This Friday, January 25th 2008, a Day of Prayer has been called for Kenya. We are asking every Kenyan, every friend of Kenyans, everywhere to take time to make a concerted prayer for Kenya. On January 25th, make a point of setting aside time to pray for Kenya , it does not have to be a long time but it must be a deliberate effort to pray for specific things about Kenya “

We have been in contact with a couple of pastors in Kenya, Pastor James and Pastor Daniel. Things are still crazy there. There are riots in the streets, and some people were actually killed by police just this week due to rioting in the area called Homa Bay. That is where Pastor Daniel lives. Houses are still being burned down as well.

Pastor James says that the price of food has sky-rocketed, and transporting goods is even more expensive. He has many staying at his small church. He is helping to feed them and keep them safe. He says that some schools have opened, but they will not let their children go there because of safety concerns getting back and forth. They do not go out of their homes after 12:00 noon because it is too dangerous. Pastor James says he has never seen anything like this.”

Both of these quotations are from an email I received from a member of our church who has been to Kenya in the past to preach and minister to the poor. Please pray.

I went back and re-evaluated my support for Mike Huckabee as the Republican nominee for President of the United States.

When you write it out like that, it sounds serious, doesn’t it? Well, a lot of people don’t take Mr. Huckabee too seriously. Or else they do believe he is serious, and they don’t like what he’s serious about. I went to his website again and read his official statements on the issues. Here’s my (re)evaluation:

Border Security and Immigration Enforcement: First Mr. Huckabee says build a fence. This issue is one where Huckabee and I differ. Building a fence along the border is the most expensive boondoggle I can imagine, and if anyone can tell me how it would work to keep anyone out who was smart enough to go over, under or around the fence, please share your expertise. However, the rest of Huckabee’s immigration policy sounds reasonable enough. More border patrol agents. Easier and faster legal immigration. Closer attention to documents. More sanctions on employers who hire illegal immigrants. Those all sound like sensible things to do even if they won’t fix the problem completely.

Education and the Arts: Huckabee believes that art and music are an important part of education and that every child should receive a quality education. Those are innocuous positions that probably every candidate for any office could affirm. Huckabe also supports homeschooling, charter schools, and public school choice. Most importantly, Mr. Huckabee says that we need “a clear distinction between federal and state roles in education. While there is value in the ‘No Child Left Behind’ law’s effort to set high standards, states must be allowed to develop their own benchmarks.” I believe that education is first of all the responsibility of the parents, then of the local community, then the states. The federal government should have little or no role in education policy.

Health Care: No universal health care system. Huckabee advocates “market-based approaches” and “consumer-based health care.” His philosophy, again, sounds reasonable to me.

Taxes and the Economy: Fair Tax. I don’t see why this consumption tax is a bad thing nor why some people are making fun of the idea. I’m certainly no economist, but I like the idea of at least trying something different.

We’ll be taxed on what we decide to buy, not what we happen to earn. We won’t be taxed on what we choose to save or the interest those savings earn. The tax will apply only to new goods, so we can reduce our taxes further by buying a used car or computer. . . . Expert analyses have shown that the FairTax lowers the lifetime tax burden of all of us: single or married; working or retired; rich, poor or middle class.

So, yeah, why not?

Counter-Terrorism: Huckabee emphasizes the “war of ideas” while maintaining that we must continue to fight a physical war against terrorists and terrorist enclaves. He wants to expand the army, increase the defense budget, and “fight smart” against terrorists, using all our resources: “political, economic, diplomatic, and intelligence weapons as well as our military might.” I’m with him all the way, and I can’t see what withdrawal will get us other than another 9/11. Specifically, Huckabee thinks we should stay in Iraq until Iraq is a stable ally in the region. I do too.

Guns: On this issue, I’m a Republican heretic. I see no reason why individual citizens should own assault weapons and other guns that are essentially weapons of war. However, no Republicans are with me on this notion, so I have to give Huckabee and the rest a pass on the issue of gun control.

