Mike Huckabee can kiss, in his words, the “drunken redneck” vote goodbye. Give him credit, because the Huck has a flair for the oratorical zinger. And he has the guts to use it.
At the :36 mark, the former Arkansas Governor says “any drunken redneck can walk in to a bar and start a fight. A leader only starts a fight that he’s prepared to finish.” He is a tier one performer for sure.
That line is delivered off camera after reminding voters that he followed Bill Clinton as governor in heavily Democratic Arkansas. In “Bill’s Backyard” as a graphic from the Wall Street Journal so aptly notes. Nice touch, using a news clip.
The point is that Huckabee can win blue states. However, that argument is less salient than it was years ago as the South has become incredibly comfortable electing Republicans. And if voters want something new, it probably isn’t the Huck.
The video has plenty of the go-to shots familiar in campaign ads. That includes the candidate driving a car with the obligatory shot of the rear view, and what the hell, also the sideview mirror. It includes a slow motion move of the hardworking rancher in – what else – a cowboy hat. And playing off his rhetorical gifts, some smooth lines bashing government at the 2008 Republican National Convention in Minneapolis.
Frankly, the copy pushes all the right buttons for GOP primary voters. As his own narrator, Huckabee says “As Governor of Arkansas I cut taxes and welfare, balanced the budget every year for ten years.” So do the graphics. “Protect Social Security and Medicare,” “Lead With Moral Clarity,” “Defeat Evil Forces of Radical Islam.”
Speaking of copy, the only concern, except for the ability to raise money, for fans of Mike Huckabee is this: He writes his own, which can only mean he runs his own campaign. That never works at the presidential level. It’s a mistake typically made by governors that don’t listen to experienced experts around them.
As much as I was prepared to make fun of this rollout, there really wasn’t much to mock. As for the drunken redneck vote? That’s the coalition that probably doesn’t vote in a primary anyway.