So…is Mike Huckabee trying to appear uncommonly clueless? This is in this morning's New York Times (not the Wall Street Journal)…
Former Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas today professed his support for the striking television writers union just a few hours before he was expected to board a plane to for a taping of the Jay Leno show where he will face a vocal picket line of striking writers.
Mr. Leno's program is returning to the air for the first time since a long hiatus for the strike. Speaking to reporters, Mr. Huckabee said he was unaware that he would be crossing picket lines and believed that he the program had reached a special agreement with the union.
Although crossing picket lines might not be unusual for most Republican candidates, Mr. Huckabee has waged an unusual populist campaign on economic issues, stressing his empathy with the anxieties of working people. On Wednesday, he said he identified with the striking television workers as an author himself and believed they deserved a share of the proceeds from the sale of their work.
…and then it goes on from there (link) to list some of his other recent inconsistencies.
So what's the deal here? I could maybe, possibly buy that Huckabee didn't know the show hadn't reached (or even tried for) a special arrangement with the Writers Guild. I mean, that suggests a pretty shoddy grasp of current events but it's possible. But do we think no one on the guy's staff knew? Go Google "Leno AND strike" and see how many hits you get that impart that little nugget of information. I mean, it isn't a secret. Don't you think that when Huckabee made the decision to leave Iowa, where the all-important caucuses are tomorrow, and fly to Burbank to do a TV show, someone said, "Uh, governor, you know you'll be crossing a picket line, right?"
This matters to me for the obvious reason that it's my union on strike here. But I also agree with those who say we don't demand/expect enough from our elected officials, especially our President, in terms of experience and smarts and just knowing what's going on around them. An awful lot of voters seem to think that if the candidate seems like a nice guy — someone you could have a beer with — or someone who'd go to your church and go often, that's enough. He can surround himself with people who know all the stuff he doesn't. I got an e-mail last night from a friend making the case for Barack Obama that way. Yeah, he may be a little inexperienced but that doesn't matter…
Gee, if experience doesn't matter when you run for President, where does it matter? I've worked for comic book editors who wouldn't let me write a story for them if I didn't have sufficient credits.
I have never bought the "I didn't know" defense from any President. Didn't buy it when Ronald Reagan said it about trading arms for hostages. Didn't buy it when Bill Clinton said he didn't know about all those fund-raising violations. It's theoretically possible they didn't know but they should have. Either way, it's not an appealing trait for someone who can do so much damage if he makes the wrong decision.
It sounds to me like Huckabee is trying to have it both ways. The other day, he showed that attack ad on Romney to reporters but said he woudn't run it. So he got its message out but tried to claim some moral high ground for not disseminating it. Today, he's going to cross a union's picket line to get some teevee time but claim it was because he didn't know there would be a picket line from a union he says he supports. It's like Tom Snyder used to say: "It isn't what they do sometimes…it's how dumb they apparently think we are."