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From The Scrooge Report

Through thousands of military burials, Memorial Honor Detail volunteers at Riverside National Cemetery have folded the American flag 13 times and recited the significance of every fold to survivors of those being laid to rest.

The first fold, a narrator tells relatives, represents life, the second a belief in eternal life.

The 11th fold celebrates Jewish war veterans and “glorifies the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.”

A single complaint lodged against the words for the 11th fold recently prompted the National Cemetery Administration to ban the entire recital at all 125 national cemeteries.

There are no words…….

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“Center stage at the renowned Surf Ballroom, Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee gave the bass guitar all he had: Born to be Wild, followed by R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A. Tweens, meanwhile, snapped cell phone pictures of the 52-year-old candidate and occasional rocker. Huckabee laughed, his dimples deepening in his cheeks.” ¹

His campaign is hot. Life is good.

In the face of the recent spate of attacks on his credibility and his record as governor of Arkansas , Mike Huckabee remains enthusiastic and optimistic.

“I must be doing well,” Huckabee said Saturday morning in response when he was informed of Romney’s comment.

Huckabee for the first time passed Romney in a national poll on Friday. The Rasmussen Reports, considered one of the nation’s most accurate polling firm, announced Friday that “for the first time ever” Huckabee moved into the top four.
[…]
“I guess I’d be coming after me too,” Huckabee said. “I’d also be crying, if I’d spent all that money.” ²

Time’s Karen Tumulty even says of the attacks, that the attention “is a good thing.” ³

I agree.

Long stymied by their self-imposed quagmire of Dixiephobia, over-the-top rhetoric from the Left, and wildly exaggerated claims of “theocracy” serve only to unite Southern Christians. Left-wing interest groups frame their criticism around their pet issues, but these early attacks signal a growing fear of the potential generational loss of Judiciary favor. Their fear will serve to drive a form of rhetorical arson in the general election that will make the current anti-war silliness look tame by comparison.

Critics on the Right, most notably John Fund and Pat Toomey are advocating for their own self interests. Claiming the mantle of pro-business and pro-growth, their opposition to the Fair Tax reveals them to be neither. They represent the status quo - not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Toomey, along with some $2 million in advertising from the Club for Growth, ran an unsuccessful campaign to unseat Arlen Specter. He left Congress in 2004 to become President of …wait for it… the Club for Growth. ⁴ Toomey spends most of his time criticizing other Republicans for not being as conservative as he is. If a $2 million advertising war chest wasn’t enough to convince Pennsylvania voters of his conservative bona fides, then perhaps his brand of conservatism is not mainstream.

Nor are the entrenched interests on Wall Street fans of Huckabee. Labeling him a self-absorbed populist who favors the interests of Main Street over Wall Street, Fund’s preference for Romney’s or Guiliani’s pliable brand of fiscal policy is certainly understandable. Huckabee left the Governor’s office with approval ratings in the high 60’s, a nearly $1 Billion budget surplus, and has taken the American’s for Tax Relief pledge, which Guiliani hasn’t signed. ⁵ His commitment to good governance and fiscal responsibility really isn’t an issue to fair-minded Republicans.

The one issue that unites all Republicans is National Security. It is the reason that there is still such a large number of ideologically diverse candidates in the Republican field. These are candidates who have differences on a range of issues. Sorting out those differences is what the Primary process is all about. And, while some factions within the party have decided on a candidate, the large Christian base of the party has not. Huckabee is still largely unknown nationally, but that is quickly changing. As the campaign money continues to roll in, the buzz becomes measurable, and momentum undeniable, for Huckabee, life is good, indeed.

Update: mydd compares the Huck on-line campaign to Dean ‘03. That, my friends is high praise.

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This might be some sort of record….three open threads in a row….

“Please donate for the benefit of our friends and neighbors in Southern California”

The boy can sure do a lot with a nasal drawl and 3 chords….
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Enjoy!

Gnite y’all

“Please donate for the benefit of our friends and neighbors in Southern California”