Mike Huckabee

In Saturday’s South Carolina GOP primary, former President Trump beat former SC Gov. Nikki Haley by about 60-40%. Normally, when someone loses their own home state by 20 points, it’s a pretty solid sign that the campaign needs to start packing up its banners and bunting, but Haley vowed to continue pressing on -- at least through Super Tuesday, even though polls show Trump well ahead in all states with no path to victory for Haley.

https://www.westernjournal.com/nikki-haley-begins-frantic-final-stretch-gives-potential-date-wrap-campaign/

Haley and her supporters, and all Trump haters everywhere, tried to paint her landslide loss as a victory because Trump’s 20-point margin was slightly less than the polls predicted. Also, they like to claim that it shows a substantial number of Republicans want a candidate other than Trump (they say 40%, but in an open primary state, we have no way of knowing how many Haley voters were just Trump-hating Democrat crossover voters who will vote for Biden in November.)  But in 2016, in a more crowded field, Trump won the SC primary with about 33%. Does that mean he went on to lose the general election because two-thirds of Republicans wanted another candidate in the primary?

Adding to the gravity of Haley’s loss is the fact that she and groups supporting her blew millions of dollars in South Carolina, outspending Trump and his PACs by 10-1.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/nikki-haley-s-backers-spent-millions-boosting-her-bid-in-south-carolina/ar-BB1iRAPG

Haley’s refusal to face reality has a lot of people asking, “What’s up with that?” Some think she must believe Trump will be taken out of the race by Democrat lawfare (and at this point, the vicious partisan nature of those indictments and convictions has become so obvious that I have to distrust either the motives or the intelligence of anyone who refuses to condemn them.) Others are questioning whether she’s been offered some big bucks deal by wealthy Democrats to stay in the race just to keep the party divided.

That might explain why some of her donors are liberals, and they continue to shovel money down what is clearly a bottomless pit at this point. But at least you can’t say that about Americans For Prosperity, the Koch-funded PAC. They’ve been helping to bankroll Haley’s campaign, but after South Carolina, they’re sticking a fork in it and calling it done.

https://redstate.com/benkew/2024/02/25/its-over-koch-network-pulls-plug-on-bankrolling-nikki-haleys-campaign-n2170565

Even though it seems a foregone conclusion that no matter what dirt the Dems throw at him, Trump will be the GOP nominee, Republicans need to be on their guard against complacency. Every dirty trick in the book (by Saul Alinsky) and more will be hurled at him by Democrats desperate to keep him from regaining power. There’s even talk that if Trump wins but Dems retake the House, they’ll refuse to certify his election. Or as they call that when anyone else even talks about it, “insurrection” and “destroying our democracy.” Is that the most rank hypocrisy and double standard? Of course, but what else is new?

I could link to a dry news article on that, but I think you’d rather hear about it from Kurt Schlichter:

https://townhall.com/columnists/kurtschlichter/2024/02/26/will-the-democrats-let-donald-trump-be-president-if-he-wins-n2635684

Finally, to ensure nobody gets complacent, here’s an article on some worrisome indicators even in Trump’s South Carolina win that Republicans need to heed and prepare for.

https://redstate.com/streiff/2024/02/26/trumps-win-in-south-carolina-is-a-warning-not-a-triumph-n2170567

Mike Huckabee

With the South Carolina 2024 Republican presidential primary and Super Tuesday fast approaching, change is needed urgently, or it’s lights out for our great republic.

It is crucial that American voters are well informed as they go to the polls. In 2024, we have witnessed some progress in putting America first, from states’ fight against the fentanyl epidemic to the historic impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, but we’re a long way from the November election.

With the media, Washington deep state and economic globalists working as an unholy trinity, we won’t have the luxury President Biden enjoys of endless vacation days and ice cream by the gallon. With primary voters going to the polls, remember that former President Donald Trump is the only one who has a track record of fighting for the forgotten men and women of America.

Mr. Trump fought for manufacturing jobs and delivered. The only thing the establishment and their wholly owned government-funded bureaucrats manufacture are phony indictments designed to keep you from even getting to vote for Mr. Trump.

