New York Times with a great read…
The biggest increase under Mr. Huckabee was mandated by the Arkansas Supreme Court, which in 2002 ruled that the state’s school financing procedure was unconstitutional and ordered a more equitable plan – which led to $400 million in new taxes.
Some other taxes came about directly because of Mr. Huckabee’s efforts. After becoming governor in 1996, he traveled the length of the Arkansas River within the state to win support for an additional one-eighth-cent sales tax to improve the state parks system.
Early in his tenure, he pushed through a three-cent-a-gallon gasoline tax increase and a four-cent increase on diesel fuel, along with a bond issue, to improve a road system that was considered one of the worst in the country.
And when the state lacked enough of the necessary matching money for federal Medicaid payments to its nursing homes, Mr. Huckabee and the legislature enacted a $5.25-a-day “bed tax” on nursing homes, which won the grudging approval of the state’s nursing home industry.
All of this has become fodder for the Club for Growth and other antitax groups. At the Republican YouTube debate on Wednesday, an advertisement shown by a rival candidate, Fred D. Thompson, directly attacked Mr. Huckabee’s tax policies.
“We’ve been making noise about Huckabee since Day 1 of his candidacy,” said Nachama Soloveichik, a spokeswoman for the Club for Growth, which analyzes the tax policies of Republican candidates. “There is a groundswell among conservatives that this cannot be our guy.”
Both Democratic and Republican politicians and political observers say the legislature had little choice but to raise taxes from 2002 to 2004 given the fiscal challenges facing Arkansas.
The biggest tax increases came in 2003 and 2004. A sagging economy had cut into revenues and the state faced a 2002 court order to equalize financing among school districts.
“We had our backs against the wall; we had no choice,” said State Senator Bobby Glover, a Democrat who has been in the legislature off and on since 1973. “Our only other choice was to take more from prisons and heath care and other agencies.”
As Governor, a man has a responsibility to improve things such as roads and schools for the people.
“Republicans were fighting for the tax increase,” said State Senator Denny Altes, the Republican minority leader of the State Senate who did not support the package. “There were few votes against it. Some of the most conservative people, both Democrats and Republicans, supported it. It passed by 90 percent.”
Huckabee can get things done. Period.
December 1st, 2007 at 11:59 pm
folks,
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071201/NEWS09/71130037/-1/caucus
once this poll is posted in RCP, Huckabee will be leading Mitt in Iowa….
WOW!
December 2nd, 2007 at 12:03 am
Sampo every canidate is in danger of the Huck surge. Ironically you and Metro have a pushed a canidate who imo will overtake giuliani and McCain (both canidates I wouldn’t mind endorsing). I’m very much against Huck.
Check out why at http://www.huckabeefacts.org
December 2nd, 2007 at 12:13 am
When the New York Times is your most vigorous defender, you’re going to have an awfully difficult time in a Republican primary. As I’ve said before, liberals and liberal organizations defend Huckabee because he’s one of them. He had a worse tax record then Bill Clinton who, incidently, the New York Times quite liked as well.
December 2nd, 2007 at 12:28 am
I can just see Hillary now running to Huckabee’s right fiscally and in foreign policy and national security. A Huckabee nomination proves Howard Dean’s “white Christian party” comment correct. Plus, you know the Clintons have more dirt on Huck than he does on them. Billary has Huck’s stolen files already committed to memory.
December 2nd, 2007 at 12:52 am
All you need to know about this article is….NEW YORK TIMES?? Are you serious? The New York Times is a leberal newspaper. So if they are defending a candidate, what does that say about the candidate?? They must hope that he wins b/c they know that they are that close to getting a Liberal Democrat elected, i wouldnt be passing this article around to my supporter’s if i’m a huckabee worker or volunteer thats for sure!
December 2nd, 2007 at 1:00 am
Bryan,
Read the whole article it is surprisingly balanced. I think we all know that every candidate in the democratic part is far more liberal than Huck, so it is obvious to me that this is not a reflection on him.
December 2nd, 2007 at 7:48 am
Mark,
No we don’t know that. If Bill Richardson wasn’t such a defeatist on foreign policy, I’d vote for him in a second over Huckabee. If Joe Biden somehow got the nomination, I’d likely do the same. Just because you say Huckabee is more conservative then Democrats, doesn’t make it so. His record and rhetoric speaks for itself. His support among hard-left blogs speaks for itself. Here is another quote I just found on the illustrious “conservative” Huckabee over at DailyKos.
“He actually cares about people and is a hard line collectivist whereas Republicans care about white heterosexuals and noone else.”
Yup. Hard-line collectivist. Sounds about right.
December 2nd, 2007 at 4:13 pm
putting aside a soft record on taxes and immigration can someone plese tell me something noteworthy huck has accomplished besides a good speach? All this posoitive media huck is getting from the libs has got to make us wonder.
December 2nd, 2007 at 4:54 pm
Steve,
Huck has signed pro-life legislation (hooray for the so-cons) and took Arkansas from a budget deficit to an $800 million budget surplus (hooray for the fi-cons).