. This is traumatizing.”

Even Dick Cheney would probably forgo a hunting trip with Mike Huckabee. I feel slightly embarrassed for candidates who do things that so obviously pander to a population. Watching John Kerry in his hunting gear was painful, as was his trip to a country restaurant, while waiting for his catered lunch to arrive. Watching Democratic candidates show up at gay and lesbian events, when they rarely do at any other time, is patronizing to say the least. Etc., etc., etc. It’s all about what they can do about useless issues.

The biggest issues for me are:

1. The national debt. Tell me how you’re going to reduce that. I haven’t heard a thing from anyone on either side about it that shows me they have a clue about what to do or how to do it.
2. The war. Don’t just tell me you’re going to bring the troops home, or that George Bush is a bad CinC. tell me HOW you’re going to bring them home, and how you will do it in a way that leaves Iraq in a position to at least have a small chance at success.
3. Immigration. Again, don’t tell me you have a solution. Don’t tell me you’re going to seal the borders and kick out all the illegals. Both are impossible. If you have a solution on immigration, tell me, point-by-point what your plan is. Even if I don’t agree with it, I’ll respect you if I know you thought beyong the sound bite.
4. Healthcare. Most candidates have a plan. But beyond the sound bite or the talking point, they don’t explain it. If you tell me we’re going to a single payer system, tell me how you are going to accomplish that without bankrupting the system. If you can do it, I’ll be all for it. If you can’t, then I won’t. Again, I’ll respect your position if I know you can explain exactly how you plan to accomplish it.
5. Education. We desperately need education reform in this country. No Child Left Behind is a farce. The only thing it accomplishes is forcing teachers to “teach to the test.” It produces students that are dumber than a bag of hammers. So far, the only person who has said anything I even remotely like is, *gasp*, Mike Huckabee. I think one of the most tragic changes in education is the virtual elimination of music and art programs.

So, take off the hunting garb. You look stupid. Don’t tell us Washington needs change. We know that. tell us how you would change it. Don’t tell us you’re the most experienced and then refuse to open up the record on your 8 years int he White House to actually show us what you did. And don’t tell me you’ll stand up to corporate interests unless you can tell me exactly what needs to be done to stand up to them, and how you’ll do it. What’s sad is that candidates who do speak to very specific points about their platform are the ones who don’t get elected. Those who just spout off the talking points and don’t get into specifics are elected in what amounts to a likeability contest.

Finally, when someone asks you who you have in mind for cabinet positions, tell us. Don’t bullshit us. We know you know and it would be very helpful to know not just about you, but about the people you’re going to surround yourselves with.

The electorate has become so dumbed down because we just accept the talking points, sound bites, and he said/she said of politics. We accept that candidates are going to waffle, flip-flop, refuse to answer, or tell us what we want to hear. And then we’re totally surprised when they get into office and we realize we elected a complete moron.