Con: "I support and have always supported passage of a constitutional amendment to protect the right to life. As President, I will fight for passage of this amendment. 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."
"Issues: Sanctity of Life," Mike Huckabee's official candidate website (accessed Nov. 30, 2007)
Pro: "...I signed a bill requiring minors to obtain parental consent before getting an abortion. It was amazing to me that minors were required to get parental consent before getting ears pierced or a tattoo, but they were allowed to have this major surgical procedure without their parents having any say whatsoever."
"Arkansas to March for Life," State News Service, Jan. 18, 2005
None Found: ProCon.org emailed the Huckabee campaign on Jan. 21, 2008 with this question. We had not received a reply or found a position as of Jan. 29, 2008.
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "The good news is that China is becoming much more a part of the mainstream. In its economic development and even in giving greater liberties to its people. But the urgent news is that China needs to play by all the rules that we are expected to play by, in terms of trade, protection of intellectual property rights and the decent treatment of workers. I am not as worried about China, though we have to be concerned about any nation that has the military and economic power that it does. I think we need to be more concerned from a standpoint of anxiety from nations led by radical and outspoken tyrants who openly issue threats to the United States and its people."
"More Questions with Mike Huckabee," TIME Magazine, Apr. 9, 2007
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "The good news is that China is becoming much more a part of the mainstream. In its economic development and even in giving greater liberties to its people. But the urgent news is that China needs to play by all the rules that we are expected to play by, in terms of trade, protection of intellectual property rights and the decent treatment of workers. I am not as worried about China, though we have to be concerned about any nation that has the military and economic power that it does."
"More Questions with Mike Huckabee," TIME magazine, Apr. 9, 2007
Pro: "As president, I commit that we would veto any legislation that would lift the embargo that is currently in place, because we must keep that pressure on."
"Huckabee Backtracks on Cuba Embargo," CNN.com, Dec. 10, 2007
[Editor's Note: Prior to Mike Huckabee's Dec. 10, 2007 Pro position above, regarding keeping the Cuban embargo, he has also expressed a Con position as indicated in his 2002 letter to President Bush, as reported on CNN and confirmed by multiple other mainstream media sources.]
Con: "In 2002, then-Gov. Huckabee wrote President Bush urging him to lift the embargo on Cuba, saying the U.S. position was harming agriculture and business interests, and providing Fidel Castro with a 'convenient excuse for his own failed system of government.'"
"Huckabee Backtracks on Cuba Embargo," CNN.com, Dec. 10, 2007
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "[Cynthia] Tucker: Governor, does the U.S. have a role to play in ending the genocide in Darfur? And, if so, what should that role be?
[Mike] Huckabee: I think we have some role to play in it, but I guess what disturbs me even more, we have not even addressed the genocide that's going on and the infanticide in our own country with the slaughter of millions of unborn children."
Republican Presidential Debate, Morgan State University, Baltimore, Maryland, hosted by PBS, Nov. 28, 2007
Pro: "I believe there is a place for a death penalty. Some crimes are so heinous, so horrible that the only response that we, as a civilized nation, have for a most uncivil action is not only to try to deter that person from ever committing that crime again, but also as a warning to others that some crimes truly are beyond any other capacity for us to fix."
Republican Presidential Debate, St. Petersburg, Florida, hosted by CNN and YouTube.com, Nov. 28, 2007
Con: "There is another reason why manufacturing is critical for the United States. If we really can't produce our own weapons of sef-defence, and we outsource our manufacturing, we've outsourced our freedom...
'The Arsenal to Democracy' is what Franklin Delano Roosevelt called America, and the heartland of that Arsenal has been Michigan, where they really helped us to understand how to produce our airplanes, our tanks, our bullets, our bombs, and to build things to provide us our capacity to be free. If we lose that, we lose more than just jobs, we lose our very basis of freedom."
Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer, CBS, Jan. 13, 2008
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "[Moderator]: Would you make future trade with China contingent on them measurably improving their record on religious freedom & human rights?
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "As President, my education agenda will include working towards a clear distinction between the federal role in assisting and empowering states and in usurping the right of states to carry out the education programs for their students. While there is value in the 'No Child Left Behind' law's effort to set high national standards, states must be allowed to develop their own benchmarks."
"Issues: Education and the Arts," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website (accessed Jan. 24, 2008)
None Found: ProCon.org emailed the Huckabee campaign on Oct. 10, 2007 with this question. We had not received a reply or found a position as of Oct. 30, 2007.