Our focus on putting American interests first begins with protecting American manufacturing workers and their families from foreign countries that cheat. For years, elites in Washington have failed to protect American manufacturing workers from job-killing trade deals.

In South Carolina, the aluminum industry supports hundreds of good-paying manufacturing jobs. In 2015, the domestic aluminum industry was on the brink of collapsing due to China, Russia, the Middle East and other countries flooding the global marketplace with unfairly traded aluminum. With aluminum plants in South Carolina and across the country set to close, the future was bleak for thousands of aluminum workers and their families.

To save American jobs, Mr. Trump took bold and decisive action by signing into law the Section 232 aluminum tariffs, which levied a 10% tariff on all foreign aluminum imports. It wasn’t just protecting jobs. It protected U.S. national security. Mr. Trump showed tremendous leadership by imposing tariffs on all foreign aluminum imports to protect us from cheating countries. Mr. Trump stood with workers. It’s time we stand with him.

As voters go to the polls in South Carolina, the positive impact of Mr. Trump’s policies can be seen firsthand there. The nation’s newest aluminum smelter, Century Aluminum Mount Holly outside Charleston, provides more than 450 direct aluminum jobs, contributing more than $700 million in annual economic activity.

Due to Mr. Trump’s America First trade policies, this plant restarted half of production capacity and invested over $90 million, bringing the plant to 75% of overall production capacity, creating hundreds of new good-paying aluminum manufacturing jobs. The Mount Holly smelter produces aluminum, a crucial component for medical equipment and military applications that keep America safe.

While some people may not have liked Mr. Trump’s tough-guy approach, his policies actually put America first. Across the country, the Section 232 aluminum tariffs created more aluminum jobs and have been instrumental in allowing the U.S. to strengthen its domestic supply chains so we don’t have to rely on China, Russia or the Middle East for aluminum that our military needs in times of crisis. Mr. Trump didn’t just talk tough. He was tough on our adversaries, and we were stronger because of it.

Mr. Trump showed and continues to show tremendous leadership in standing up to countries that seek to harm the United States. Government-owned Russian aluminum producers provide military and financial backing to Russia’s assault against the people of Ukraine. According to media reports, some of Russia’s largest aluminum producers recruit soldiers to fight in Ukraine and fund their military salaries in support of Vladimir Putin’s war.

Mr. Trump imposed sanctions on Russian aluminum in the past. Mr. Biden has failed to enforce violations of the original deal, suspending them. Because of Mr. Biden’s weak leadership, two more U.S. smelters have been forced to shut down.

The Biden administration has failed to impose sanctions against Russian state-owned aluminum producers. Mr. Trump saved the U.S. aluminum industry, and he would not have weakened our country by allowing these smelters to close. Let me be clear: Mr. Trump will always stand with American manufacturing workers and put America first.

As the South Carolina primary and Super Tuesday approach, voters must demonstrate unwavering support for our country and the leaders who will fight for you and your family. Mr. Trump will always fight for the forgotten men and women of America, and he will never forget our great American manufacturing workers. As voters go to the polls, let’s stand shoulder to shoulder with Mr. Trump and allow him to finish the work he started in 2016 so we can truly Make America Great Again.

This column originally ran in the Washington Times. You can read it here.

• Mike Huckabee was the 44th governor of Arkansas and a 2016 Republican candidate for president. He is currently host of “Huckabee” on TBN and a Fox News contributor.

Mike Huckabee

Last night, Sean Hannity asked me if I really believed that black and Hispanic voters who are abandoning Biden in polls would actually vote for Trump. He believes they’ll follow historic precedent and fall back in line by November, voting once again for Democrats who make big promises they never keep and scare them with lies about Republicans being racists who want to bring back slavery. Remember Biden telling a black audience, “They want to put y’all back in chains”? Rest assured, we have no interest in bringing back that cursed Democrat institution that Republican Abe Lincoln fought a Civil War to end.