Judiciary: Huckabee says, “I firmly believe that the Constitution must be interpreted according to its original meaning, and flatly reject the notion of a ‘living Constitution.’ The meaning of the Constitution cannot be changed by judicial fiat.” I agree.

Sanctity of Life and Marriage: Mr. Huckabee says, “I support and have always supported passage of a constitutional amendment to protect the right to life. My convictions regarding the sanctity of life have always been clear and consistent, without equivocation or wavering. I believe that Roe v. Wade should be over-turned.”
Also, “I support and have always supported passage of a federal constitutional amendment that defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman.”
That’s not wholesale tampering with the constitution, folks. That’s putting into law what should have been there all along. And the fact the Mike Huckabee is unequivocally committed to both life and marriage is the main reason I’m supporting him. Call me a one issue, or two issue, voter if you want, but I believe that the right to life is the defining issue of our generation. I believe that if we do not extend justice to the most helpless members of our society, sooner or later, we will cease to be a functioning society. And Huckabee is the only one of the Republican candidates for president who speaks passionately and credibly on this issue. The others (except for Guiliani who doesn’t bother) seem to me to be toing the party line because they must, but I’m not confident that they will even try to do anything about the horror that allows hundreds of thousands (854,122 in 2003 in the U.S.) of babies to be killed before they are even born every year.

Dave Barry asks: And is there any TV show that Mike Huckabee will NOT appear on? Are we going to see him one of these nights on Deal or No Deal? Why does anybody, aside from Howie Mandel’s immediate family, watch that show?

And I say to Mr. Barry, why not? If Howie Mandel, whoever he is, and his family, are willing to listen to what Mr. Huckabee has to say, why shouldn’t he appear on their show? I wish Mr. Huckabee would make an appearance on my blog. I’d love to interview him and ask him a few questions.

Such as:

What do you really think about education and homeschooling? I’m seeing lots of prominent homeschoolers who support Huckabee and others who adamantly oppose your candidacy. What can you, Mr. Huckabee, say that will reassure the opposition that you will support parents’ rights to direct the education of their own children?

I’ve heard allegations that while you were governor of Arkansas you and your wife were the recipients of many, many gifts, “more than $112,000 in one year alone.” Are these allegations true? If so, was your governorship compromised by the gifts you received from businesses and individuals?

How would your “fair tax” proposal actually help me, the mother of eight children in a one-salary household in which that salary is solidly middle-class, but still hard to stretch to meet the needs of ten people?

Mr. Huckabee, you have said that the first step towards immigration reform is securing our borders. How would you secure our borders? (Please don’t tell me you’re going to build a fence!)

O.K., that’s four fair questions. I could probably look around and do some research and get at least partial answers to those questions. But if Mr. Huckabee wants to leave a comment . . .

As of now, I’m supporting Mike Huckabee for president because I like his principled stand on issues such as the right to life, tax reform, traditional marriage, and national security. Unlike some of the other candidates, he comes across as honest and straightforward. If you’re not Mike Huckabee, but you have the answers to any or all of my questions, feel free to leave a comment, too.

As for Dave Barry, I’d be happy to interview him, too. I could change the name and a few of the details, use the same questions, and probably get a laugh at the very least.

Norma, Collecting My Thoughts, tells who she’d vote for if the election were today, and my choices were:

Between Gore and Obama, I’d vote for Gore.

Between Hillary and Obama, I’d vote for Obama.

Between Hillary and Edwards, I’d vote for Edwards.

Between Gore and Rudy, I’d vote for Gore.

Between Hillary and Rudy, I’d stay home/write in.

Between Gore and Romney, I’d vote for Romney.

Between Romney and Huckabee, I’d vote for Mike.

I’ll add:

Hilary vs. almost anyone, I’ll vote for almost anyone.

Rudy vs. almost any other Republican, I’ll vote for the other Republican.

