The Associated Press, among others, confirms the sad condition of the Huckabee campaign, noted here earlier today. Although the AP and the Politico lead with news of top advisers working without pay and some aides quitting, worse conditions are buried further down in each account:
Huckabee’s campaign has stopped arranging charter flights, hotel reservations and other means of helping journalists keep up with his movements. News organizations pay their own expenses, but empty seats on charter planes were costing the campaign money.
***
Rollins said the campaign plans to run some ads on cable stations in Florida, but it cannot afford broadcast rates. Huckabee is splitting time between Florida, Georgia and Arkansas this week.
As I noted earlier today, one of the few things Huckabee had going for him as Super-Tuesday loomed was his ability to attract free (or “earned”) media. There will be less of it now, both because the media has its own budgetary and logistics issues and because this news fuels the perception that Huckabee has begun his downward spiral. Indeed, newsrooms will likely use the latter to justify acting on the former. And it appears that Huckabee is forced into frugaility with respect to paid media as well.
At the Politico, Jonathan Martin’s kicker:
But given his minimal campaign organization he’s at even more of a disadvantage as Florida and Tsunami Tuesday loom. ÂÂ
Fred’s exit and Huck’s diminishment mean that more conservatives will be looking for somewhere to go — and whoever snaps them up may well become the nominee.
Martin’s commenters disagree over where those voters will go. Perhaps the chart from a recent Pew Poll titled “Ideological Placement of the Candidates” — which shows how different groups of voters perceive the candidates — might give us a hint.
Actually, the best thing Huckabee has going for him is a name that sounds like a minor character in a Dickens novel. One of the ones that only really bad book snobs even pretend to have read.
His rise was meteoric, but we all know what happens to meteors.
Whither is right.
Huckabee was good for a line. Maybe he shagged some cheap road snatch or copped a feel off some hardbody at his post-victory party in Iowa.
He’s done. The Huckabee has had his fun.
Hey, you can’t lose with Chuck Norris. Things may seem dire now, but just wait until 5 minutes before the end. Chuck will save the day. Trust me on this one.
Good riddance. It is not like there aren’t enough tax and spend liberals running on the Republican side of the aisle.
Huckabee’s a more consistent conservative than McCain or Romney.
He should just have faith.
God will provide, or not, as the case may be. He doesn’t know what the big guy’s will for him is, does he?
Harry – Try an experiment. Take two fingers and hold your nose closed. Close your mouth. Blow it out your ears. Tell us what happens. We’ll wait.
I don’t want a consistent conservative. I like bartenders who pour consistent amounts of tonic to gin. I want a fiscal conservative who is also a awkward social libertarian. The kind of guy that’d authorize the use of a water cannon when homos are porkin’ each other in public, but one who’d hesitate to authorize the use of a tazer and mace unless the males were unruly once unknotted.
A balanced individualist, maybe.
thor – You wouldn’t reverse the order there? The taser could unknot the buggers buggering and the water canon could be used to clean them up before taking them into custody should arrests be made. Sanitation is important.
Difficult decisions to be sure.
Asshelmet,
“Huckabee’s a more consistent conservative than McCain or Romney.”
Prove it. Don’t assert it. It should be easy. You should be able to show that he knows something about foreign affairs, Cuba perhaps. You should be able to show that he does not reflexively raise taxes and fees.
Holy shit, thor. I haven’t laughed that hard since your love notes to Ron Mexico.
When I use the phrase asshelmet, clearly I am referring to Harry, the crusty sphincter.
Interesting observation, Daley.
I’ve four condos on my wing. Next to me is a bi chick. Then each of the next two units are owned by homo men. The heavy lisper actually votes Republican and hates his gay neighbor, who is loud and masculine, he’s tatted and his pierced nippies shimmer in the sun when he lays out by the pool. It’s wierd having to be the hetero minority peace maker between the two male polar opposites within the homosexual sect. “Heeez tho loud! Knock on hizz door, maykim sssstop being sssso noyzzzsee! I can’t do it. He hatessss me!”
This is a consistent conservative?
Uh, no.
Karl, great post but you’re missing the biggest point, why the fuck would the media waste its time with promoting the Hucktard when they can have McCain instead?
Thor – I kind of partial to the fish out of water, flop on the ground effect the taser produces is all. Fun for the whole family. Dad, why is that naked man with the nipple rings and the boner shaking on the ground? Ask your mom son.
Here in So Flo that scene is played out daily, daley. Speedos at their ankles making the poolside bushes shake! I’d mace and tazer their shaved asses. And that’s why I’ll never be elected to public office. 20,000 volts to me is just a warning of what’s to come if they can’t keep their peckers in their Speedos.
I don’t know why, but there is something about Huckabee that melts my heart. I don’t want him anywhere near the Presidency, but I can’t wish ill on him either. Even when I know he’s doing the wrong thing, I get mad at his wrongness and then feel sorry for him.
Mostly, I would be happy if all he wanted to do was go on talk shows and make Republicans look funny and likeable.
doubleplusundead,
The establishment media would prefer to cover both Huck and McCain. They would like to have Huck around because they are sure he would destroy the GOP if nominated. I think they like McCain because they think he would fracture the conservative movement.
I doubt many people here wish him ill, per se, but we do wish that he’d just shut the fuck up and go away.
Perhaps the limited resources you make note of force them to prioritize, Huck is still somewhat an unknown quantity and is pretty solid on a handful of issues, McCain’s got a rock-solid record of selling out and slobbing media knob, from the MSM perspective, Huck might have more total potential for damaging the GOP, but McCain is the safe bet.
MayBee,
Likability is a huge factor I have yet to fully address, but I have plenty o’ links bookmarked for just such a post.
Dissing Huck makes liberals like you better over drinks. If you do the same thing with McCain though you’re worse off than when you started. Obama is sacred and holy.
I think Huckabee makes a better preacher than a politician. I could see him heading up HHS, HUD or maybe Education, but I don’t want him in a position where he would try to float the FMA again. I think if I knew him, I would like him, generally.
I worry about McCain on everything other than the war, but would rather have him than either Hillary or Obama. I’d much rather have Obama than Hillary.
There is not one candidate that I love, or can really get excited about.