Con: "I don't support federally mandating vouchers. If a state wishes to implement a voucher program, they have to decide how it works, and how well it works, and what the criteria would be.
What I don't want to do is to have the federal government coming down and telling all 50 states here is how you are going to fund education, here is what vouchers are going to look like. Because in some states, for example mine, it would be very problematic to create a statewide voucher system when most of our schools are rural, they're small, they are miles from another school, the economies of scale simply wouldn't necessarily make it that easy to implement a widespread voucher system. But if local districts wished to do it, if states wish to do it, I think that's fine. It goes back to the basic concept that this is a state's decision."
"Exclusive Interview: Huckabee on Education and School Choice," CNSNews.com, Dec. 28, 2007
None Found: ProCon.org emailed the Huckabee campaign on Oct. 10, 2007 with this question. We had not received a reply or found a position as of Oct. 30, 2007.
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "What are the points of a better campaign finance? Some people see it as public financing. I'm a little--maybe fearful of that...
Should there be some limit or cap on how much can be spent? Maybe so...
I'm at the point where restriction may have to happen, otherwise we are really going to drift ourselves into a nation where we have a ruling class and we have a servant class."
"Huckabee on Campaign Finance Reform, and the Name Huckabee," YouTube video (accessed Jan. 4, 2008)
Con: Q: "What do you think the major points of a better campaign financing law would be?"
Huckabee: "Great question. What are the major points of a better campaign finance. Some people see it as public financing. I'm a little, maybe, fearful of that because what you end up with is then taxpayers are being forced to pay for somebody's campaign that they don't want to support."
"Huckabee on Campaign Finance Reform, and the Name Huckabee," YouTube.com (accessed Feb. 25, 2008)
Pro: "While I want to reduce our dependence on oil, I especially want to reduce our dependence on imported oil as fully and quickly as possible. We need to get oil and gas from ANWR and our continental shelves."
"Huckabee Q & A," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website, Sep. 25, 2007
None Found: ProCon.org emailed the Huckabee campaign on Dec. 13, 2007 with this question. We had not received a reply or found a position as of Jan. 4, 2008.
Con: "The Second Amendment is primarily about tyranny and self-defense, not hunting. The Founding Fathers wanted us to be able to defend ourselves from our own government, if need be, and from all threats to our lives and property.
Second Amendment rights belong to individuals, not cities or states. I oppose gun control based on geography.
I consistently opposed banning assault weapons and opposed the Brady Bill."
"Issues: 2nd Amendment Rights," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website (accessed Nov. 30, 2007)
Con: "We don't need universal health care mandated by federal edict or funded through ever-higher taxes...
I advocate policies that will encourage the private sector to seek innovative ways to bring down costs and improve the free market for health care services...
It is time to recognize that jobs don't need health insurance, people do, and to ease the burden on our businesses. Our employer-based system has outlived its usefulness, but the answer is a consumer-based system, not socialized medicine."
"Issues: Health Care," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website (accessed Oct. 30, 2007)
Con: "He does not support the importation or reimportation of prescription drugs. A primary reason for this is maintaining U.S. control over the safety of our drugs."
"Candidate Profile: Mike Huckabee," WebMD.com (accessed Jan. 4, 2008)
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "[U]ntil something is done to touch the people who are employing illegal immigrants because of the very reason that they've talked about on this stage, to create what amounts to another version of slave labor, then we're never going to stop the flow. You're not going to get illegals to admit that they're here illegally, because they're desperate enough to do anything to feed their families."
Republican Presidential Debate, Morgan State University, Baltimore, Maryland, Hosted by PBS, Sep. 27, 2007
Con: "I oppose and will not tolerate sanctuaries for illegals. The federal government must enforce our existing laws by cracking down on rogue cities and towns that willfully undermine our economy and our homeland security by giving benefits and protection to illegals. The consequences for illegal entry must be swift, certain, and uniform throughout our country.
I oppose giving driver's licenses to illegals, such as Governor Spitzer tried to do in New York. I support legislation that would prevent the states from granting this privilege to illegals. In 2005, I signed legislation that prevents illegals in Arkansas from getting driver's licenses."
"Issues: Immigration," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website (accessed Jan. 24, 2008)
[Editor's Note: Prior to Huckabee's Con position above, regarding rights and benefits of illegal immigrants, he has also expressed a Pro position as indicated in his Dec. 2, 2007 statement on ABC's This Week]
Pro: "George Stephanopoulos: Aside from the scholarships, if a child of an illegal immigrant went through high school in Arkansas, he would get the same in-state benefits as other Arkansas residents do. Yet if a student was coming in from Colorado, they would pay higher tuition.
