Huckabee's Liabilities

[zeezil]

Politico.com ( http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1107/7000.html ) and others have reported that Mike Huckabee has had 14 ethics complaints filed against him, yielding 5 admonitions and $1,000 in fines from the Arkansas Ethics Commission. Instead of cooperating with the Arkansas Ethics Commission, Huckabee twice filed lawsuits to shut it down.

On a number of occasions, Huckabee failed to report cash payments he made to himself. For example, according to The Associated Press ( http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15853756/ ), Huckabee received, but failed to report, "$43,150 from his 1994 lieutenant governor's campaign for use of his personal airplane, $14,000 Janet Huckabee received from his 1992 U.S. Senate campaign, and $23,500 from a tax-exempt organization he incorporated with others in 1994, but whose funding source isn't known…"

According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Huckabee "depleted the governor's office emergency fund in the final weeks of his administration in part to pay for the destruction of computer hard drives in his office."

According to a recent article in National Review ( http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZGMxOGI1ZjIwYzgwNDRiNzEzYzI1NmI5NjFiZGM4MjE= ), Huckabee had a penchant for accepting gifts while serving in public office. "A $200 stadium blanket, $250 in dental care, a $600 chainsaw, and a $3,700 pair of cowboy boots were among 300 gratuities Huckabee accepted totaling $130,000. Like the Clintons loading their moving van with White House antiques, Huckabee tried to claim for himself some $70,000 in furniture donated to the governor’s mansion."

Federal Level:

2006: Supported President Bush's immigration plan and claimed that opposition to Bush's proposal was driven by "racism or nativism" and that it wasn't amnesty. (Ralph Hallow, "Huckabee 'Serious' About Presidency," Washington Times, 5/17/06)

Wrote in his 2007 book that implementing strict enforcement of immigration laws "would be sheer folly" and that it made sense to give "those here illegally a process through which they pay a reasonable fine in admission of their guilt for the past infraction of violating our border laws and agree to adhere to a pathway toward legal status and citizenship." (Mike Huckabee, From Hope to Higher Ground, 2007, p. 117-118)

Huckabee has released a 9-point immigration plan as a cornerstone of his 2008 presidential campaign. It is disingenuous at best, deceitful at worst. His plan repeal the current law of multi-year baring of illegals to re-enter the U.S. for illegals who register during a 120-day period with Homeland Security and temporarily exit the country (for only a few days, at most). It is also highly likely that many would not even leave the country but would be allowed to go to their nearest consulate on American soil for paperwork.
They would face no penalty if they apply to immigrate back to U.S. (they'd be back in within just days). He would not utilize the current processing and vetting of immigrant applications (too slow for him and their illegal employers) but would set up special processing for these ‘special case formerly illegal’ immigrants. He also would reward these lawbreakers (and their law-breaking employers) by legalizing the former illegal and then returning them quickly which would allow the aliens to keep the very jobs they broke into the country and took. The employer of the illegal alien would be without his worker for only a few days at most and upon their return would have the extra bonus of a newly minted legal employee. This whole process is known as Huckabee’s "touchback" provision, though Huckabee dodges the question if asked directly, which almost no one in the media has done.
http://www.alipac.us/article-2786-thread-1-0.html

Huckabee has the backing of the CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) which is a globalist, open borders, international world government organization headquarted in New York. The CFR's increased focus on Huckabee began with a speech on foreign policy posted September 28 on the Council on Foreign Relations website: http://www.cfr.org/publication/14335/mike_huckabees_speech_on_foreign_policy.html
The Sept. 28 speech, delivered at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., focused entirely on foreign policy, portraying Huckabee as a supporter of Bush administration policy in Iraq and for the golbalist agenda. Curiously, the sudden rise in Huckabee’s surge in the polls coincided with the CFR’s backing.

Huckabee has told the Christian Broadcasting Network he had a theology degree, he told voters in Iowa he had a theology degree, he repeated the claim in November’s CNN YouTube debate ... but, his campaign now says, it was not true.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59222

In Arkansas:

As Governor, Huckabee fought for in-state tuition and taxpayer funded scholarships for illegal immigrants. He championed an effort in Arkansas to give in-state tuition at state colleges and taxpayer-funded scholarships to illegal immigrants, similar to the DREAM Act proposal at the federal level. (Laura Kellams, "Senators research U.S. law on aliens," Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, 1/27/05)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BxJBUswOcQ

During the 2001 regular session of the Arkansas Legislature, Mike Huckabee supported giving driver's licenses to illegal aliens. Huckabee's spokesman during the entire process was Robert Trevino, Arkansas liason to the Department of Human Services. At the same time that he held this state position, Trevino was also the director of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC). This group is a large, well funded advocacy group, of which part of their platform is advocacy for illegal aliens and reduced immigration enforcement and border controls. They explicitly campaign for amnesty and oppose any efforts of immigration control in order to maximize Latino voting power. In June 2005, Huckabee was the keynote speaker at the national LULAC convention in Little Rock and in his speech advocated for open borders and amnesty. He also called immigration enforcement efforts within the U.S. as "un-Christian, un-American, irresponsible and anti-life."
http://dhgrassrevolt.wordpress.com/2007/10/29/mike-huckabee-advocating-open-borders-at-lulac-convention-in-2005/
http://209.85.175.104/search?q=cache:MXP_N1c68ewJ:arkjournal.com/2007/11/newsflash-mike-huckabee-supported-bill.html+Arkansas+Journal+blog&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2 &gl=us

