Mike Huckabee's Commentary On The News

July 6, 2022
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When a lie gets repeated so often that everyone thinks it’s true, it’s called “conventional wisdom” – maybe because it happens so often at political conventions. These days, the conventional wisdom is that far-left ideas are the accepted, objective truth and anyone who questions them is an extremist or a believer in “disinformation.” Don’t buy it.

Throughout the Bush-Obama era, the media kept repeating “failed conservative policies” until even a lot of so-called conservatives believed it. So the voters put Democrats fully in power. It resulted in a sluggish economy, depressed job growth, rising income inequality, reduced wealth and opportunities for minorities, rising class and racial divisions, and abroad, a decline in US prestige and leadership and the advancement and emboldening of our enemies, including a terrorist “JV team” metastasizing into a worldwide threat. Not to mention big government schemes imposed against the will of the people. In Obama’s very first midterm election, voters gave the House back to the Republicans.

Polls began to show that most Americans wanted the government to do less and spend less. In France, where an actual Socialist was elected President, his huge tax hikes crashed the economy and made socialism as popular with the French as cheese in a can. The media were shocked when voters turned right in the next election. They should’ve known that nothing turns people off of socialism like actually experiencing it. Ask a Cuban or Venezuelan.

The elites responded by doubling down on the arrogance, condescension and name-calling of those who dared to challenge their divine right to rule. The people were forced to make their point even more clearly by shutting down large sections of the country with Tea Party protests, and demanding their culture and secure national borders back, and finally by shocking the elites with the election of Donald Trump. The media, who assumed that everyone would vote for Hillary because everything they talked to did, were shocked.

Trump reversed virtually every Obama policy. Result: ISIS was crushed, peace started breaking out in the Middle East, illegal immigration plummeted, the economy boomed, and unemployment for all groups fell to record lows while real wages rose for the first time in decades. It took the artificial shutdown of that economy due to COVID-19 to crush it. In 2020, a relentless, four-year media assault against Trump and…other factors…brought the Democrats back into full power. And just as the economy was starting to rebound, Biden brought back all the Obama policies and crushed it again.

If you ever wanted a laboratory demonstration of whose policies work and whose don’t, you could just look at the past three Administrations. It’s like watching someone turn off the lights, turn them back on, then turn them off again.

It is a shame that voters have to keep relearning the hard way that top-down, big government solutions and leftist utopian fantasies don’t work in reality. Young people can almost be excused for believing in socialism for the same reason they believe in the Tooth Fairy: they are empty vessels who get filled with whatever adults pour into them. The leftists certainly know that. Many parents have recently woken up to how dangerously remiss we’ve been in allowing leftists to take over our schools and fill those precious vessels with mental pollution.

But Republicans who promised small government and fiscal responsibility have let us down, too. Too many let deficits skyrocket, stuffed budgets with pork, and became cheerleaders for big government and disdainful toward the very Americans who put them in office. These so-called “conservatives” slammed me in 2007 for not being a “real conservative” because I pointed out problems in the economy that were hurting working people and criticized the lack of oversight of Wall Street’s excesses. Two years later, they wanted to spend $700 billion of our grandkids’ money to save Wall Street from its excesses. They abandoned government’s rightful role as a tough-but-impartial referee and wanted to use its power to pick winners and losers in the market. Is that “real conservatism?”

The truth is that voters didn’t turn their backs on conservatism, Republican politicians did. And despite the media’s claim that “We’re all socialists now,” Democrats didn’t sweep to power in 2008 by claiming to be government-bloating tax-and-spenders, but by swearing they’d changed and were now fiscally responsible. Of course, once they gave Obama, Pelosi and Reid unlimited power, voters quickly realized their terrible mistake and gave the House back to the GOP in the next election. But too many Republicans had already squandered their credibility, so when Democrats ballooned the deficit, they could deflect criticism by simply pointing at their opponents’ own record.

In 2020, the endless media assaults on Trump and the false messaging that Biden was a moderate centrist hoodwinked the voters yet again into putting the Democrats back into power. From his first day in power, Biden surrounded himself with leftists who couldn’t wait to bloat government, reverse all of Trump’s successful policies, raise taxes, spend money like water, regulate everything that moves, and turn the whole country into a coast-to-coast version of one of the failing cities Democrats have run for decades. It didn’t take long for buyers’ remorse to hit Americans harder than COVID-19.

For a localized example of this pendulum effect, look at New York City. It became a nightmare until voters finally replaced Democrat David Dinkins with Republican Rudy Giuliani. Under Rudy, the Big Apple staged a huge comeback that was kept going by faux Republican Mike Bloomberg. But by then, it had been a long time since the bad old day. New Yorkers forgot how bad it could get. So they turned over the keys to Dinkins protégé Bill DeBlasio, and they soon found out how bad things could quickly turn. They still haven’t learned their lesson: they elected another Democrat who promised to fix things, but hasn’t. We’ll see how bad things have to get before they finally yell for the Republicans to come save them again.