Mike Huckabee: The difference is, if a student comes in from Colorado, he hasn't been educated in our high schools. He hasn't had our courses. But if you've had a child that's been there since he was five- or six-years-old, or even since he was 13 - and he's had his entire high school experience sitting along side Arkansas students - the point is, is he better off going to college and becoming a taxpayer as opposed to not going to college and potentially becoming a tax-taker?"
This Week with George Stephanopoulos, ABC, Dec. 2, 2007
Pro: "I support the $3 billion the Senate has voted for border security. This money will train and deploy 23,000 more agents, add four drone planes, build 700 miles of fence and 300 miles of vehicle barriers, and put up 105 radar and camera towers. This money will turn 'catch and release' into 'catch and detain' of those entering illegally, and crack down on those who overstay their visas."
"Issues: Immigration," Mike Huckabee's official candidate website (accessed Dec. 19, 2007)
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "The Administration has quite properly said that it will not take the military option for Iran off the table. Neither would I. But if we don't put other options on the table, eventually the military option becomes the only viable one. Right now we are proceeding down only one track with Iran - armed confrontation. Nothing would make Osama bin Laden happier - he would welcome war between the United States and Iran, his two biggest enemies. I try to avoid doing anything that brightens bin Laden's day...
To contain Iran, it is essential to win in Iraq. When we overthrew Saddam Hussein, who functioned as a bulwark against Iran, we upset the balance of power in the region. We must stabilize and strengthen Iraq not just for their security, but the security of the entire region, and our own security. We can't allow Iran to push the power of its theocracy westward into, and then beyond, Iraq.
Another way to contain Iran is through diplomacy, while never taking the military option off the table. We must be as diplomatically aggressive as we have been militarily aggressive since 9/11...
To show how seriously we take the Iranian threat here at home, we must encourage the burgeoning movement of our states and private entities like the Teamsters to divest their pension funds of Iran-related assets. We should put more of our money where our mouth is."
"Paths and Priorities in the War on Terror," Speech given at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, D.C., Sep. 28, 2007
Con: "I supported the president when he led us into this, as did the Democrats. And I think we owe him not a lot of scorn; we owe him our thanks that he had the courage to recognize there was a potential of weapons of mass destruction, and rather than wait until we had another attack, he went and made sure that it wasn't going to happen from Saddam Hussein.
Now, everybody can look back and say, oh, well, we didn't find the weapons. It doesn't mean they weren't there. Just because you didn't find every Easter egg didn't mean that it wasn't planted.
My point is that when the president acted, this country was united in believing it was a necessary thing to do. It's easy to second-guess a president. Whoever of us is elected, we'll be second- guessed, too. But I hope we have the courage and the resolve, once we commit to something, to make sure that we don't back away just because the polls say we should."
Republican Presidential Debate, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida, hosted by MSNBC, St. Petersburg Times, Jan. 24, 2008
None Found: ProCon.org emailed the Huckabee campaign on Oct. 10, 2007 with this question. We had not received a reply or found a position as of Oct. 31, 2007.
Con: "Setting a timetable for withdrawal is a mistake. This country has never declared war until 'a week from Wednesday,' we have always declared war until victory."
"Issues: Iraq," Mike Huckabee's official candidate website (accessed Oct. 31, 2007)
Pro: "The United States must remain true to its long-standing, bipartisan commitment to the Israelis. I will always ensure that Israel has access to the state-of-the-art weapons and technology she needs to defend herself from those who seek her annihilation."
"Issues: Foreign Policy: Israel," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website (accessed Jan. 24, 2008)
None Found: ProCon.org emailed the Huckabee campaign on Dec. 13, 2007 with this question. We had not received a reply or found a position as of Jan. 4, 2008.
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "[Wolf] Blitzer: ...[D]o you support what's called a two-state solution, Israel and Palestine side by side, as President Bush says he supports?
[Mike] Huckabee: Well, I would want to see where that side-by-side exists, Wolf, because if you do something that puts the Israelis in a position of ultimate vulnerability, that may not be a healthy solution.
You've got to realize that there are people in that region who have stated that their primary purpose is to annihilate Israel, to do away with them. And if you surround them by hostility and give them very little room in which to maneuver, you may not have created anything other than a very, very temporary peace, but for a long-term disaster.
Blitzer: So I guess you're not ready to endorse what is called a two-state solution yet?