He opposed legislation to require proof of citizenship in order to obtain public benefits and to vote. When Republican state senators in Arkansas proposed legislation modeled after Arizona's Proposition 200 [to require proof of citizenship for voting and public benefits], "Huckabee described it as 'inflammatory ... race-baiting ... demagoguery.' He said the bill, which seeks to forbid public assistance and voting rights to illegal immigrants, 'inflames those who are racist and bigots and makes them think there's a real problem. But there's not.'" (Governor says anti-illegals measure could scare off companies like Toyota," Associated Press, 2/3/05)

Huckabee opposed a raid on illegal immigrants in an Arkansas poultry plant even though calls to his office were "about 1,000 to one" against his stance. (Melissa Nelson, "Huckabee Risks Political Fortunes To Denounce Immigration Raid," Associated Press, 8/5/05)

Helped lead the effort to open a Mexican Consulate in Little Rock to issue Matricula Consular cards to Mexicans living in the U.S. (including those in the U.S. illegally). Many banks, including some in Arkansas, accept the card as a valid form of identification. (Jon Gambrell, "Ark. Candidates Criticize Mexican Matricula Cards," AP, 10/18/06)
http://www.standardnewswire.com/news/742931899.html

In order to draw a Mexican Consulate to Little Rock, Huckabee huddled with some of the state's most prominent and politically powerful businesses to draw illegal immigrants to Arkansas to provide employers (mainly agricultural, meat processing and packing plants and Wal-Mart) with a large force of cheap foreign labor. Huckabee even went so far as to travel to Mexico in October 2003 to cement relationships with Vicente Fox, then Mexico’s president, to establish the Mexico – Little Rock connection. Additionally disturbing is that Huckabee enticed Mexico to Arkansas with a practically free use of office space (actually a paltry $1 per year lease) as their consulate was being built. Huckabee facilitated a consortium of Arkansas corporations pledge to fund the building costs of the consulate AND to financially support Mexico’s presence there during the first three years.
"Huckabee's real goal was to create the Mexican consulate as a magnet to bring illegal alien workers into the state," McCutchen said, "to benefit companies like Tyson Foods, Wal-Mart, OK Foods, Simmons Foods, George’s Farms, Inc. and a host of smaller operations who wanted to employ the illegals for their cheap labor."
http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=58430

For 10 years, as governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee supported amnesty and taxpayer-financed welfare and health care for illegal aliens and increased taxes numerous times. Now, after sniffing the political winds, he poses as tough on illegal aliens and a tax-whacker. It is not that uncommon for candidates to state things that are politically expedient to get elected, then revert back to their DNA exhibited from their past records after reaching office. Huckabee’s past record is one of coddling illegal aliens, hiking taxes, shady ethics and liberal use of his power of pardon that enabled some rapists and murder’s to ply their trade once again after hitting the streets.
To deny illegal aliens tax-paid welfare and health care, plus low in state college tuition rates, would not be "Christian," Huckabee said many times.

"As governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee aggressively pushed for the early release of a convicted rapist despite being warned by numerous women that the convict had sexually assaulted them or their family members, and would likely strike again. The convict went on to rape and murder at least one other woman.
Confidential Arkansas state government records, including letters from these women, obtained by the Huffington Post and revealed publicly for the first time, directly contradict the version of events now being put forward by Huckabee."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/12/04/documents-expose-huckabee_n_75362.html

During his time as Arkansas governor, a net increase of taxes to the tune of $505 million dollars was leveled on the citizens of Arkansas. (Sean Hannity radio show during a live interview with Huckabee on January 4, 2008)
"[Huckabee] hiked state spending 65.3%, from 1996 to 2004. He supported five tax increases. During his tenure, the number of state employees increased over 20% and Arkansas' general obligation debt rose by almost $1 billion."
-Pastor Chuck Baldwin http://www.newswithviews.com/baldwin/baldwin411.htm

The Arkansas Journal blog has uncovered a video showing Huckabee begging the state legislature to raise taxes. He says: "Some have suggested [increasing the tax on tobacco at the retail level]. If that ends up being your preference, I will accept that. Others have suggested a surcharge on the income tax; that’s acceptable; I’m fine with that. "Others have suggested, perhaps, a sales tax; that’s fine. Yet others have suggested a hybrid that will collect some monies from any one or a combination of these various ideas, and if that’s the plan that the House and Senate agree upon, then you will have nothing but my profound thanks."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaJW7nXw30A