As George Santayana observed, those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. No wonder Democrats hate teaching kids real American history.

From Jefferson’s belief that government closest to the people governs best to Reagan’s faith in free markets, from low taxes to letting markets instead of government make business decisions, conservative ideas work whenever they’re tried. Unfortunately, party leaders and the media are wildly out of touch with most Americans, and they are the ones with Hollywood, the media and social media acting as a 24-hour PR megaphone for bad leftist policies. This amplifies the liberal side and suppresses the conservative side so much that not only is the tail wagging the dog, but it’s like a Chihuahua’s tail wagging a St. Bernard. Too often, they succeed in hoodwinking the voters into giving them power again, despite decades of failure. But once in power, they quickly remind people why they should never be entrusted with it.

As that great Republican Abraham Lincoln observed, you can fool some of the people all of the time (they’re called “progressives”) and all the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. Let’s pray that this November will be another of those “won’t get fooled again” elections.

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Comments 21-30 of 40

  • Margaret Johnson

    07/06/2022 03:35 PM

    Well Mike, in my humble opinion, I’ll be surprised if there’s a ‘red wave’. Too many Demmies are moving out of blue states into red states and they’re forgetting to leave their Dem politics behind. Then they wonder why it’s turning into the same insanity they thought they left behind. I tell my kids & my grands that I’m glad I’m old but I sure pity them in the years to come. Hurry back Jesus…????

  • Floyd A Unger

    07/06/2022 03:20 PM

    Yup and absolutely

  • Henning Andersen

    07/06/2022 03:15 PM

    My wife and I both read your daily message as well as watch your fantastic programs on television.
    I am an immigrant from Denmark, arriving here at the age of 9 in August 1949. I have experienced this great country slowly declining the entire time I have been here. I became a citizen, served a tour of duty in the USMC and have had good jobs both as an employee and having my own business for 24 years before retiring.
    It is sad to see this country slip away from being the free country it once was. The more illegal aliens we allow to stay here, the more our society is deluded by people who do not cherish our culture and ways of life.
    This current administration is truly a ‘Trojan Horse’ opening us up to DISASTER in the future.

  • Carole Brinkhoff

    07/06/2022 03:09 PM

    I noticed that you did not acknowledge that the 2020 election was stolen by the elitists through various means.
    I don't believe we (the people) were hoodwinked at all.
    At least the ones who were paying attention

  • David Hinson

    07/06/2022 03:05 PM

    Mike, I agree with you! I also believe with all my heart that until Biblical teachings are stood on, the distractions of evil will continue.

  • Barry G.Rogers

    07/06/2022 02:45 PM

    I hope you exercise control of ads in your column. If so, what's with the top of the mast head offering Tarot card readings? Very dissapointed in you.

  • Fred Engelke

    07/06/2022 02:37 PM

    Our big problem we have turned our back on GOD, Americans need to look at the right person. Men got us into this problem, and only GOD can get us out. Remember Israel when they didn't toward God things didn't go well. We are in the same fix.

  • BEVERLY HOLLOWAY

    07/06/2022 02:26 PM

    Your statement that “ In 2020, the endless media assaults on Trump and the false messaging that Biden was a moderate centrist hoodwinked the voters yet again into putting the Democrats back into power.” Was very disappointing to read. Do you not believe that was a stolen election? Honestly? I’m really disappointed if you don’t because to me it was an out and out deliberate streamlined event. With your daughter running for governor how can you expect her to win? How can you trust anything. I’m just floored and I’m disappointed Governor Huckabee. I need better information than that. I don’t know that I want to follow you any longer if this is your belief.

  • Lana Martin

    07/06/2022 02:22 PM

    I agree with most of what you wrote - 100% agree that the majority of Republicans cower to the Dems - including my Senators in Arkansas - Tom Cotton and John Booze man - let's not forget French Hill - You described every one of them above. I must point out that you and Sarah supported the Booze in this last election - I wish you had withheld your comments -
    Just one more thing - the majority of conservatives DO NOT believe the voters
    cast a ballot for a basement dwelling, racist old man who didn't even campaign - The voters did not choose Biden - Those "republicans in name only" (including
    the 2 named above) did not stand up for a fair election. I wait on the Lord - HE
    is in control - so HE knows I would love to live long enough to see the TRUTH -

  • Paul Kern

    07/06/2022 01:56 PM

    It looks like God will have to send the bull into the Left's china shop to eradicate them and the sissies on the right who are selling the nation for a bowl of stew! Like Esau did!

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