Huckabee: Not until you see where those two states are going to be located and whether or not there is going to be some guarantee of security and concessions on the part of the nations that would surround Israel. And the Israelis would have to be comfortable with it, otherwise it's not going to be something that I think they could live with."
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "If you violate the promise that you made to the one person on earth to whom you're supposed to be closest to, and this vow was made in front of your families, your closest friends, and God, and you don't keep that, then can we trust you to keep a promise that you made to people you don't even know?
And I think that's the parallel. And that's ... the concern. Is, that a promise you make to a spouse is the most sacred one you ever make to anyone on this earth. And if ... you don't keep that, and you break that, then I think there's a good reason to be afraid that you might break other promises, because your credibility ... has really been damaged at that point...
I don't think it means that a person can't be a good president. Obviously, there have been some great presidents who had personal issues. I think that's going to be true of all leaders. Nobody's perfect. Nobody. Me, anybody else. We all have flaws."
"Candidates Offer Views on Infidelity," CBS Evening News with Katie Couric, CBSNews.com, Dec. 19, 2007
Pro: "I support and have always supported passage of a federal constitutional amendment that defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman. As President, I will fight for passage of this amendment. My personal belief is that marriage is between one man and one woman, for life.
No other candidate has supported traditional marriage more consistently and steadfastly than I have. While Massachusetts was allowing homosexuals to marry, I got a constitutional amendment passed in Arkansas in 2002 defining marriage as between one man and one woman."
"Issue: Marriage," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website (accessed Oct. 30, 2007)
Con: "You've asked me the question about medical marijuana...my concern is, as much as I want to see something happen that would ease your pain, I'm not sure and I've not been convinced with medical evidence by independent research...that clearly says that it is more effective than other forms of pain medication, whether it's narcotic or analgesic. And so what I want to do is, if somebody can present to me scientifically and objectively, then I would certainly give a different consideration... I think the question is, would I favor the legalization at a federal level, and until there's some stronger scientific evidence, I'm reluctant to do that."
"Your Guide to the Candidates' Views on Medical Marijuana: Mike Huckabee," Granite Staters for Medical Marijana website (accessed Oct. 31, 2007)
Con: "Well, you know I'm going to leave it up to the DEA [Drug Enforcement Agency] whether they feel like there is a person who is being arrested because they are suffering from AIDS or because they really are doing something to significantly violate drug laws. But it comes down to laws are laws for a reason and if we don't change the laws, we don't have a right to break the ones we don't like."
Speaking at a private house party in Francestown, New Hampshire, YouTube.com, June 4, 2007
None Found: ProCon.org emailed the Huckabee campaign on Dec. 13, 2007 with this question. We had not received a reply or found a position as of Jan. 4, 2008.
Con: "The Uniform Code of Military Justice is probably the best rule [Don't Ask/Don't Tell: No openly gay people in military], and it has to do with conduct. People have a right to have whatever feelings, whatever attitudes they wish, but when their conduct could put at risk the morale, or put at risk even the cohesion that Duncan Hunter spoke of, I think that's what is at issue. And that's why our policy is what it is."
Republican Presidential Debate, St. Petersburg, Florida, hosted by CNN, YouTube.com, and the Republican Party of Florida, Nov. 28, 2007
Pro: "I believe that our massive deficit is not due to Americans' being under-taxed, but due to the federal government's over-spending. Achieving and maintaining a balanced federal budget is an important and worthy goal necessary to our long-term economic well-being. To achieve a balanced federal budget, I believe the President should have the line-item veto."
"Issues: Taxes/Economy," Mike Huckabee's official candidate website (accessed Feb. 26, 2008)
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "Huckabee created the Governor's Office of Community and Faith-Based Initiatives in Arkansas in 2004. He also issued an executive order forcing Arkansas compliance with federal 'Charitable Choice' laws in order to allow faith-based organizations to compete for funds from state agencies."
"The Candidates on Faith-Based Initiatives," Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life website (accessed Oct. 31, 2007)
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "My faith is my life - it defines me. My faith doesn't influence my decisions, it drives them. For example, when it comes to the environment, I believe in being a good steward of the earth. I don't separate my faith from my personal and professional lives.
Real faith makes us humble and mindful, not of the faults of others, but of our own. It makes us less judgmental, as we see others with the same frailties we have. Faith gives us strength in the face of injustice and motivates us to do our best for 'the least of us.'
Our nation was birthed in a spirit of faith - not a prescriptive one telling us whether to believe, but one acknowledging that a providence pervades our world."
