And This Guy Wants to Be President . . . Posted by Michael Cohen

Courtesy of Politico.com, Jonathan Martin reports that more than 24 hours after the release of the NIE on Iran, Mike Huckabee (who wants to be President) had not heard anything about it. You would think that if you were running President a) you might read the paper or watch the news and b) you'd have an aide or two who would think this is the kind of news they would want to share with the candidate.

But as if that's not enough, check out his answer to a question about his "concerns" with Iran.

I’ve a serious concern if they were to be  able to weaponize nuclear material, and I think we all should, mainly because the statements of Ahmadinejad are certainly not conducive to a peaceful purpose for his having it and the fear that he would in fact weaponize it and use it. (He pauses and thinks) I don’t know where the intelligence is coming from that says they have suspended the program or how credible that is versus the view that they actually are expanding it. … And I’ve heard, the last two weeks, supposed reports that they are accelerating it and it could be having a reactor in a much shorter period of time than originally been thought.

I'm not even sure what any of this means. Is anyone warning that Iran is about to build a nuclear reactor? Does anyone know what reports he is referring to? And maybe I'm late to the Iran debate, but I wasn't aware that weaponizing nuclear material was our biggest concern with Iran?

But as if that wasn't enough, I went to Huckabee's website and I found this absolute gem. In his checklist of 13 ways President Huckabee (and I shudder to write these words) will ensure America's security in the war on terror, here is number 4:

During the Cold War, we had hawks and doves, but this new war requires us to be a phoenix, rising reborn to meet each new challenge and seize each new opportunity.

For the record, here is the link. I am not making this up. And I recommend that you read the entire page; it appears to have been written by a high school student.

Seriously, this guy wants to be President?

Comments

[Dan Kervick]

I'm not even sure what any of this means. Is anyone warning that Iran is about to build a nuclear reactor? Does anyone know what reports he is referring to? And maybe I'm late to the Iran debate, but I wasn't aware that weaponizing nuclear material was our biggest concern with Iran?

Iran already has several nuclear reactors and is building others. Some are research reactors and some are in power plants. I assume what Huckabee is talking about is not a reactor, but a fuel enrichment plant. Iran has those too, but the issue has been whether they are or were producing any highly enriched bomb-grade uranium, or only low-enriched reactor-grade uranium. And if they were producing highly enriched uranium, at what pace were they enriching it? When Huckabee talks about "weaponizing nuclear material", I'm guessing he is talking about producing highly enriched uranium, which clearly is the biggest nuclear concern with Iran. If he is instead talking about taking existing highly-enriched uranium and putting it into a workable weapon, then he probably doesn't knwo what he is talking about.

[Don Bacon]

Hucksterisms:

During the Cold War, you were a hawk or a dove, but this new world requires us to be a phoenix, to rise from the ashes of the twin towers with a whole new game plan for this very different enemy.

Right after September 11, with wounds fresh and emotions running high, President Bush declared that all other countries were either for us or they were for the terrorists. Such a black-and-white stance doesn't work in the Arab and Muslim worlds, where there are more shades of gray than you'll find at Sherwin-Williams.

We get criticized for our arrogance, but it's our ignorance that's killing us.

We will achieve energy independence by the end of my second term [sic]. We will explore, we will conserve, and we will pursue all avenues of alternative energy - nuclear, wind, solar, hydrogen, clean coal, biodiesel, and biomass.

If I ever have to undertake a large invasion, I will follow the Powell Doctrine and use overwhelming force.

Right now we spend about 3.9% of our GDP on defense, while we spent about 6% in 1986 under President Reagan. I would return to that 6% level.[$780b !!]
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The Huckster's a blast--and here he is talking to God.

[perianwyr]

I love how he says we have to "get tough on President Musharraf". Just what exactly does he mean? He is our friend, but in an untenable position. Where have we been lax here?