My response is that, while I’m sure many disgruntled Democrat voters will ultimately yield to habit and mark the (D) box to keep letting the same party destroy their lives in perpetuity, I suspect that this year, things might be at least a little different. Some might actually switch parties, while other voters the Dems rely on might just stay home and not vote in big enough numbers to make a difference. Partly because Biden has been such a HORRENDOUS President, and partly because it hasn’t been so long since Trump's term (good jobs, rising wages, low inflation, secure borders, no wars) that people can make an A-B comparison (this is why they have to personally demonize Trump so hard and keep people from hearing what he has to say.) But mostly because of the illegal immigrant invasion Biden has set off.

When it was just the border states’ problem, it was easy for blue state voters to ignore. But the brilliant plan by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to bus just a fraction of the problem northward to “sanctuary cities” that claimed they welcomed them has created a black swan disruption event. Pious liberal city leaders are getting a taste of their own medicine, and it’s bitter stuff, indeed. Residents of these cities are sick of seeing their kids’ schools, parks and recreation facilities taken over by illegal aliens and their city services bankrupted. All while the Democrats they elected ignore their constituents and lavish the invaders with free food, debit cards and hotel rooms (that they trash.) Illegals can even beat up cops and get released on zero bail while flashing an obscene hand gesture to America.

https://redstate.com/nick-arama/2024/02/07/illegal-aliens-arrested-n2169763

Here are just a couple of examples of how it’s better to be an illegal immigrant in a blue state than a taxpaying citizen:

New York’s Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul is relaxing requirements and loosening red tape to make it easier to get a state government job. That sounds good, except that it’s to make it easier for illegal immigrants to get government jobs instead of American workers.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/saraharnold/2024/02/07/dem-gov-hochul-relaxes-requirements-for-illegals-to-get-government-jobs-n2634877

And in today’s MUST-READ, Howie Carr of the Boston Herald talked to people familiar with the illegal aliens enjoying free stays in local hotels and motels. These “undocumented Democrats,” as he calls them, have learned very quickly that in the People’s Republic of Massachusetts, everything will be provided to them for free and only suckers work for a living. The biggest joke is calling them “migrants” because why would they ever migrate anywhere else?

https://www.bostonherald.com/2024/02/07/howie-carr-migrant-motels-morph-into-extended-stay/?

That’s why I think this might be different from previous elections. A struggling single mom working two jobs to pay the bills and who normally votes Democrat might just look at all of this and think, “I’m voting for Trump. No matter what they say, he’s GOT to be better than this.”

Mike Huckabee

Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips, the one Democrat who dared to challenge Biden for the Presidency (and pulled over 20% of the vote in the New Hampshire primary), is running against him from the left on some issues and the right on others. And in one case, he’s just challenging Biden from the standpoint of common sense and basic human decency.

https://www.westernjournal.com/dem-congressman-calls-party-completely-delusional-live-cnn-experienced-trump-rally/

Having zero positive accomplishments to run on, Biden has made his entire reelection campaign about demonizing Trump and his supporters, painting about 72 million Trump voters as racist, extremist, terrorist, fascist enemies of “democracy.” But Phillips, I’m sure, shocked Biden’s sycophants on CNN by telling them, “My party is completely delusional right now.”

Phillips did something that none of Trump’s critics will do: he actually attended a Trump rally and met some MAGA voters.

Phillips said, “I saw the line of people waiting in the cold for hours. And I thought, ‘What the heck?'” He watched Trump greet about 50 people in line, “every single one of them thoughtful, hospitable, friendly — all of them so frustrated that they feel nobody’s listening to them but Donald Trump.” As for the “white nationalist” smear, he said it was a diverse crowd, including people who’d never been to a Trump event before.

Phillips believes his party would do a lot better if it listened to the concerns of working Americans and showed them some respect instead of demonizing them. But good luck with that. They not only won’t attend a Trump rally, their housepet media outlets won’t even air his speeches. They really think that if they cover their eyes and ears (sadly, they never cover their mouths), they can make reality go away. It’s a basic tenet of leftism. They’ve now reached the “hermetically sealed echo chamber” stage. 

I hope that in November, Trump’s victory will leave them as shocked and traumatized as it did in 2016, when they also never saw it coming because they absolutely refused to look.