"Issues: Faith and Politics," Mike Huckabee's official candidate website (accessed Nov. 30, 2007)
Pro: "The president had the right idea, but he used the wrong word. When he used the word privatization, it scared the daylights out of a lot of people...
The right word is personalization. Empower individuals to have a greater say over their money. And that's what it is. Keep the government from robbing the trust funds, which is something that, if it was done in the private sector, would get a guy in jail. One thing, when people reach retirement age, if they really have enough retirement benefits, they don't need Social Security for the long term, give them the option of one-time buyout, or the opportunity to purchase an annuity, with their funds, tax-free, that frees up the long-term obligation of the government."
Republican Presidential Debate, Orlando, Florida, hosted by Fox News and the Republican Party of Florida, Oct. 21, 2007
Pro: "With respect to stem cells, I support federal funding of research using existing [embryonic] stem cell lines. I do not believe in creating life for the sole purpose of destroying it. I'm encouraged by recent discoveries showing that stem cells from the umbilical cord offer great promise."
"Issues: Sanctity of Life," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website (accessed Nov. 5, 2007)
[Editor's Note: According to Mike Huckabee's campaign website, as of Apr. 2, 2008, his position on embryonic stem cell research is, "With respect to stem cells, I am opposed to research on embryonic stem cells." However, this statement does not address the issue of "federal funding" for stem cell research. To clarify his position, ProCon.org did extensive research including calling the Huckabee campaign on Nov. 13, 2007, and emailing the campaign on Nov. 9, 2007, Dec. 5, 2007, Dec. 13, 2007, Jan. 21, 2008, and Feb. 11, 2008. We have not yet received a response as of Apr. 2, 2008. His Pro statement above was the only statement that we found addressing the issue of "federal funding" of stem cell research. Since embryonic stem cells are included in existing lines of stem cells that the federal government funds for research, we have left Mr. Huckabee's position as Pro.]
Not Clearly Pro or Con: "I'd rather think of them not as President Bush's tax cuts but the American people's tax cuts, because that's who they benefit... It's benefited the people who earned that money in the first place. The ones that sacrificed extraordinary amounts of their time and capital to build a business and want to pass it on to their kids. To those small business owners who have built wealth out of absolute nothing but a dream sitting on their kitchen table, and who have paid taxes on that income as that income grew their entire lives. To suddenly turn around and say, 'Now, for no fault other than the fact that you are deceased we are going to collect yet one more tax upon your dead body and the future of your children.' That's not how America was made strong. It's not the kind of thing that encourages the entrepreneurial spirit that creates jobs and gives people who grew up like I did, the opportunity to do better in life."
"Gov. Mike Huckabee on Tax Cuts (Family Research Council Action Video Voter Guide)," Capitol Hill Broadcasting Network website (accessed Dec. 19, 2007)
Pro: "I support and have always supported passage of a federal constitutional amendment that defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman. As President, I will fight for passage of this amendment."
"Issue: Marriage," Mike Huckabee's official campaign website (accessed Oct. 31, 2007)
Pro: "I've been to Guantanamo, I was there, I guess it's been about a year and a half ago. I think the problem with Guantanamo is not in that its facilities are inadequate. It's the symbol that it represents. It's clearly become a symbol to the rest of the world as a place that has become problematic for us as a nation. I was quite frankly impressed with the quality of the facilities and even the attention to care that was given to the detainees, but that aside, it doesn't alter that Guantanamo, to the rest of the world, is a symbol that is not in our best interests to continue pursuing."
"Huckabee: Gitmo Not In America's Best Interests," YouTube video (accessed Jan. 7, 2008)
[Editor's Note: Prior to Mike Huckabee's Jan. 7, 2008 Pro position above, he has also expressed a Con position as indicated by his June 11, 2007 statement on FOXNews.com]
Con: "I can tell you most of our prisoners would love to be in a facility more like Guantanamo and less like the state prisons that people are in the United States... It's (Guantanamo) more symbolic than it is a substantive issue because people perceive of mistreatment when in fact there are extraordinary means being taken to make sure these detainees are being given really every consideration... But I tell you if we let somebody out and it turns out that they come and fly an airliner into one of our skyscrapers, we're going to be asking how come we didn't stop them, we had them detained. If we're going to make a mistake right now, let's make it on the side of protecting the American people."
"Huckabee Says Guantanamo Bay Offers Better Conditions to Detainees Than Most U.S. Prisons," FOXNews.com, June 11, 2007
None Found: ProCon.org emailed the Huckabee campaign on Nov. 9, 2007 with this question. We had not received a reply or found a position as of November 30, 2007.