Rudy vs. Hilary, I don’t trust either of them, so why vote unless I can figure out something useful to do with my vote?

It’s your Monday morning, Veteran’s Day, Mike Huckabee for President post. As usual, your mileage may vary.

Author Randy Alcorn supports Huckabee for President: “In my opinion, Huckabee doesn’t just know the words; he knows the music. You can see the authenticity in him. I heard him say, ‘I do not spell G-O-D G.O.P.’ That means he’s a follower of Christ before he’s a follower of the Republican party. He’s not overbearing in his spiritual beliefs, but he never apologizes for them. He’s humble and self-effacing. He’s not in your face, yet he’s firm in conviction. I actually think this guy says what he believes and believes what he says. And I have to say, I don’t think that about most politicians.”

Southern Baptist leader and pastor Rick Scarborough supports Huckabee: “Some criticize his alleged “big” government approach to problem solving. I’d rather debate that issue with a candidate than abortion, same-sex marriage and marital infidelity.”

So, why in the world, would televangelist Pat Robertson endorse Rudy Guiliani, of all people? Does he think Guiliani is inevitable and want to have influence with the winning Republican nominee? I cannnot understand how any pro-life voter could support Mr. Guiliani’s candidacy, since his nomination as the Republican candidate would only lead us into an election in which there is NO pro-life candidate for whom to vote. I am almost sure that this eventuality would cause many, many pro-life Republican voters to either stay home or vote for a Democrat. Why not? If you are indifferent to economic issues and if you hate the war in Iraq, positions which many Republicans “values voters” hold, why not vote for the Democrat since abortion will continue on its merry way with either Guiliani or Clinton or Obama or Edwards as president?

I also fail to understand Senator Brownback’s endorsement of fellow senator John McCain. Is it a case of throwing a bone to an old friend? Well, I have a lot of respect for Senator Brownback, especially his fight against modern-day slavery, but John McCain has never been my friend, nor has he ever been a true friend to Christian pro-life voters. I just don’t believe in his more recent buddy-buddy behavior in regard to evangelical Christians; I have a longer memory than that.

So, my question to people of faith who believe that abortion is categorically wrong and is destroying the soul of this nation: if not Huckabee, then who?

I told you I’d be posting about Mike Huckabee on Mondays for awhile. I think that the bandwagon is rolling along quite nicely, but it could always use a few more passengers.

Chuck Norris endorses Mike Huckabee for president.

Newsweek interview with Mr. Huckabee.: “Some of the people in leadership positions among the social conservatives have become more process-focused than they are principle-focused, and that’s unfortunate because they will marginalize themselves out of any relevance if they continue in that vein.”

Terri Blackstock, Christian author: “Some would say that I’m a one-issue voter. I’m not. There are several issues that are extremely important to me. The abortion issue is not one of those issues. It’s the foundation on which any candidate I consider must stand. You must understand, if a man or woman believes that it’s okay to kill babies, that tells me that their judgment is severely impaired. They are not fit to run our country.”

Homeschooled twins Alex and Brett Harris blog about Mike Huckabee: “Three brothers’ attempt to spread the word about a man who will take this country up, not down; someone who has a proven track record as an innovative, optimistic, and authentic conservative — Mike Huckabee.”

Joe Carter (Evangelical Outpost): “Only after prayerfully considering the issues, the candidates, and the electoral calculus have we decided to settle on this joint endorsement. We hope that you will join us in careful deliberation of Gov. Huckabee’s candidacy and that you will join us in pledging to cast a sacred vote for the office of President of the United States. Our army may go down in defeat, but it won’t be because we refused to enlist in this worthy cause.”
Joe Carter is joined by Justin Taylor (Between Two Worlds) and Matthew Anderson (Mere Orthodoxy) in this endorsement.

Concord Monitor: Voters Should Get to Know Huckabee.

Tim Ellsworth interviews Mike Huckabee.