Count this as a rare occurrence in which the views of liberal and conservative bloggers match up not only with each other, but with the traditional media. All together now: Mike Huckabee won last night’s debate.
That’s good news for the former Arkansas governor, who now leads in Iowa, according to the latest Rasmussen Reports survey.
Townhall’s Mary Katherine Ham writes, "I'm giving it to Huckabee. He's always good in debates, always well-spoken. He parried attacks on his fiscal record well, deflecting with a lot of talk about the Fair Tax. He also got the chance to point out that he had signed the no-tax pledge, which is better than several others have done. He's riding a high, he came across as sensitive and smart, and was able to obscure his non-conservative record."
Nearly 10,000 Daily Kos readers chimed in on last night’s debate. Huckabee came in second with 34 percent. Ron Paul was the only other candidate who received more than 10 percent of the vote. Technically, Paul won the poll with 48 percent. However, because his campaign is primarily an online and fundraising phenomenon, those results should be measured with some skepticism.
Meanwhile, MyDD’s Todd Beeton says, "For me, it was a no-brainer. In fact, during the debate I was inspired to call my Republican parents to see if they were watching (my Dad had previously expressed enthusiasm for Huckabee.) They weren't. I went on to tell my Mom that if I were a Republican (she laughed) and I was watching the debate, I just don't see how you vote for anyone but Huckabee. He answered questions directly with a combination of humor and emotional resonance that almost had me convinced he could sell a tax hike and free college for illegal immigrants to a wingnut."
CBN’s David Brody said Huckabee wins on style, regardless of what you think of his substance: “Put aside the issues for a moment. Don’t you get the sense that Huckabee comes across as an extremely effective communicator? Whether you agree with him or not, it seemed like every issue he talked about Wednesday had a well thought out, coherent argument behind it.”
Finally, Soren Dayton adds: "Mike Huckabee’s handling of the death penalty question was masterful. The complexity of his answer to the literalism of the Bible question was even better, especially if you understand the denominational-political overtones."
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