Huckabee and the Rapist’s Parole
Written by Sam on October 14th, 2007
It’s an attitude that drives much of Huckabee’s political agenda, including the assertion - unusual for a conservative Republican - that prisons are full of people who would be better off in drug treatment than behind bars. But there is one man Huckabee believed deserved a second chance, convicted rapist Wayne Dumond, who continues to haunt Huckabee’s burgeoning presidential campaign.
Huckabee, whose self-deprecating humor and easy candor have charmed many on the campaign trail, bristles when asked about the case, in which Dumond - now dead - was paroled from an Arkansas prison, with then- governor Huckabee’s endorsement, only to sexually assault and kill a woman in Missouri.
“It was one of those things I just feel horrible about. You just ache all the way to the bone over what happened,” the former Arkansas governor said in an interview. “But nobody could know that” Dumond would attack again, he said.
You couldn’t? I think if the guy did it once there is a good chance he could do it again.
Huckabee is an awkward candidate for me. On one hand he supports the Fair Tax which is outstanding, but I have my doubts he could get it passed. On the other hand he sounds far too much like George Bush and I don’t want another four to eight years of “compassionate conservatism.” He really needs to be scrutinized more because he is definitely a contender now.
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I think Huckabee’s inability to raise campaign cash removes him from contender status. He’s a good speaker, end of story.
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I’m with the Club for Growth on this one. I don’t want more “compassionate conservatism” or big-government “Republicanism.” I want someone who understands the Federalist system of government, who understands the limited powers of the government in the Constitution, and who won’t preach to me.
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I am not a big Huckabee or Ron Paul supporter but I do agree with Mr. Paul when he said: “If Republicans nominate Giuliani they owe a personal apology to former President Bill Clinton.” None of them excite or inspire me this election cycle.
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Huckabee is George W. Bush Part II or a Republican Jimmy Carter.
Tell me why I should vote for this guy over Hillary? He is a fiscal liberal. He is not strong on security. He is a social conservative, but he believes in this compassionate conservative nonsense.
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I’m also very troubled by his early release of a convicted rapist. And I’m even more confused by the way in which that article (cited above) frames the issue. The author goes from Huckabee’s stance on drug users in prison — which I agree with, by the way, that treatment would make more sense than prison time for many minor/first time offenders — to his stance on the Dumond case. Drug user does not equal rapist. The first is often argued to be a “victimless crime,” whereas rape is a violent crime against another person’s body. And a high school girl, no less. A horrible judgment.
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One thing—George Bush is not a compassionate conservative.
He is a hardcore neoconservative.
Hey, I think I just identified what is killing the GOP!!