Exclusive: Golden Words from a Silver-Tongued Salesman


Author: Mark R. Taylor

Date Published: 2008-01-21


Golden Words from a Silver-Tongued Salesman

Mark R. and Renee E. Taylor

 

Snake oil salesmen of the 19th Century used to comb the countryside, selling their remedies to unsuspecting consumers hoping for a cure, or at least a quick fix, for their ailments.  Without much more than golden words out of the silver-tongued salesmen, they set alluring traps for their artful chicanery.  Weeks later, those sold a bill of goods by the salesmen’s trickery were worse for the wear, the only benefit going to the deceptive salesmen - now long gone - with the victim’s hard earned gold in their pockets.

 

As long-standing residents of Arkansas, we are reminded of yesteryear’s snake oil salesmen when we listen to our former Governor, now presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, as he mesmerizes crowds across the country with golden words that defy his record in our fair state. With his pockets full of gold, we’re left with pockets full of dust.

 

Huckabee’s actions regarding illegal immigration are an often discussed topic on blogs, forums and conservative news sites across the country, and particularly within our state.  For instance, as a parting “gift” to Arkansas, we received a Mexican consulate in Little Rock - built in part with $10,000 in taxpayer money from the Arkansas Emergency Fund, while costing the Mexican government only a single dollar per month in rent.  Sealing the deal with then-president of Mexico Vincente Fox, Huckabee continued the push for Arkansas to become a “sanctuary state” for illegal aliens. 

 

Although many Arkansas news sources quoted Huckabee as stating the construction of the Mexican consulate would “bring Mexican businesses into Arkansas”, at best it allowed illegal aliens easier access to work in our tomato fields in South Arkansas and in the poultry plants to the Northwest.  Further, Huckabee, while Governor of Arkansas, supported in-state tuition for illegal aliens at our state-funded universities.  I invite Governor Huckabee to return to Bradley County to see the many disastrous effects his leadership and legislation have had on Arkansas. 

 

MikeHuckabee.com shows a different Mike Huckabee.  The presidential candidate has quite an impressive plan regarding illegal immigration, including imposing steep fines for employers who violate the law by hiring illegals.  But since Governor Huckabee did not enforce the then-existing immigration laws – we refer to the various tomato farms and sheds across South Arkansas, as well as the poultry and meat plants across the state – what on earth would make us believe that he would enforce this new one? The law was ignored by Governor Huckabee and will be again by, God forbid, President Huckabee.

 

The media has portrayed Huckabee as strongly supported by homeschoolers across the nation.  But in Arkansas?  Not so much.  As homeschoolers in Arkansas, we saw Mike Huckabee sign into law on April 5, 1999, HB1724, which gave Arkansas some of the strictest home school rules in the nation, including requiring parents to file a “Notice of Intent” by August 15th of the school year, in which the home school parent must list courses and curriculum, school day schedule and the homeschooling parents’ education level, among other things. 

 

According to the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) website, HB1724 also states that homeschoolers refusing to participate in the state-mandated testing program would be subject to prosecution for truancy.  Public school students are not subject to the same.  Ironically, this is the same HSLDA that has endorsed Huckabee, along with the National Education Association (NEA).

 

The NEA, our nation’s teachers’ union, has repeatedly supported legislation hostile to homeschoolers.  Additionally, they support the indoctrination of our government-educated children in gay/lesbian and other “alternative” lifestyles (isn’t this in opposition to what Huckabee, as a Southern Baptist minister, stands for?) and have been dangerously asleep at the switch insofar as white-washing the teaching of Islam is concerned, as well as other agendas with a Marxist whiff to them.

 

How would a President Huckabee handle presidential pardons?  Like he did in Arkansas?  Ask an Arkansan about the career criminal, Wayne Dumond, who was in an Arkansas prison for the 1985 rape of Forrest City, Arkansas, student, Ashley Stevens.  According to the Arkansas Republican News Service blog (www.arragopwing.com), which compiled a comprehensive account of Huckabee’s actions in the matter, Huckabee pressured the parole board to release Dumond because, Huckabee thought, Dumond got a “raw deal”.  With Huckabee apparently having few real facts into Dumond’s case or background, Dumond was released from prison, thanks in part to Governor Huckabee. 

 

Dumond subsequently moved to Missouri where he was convicted of the rape and murder of Carole Sue Shields and became a suspect in other cases.  Dumond died in a Missouri prison in 2005.

 

Pandering to illegals, flip-flopping on home school issues – even as Arkansas’ government schools continue with a dismal track record - and pardoning scandals are just the tip of the iceberg.  We cannot afford to take the chance that a President Huckabee will not govern as the Governor Huckabee did.

 

While the 2006 pardoning of Rolling Stones guitarist and career drug abuser, Keith Richards, is not “scandalous”, it does continue Huckabee’s use of his political standing to impress “powerful” people, such as Richards, Vincente Fox and those behind the Wayne Dumond case.  In 1975, Richards was stopped in Fordyce, Arkansas, and charged with reckless driving and carrying a concealed knife.  Richards claimed he swerved as he was adjusting the radio.  The reckless driving charge was dropped and Richards paid the $162.50 fine for the concealed knife.  It was after meeting the Rolling Stones backstage at a concert that the star-struck Governor Huckabee decided to pardon Richards of the 31-year-old charge as a “goodwill gesture”. 

 

Much has been said about Huckabee’s record regarding taxes in Arkansas.  While he consistently raised taxes, such as the fuel tax, several sales taxes, corporate tax, cigarette tax, a “nursing home bed tax” and a 16 percent tax on snuff, he is claiming 90 different tax cuts, including the dubiously-needed exemption for the Arkansas Symphony from sales tax.  All of this did little for the Arkansas taxpayer, unless of course one benefits from the reduced taxes on bets made at the Oaklawn Park horse track or the Southland Greyhound dog racing track in West Memphis. 

 

Bingo enthusiasts, I’m sure, were pleased when Huckabee repealed the 20% tax on their bingo cards.  While Governor, Huckabee also raised the drivers’ license fee from $14 to $20.  It seems he never met a tax he didn’t like.  According to a January 14, 2003, report in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, our taxes per taxpayer increased a full 47% from $1,969 in 1997 to $2,902 in 2002.

 

His “crowning achievement” seems to be his claim that he left Arkansas with an $800 million dollar surplus.  What this tells us is that his various draconian tax increases were not all necessary as it is obvious that Arkansas, a not-for-profit state, has entirely too much of Arkansans’ hard earned money in its till - $800 million dollars worth. 

 

While some women will vote for Hillary just because she’s a “woman” and some blacks will vote for Obama just because he’s “black”, as a Southern Baptist white couple from Arkansas, we won’t play along with identity-based voting and support the Southern Baptist boy from Arkansas.  We’ve had enough.

 

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FamilySecurityMatters.org  Contributing Editor Renee Taylor is the editor/webmistress of www.americantruckersatwar.com, a freelance writer, photographer, home schooling mom and publicist for Joey Holiday. A former truck driver, she has devoted promoting the positive image of the American Trucker in in America and in Iraq.  Published on FamilySecurityMatters.org, NewsSarasota.com and others, she has appeared on several national radio programs, such as The Captains America and The Dave Nemo Program, discussing homeland security and the trucking industry.

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FamilySecurityMatters.org Contributing Editor Mark R. Taylor served in Iraq from January 2004 to May 2005 as a civilian convoy commander. His commentary has appeared in Landline Magazine, American Daily and Townhall.com and he has appeared on The Captain’s America and other radio programs. Taylor’s website iswww.americantruckersatwar.com.

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