Radio Free JoJo

It seems that Mike Huckabee’s win in Iowa has struck a negative chord with establishment Republicans. Here is a guy who is way out of the Washington mainstream trounces by nine percentage points a candidate that out spent him 10 to 1.

In the days leading up to Iowa, the affable Huckabee appeared on TV talking head shows lashing out at the “Wall Street to Washington Axis,” the apparent Republican establishment of king-makers that epitomize the phrase, “follow the money.” Today in the New York Times, several Washington insiders are quoted regarding their dismay at the rise of Huckabee, and how it helps John McCain, at least in New Hampshire.

A couple points: one, there continues to be a severe lack of understanding of the evangelical Christian voter and what is important to them as a candidate. Even Rush is in trouble with this. The evangelical isn’t conservative for conservatism sake, if that means that priorities like social justice, basic freedoms (such as the right to life), and fairness are at stake. The tenets of scripture to “act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly before your God” (Micah 6:8) are a higher calling to these ones.

Two: Thursday’s win, as well as what could happen in South Carolina will be a continuation of the insurgency of the religious right caused by twelve years of disappointment and disillusionment. The positive side is that the evangelicals didn’t sit on their hands like what happened last November when the Dems took back the House and Senate; the got involved with gusto. However, I’m afraid that Obama may be right the President if he keeps winning and the GOP picks a nominee that falls flat with their most important yet most misunderstood constituency. There is also this feeling that the Republicans have taken the evangelical block for granted (“where else will they go?”), which, of course, they do at their peril.

Finally, no matter what the spin, the average Joe looks at the political landscape and concludes that the deck is stacked against them. That’s why the Huckabee-articulated “axis” resonates. Money flows from lower Manhattan, to K Street and the lobby-haven, to Capitol Hill back to Wall Street. Gas is going to $4.00 a gallon this summer while the oil companies profit and wages continue to stagnate.  It’s easy for populism, Huckabee-style, to be adopted by Christian families struggling to pay their mortgage, their energy bill, and their tithe to the church. Meanwhile they see, rightly or not, moneyed interests getting a free ride.

That’s why that LaGuardia-Reagan National shuttle flight might not be so cheery these days.

The summer of my 16th birthday, I had a great part in the annual Erie School District Summer Theatre program at Tech Memorial (it’s called Footlights Theatre now, directed by an alumnus from my era, David Mitchell). The show that year was The Music Man, the story of a con man going legit in River City, Iowa. I played the grocer Ewart Dunlop, one of the school board/quartet members.  Until Harold Hill taught us to sing in harmony, we played those school board members as bullheaded, stubborn and argumentative, just like in the song “Iowa Stubborn”.

Not since that summer show have I paid so much attention to Iowa as I have in the past month. So tonight, on the eve of that state’s caucuses (the Latin neuter plural would be “cauci”) pretty much anyone interested on where our country is headed is holding their breaths to see what those Hawkeyes are going to decide as far as candidates go.

Pre-caucus polls are not much help, only showing a slight edge to Sen. Obama for the Democrats, and Gov. Huckabee for the Republicans. It really is anyone’s show, which makes me wonder if after the incredible millions of dollars spent and hundreds of hours campaigning, that Iowa will turn out to be mostly inconsequential in the long run.

Remember, in the not too distant past, the Iowa caucuses were a novelty, a place where fringe candidates (remember when Pat Robertson won?) could get some bragging rights, maybe a fundraising bounce, and not much else. New Hampshire was always the starter state, with Super Tuesday really sifting out the winners and losers.

This wacko front-loaded primary schedule in 2008 is supposed to make Iowa and New Hampshire ultra-critical, but I’m not seeing that. I think that for the top-funded candidates, this horse race is going to be fluid for at least a month, through Super Tuesday, Feb. 5th. Certainly we should have apparent winners by the time the Pennsylvania primary rolls around on April 22nd.  But for now, the most open presidential race in a half-century remains wide open, no matter what those stubborn Hawkeyes decide.

Welcome 2008! In the past year I really have been enjoying writing in my blog. With the help of bloggy friends like Dennis Weed (erieblogs.com), Peter Panepento (globalerie.com), and Jack Tirak (eriemediablog.com), who have been so kind to add me to their blogrolls, I have been encouraged in keeping up to date and relevant with my posts.

 My greatest appreciation goes to you, loyal reader and commenter. I’m really grateful for your willingness to take a moment to read my takes, and perhaps contribute to the conversation. Thank you for being a most important part of this endeavor.

 I hope you’ll like our new look for the new year. I promise to keep the topics lively and positive, and I hope you’ll share this address with your friends. All the best in the new year!