Black conservative group stands with Huckabee
on February 8th, 2008 at 1:23 amBlack Conservatives: Don’t Give Up, Huckabee
By Michelle A. Vu
Christian Post Reporter
WASHINGTON – Rivals, pundits and the media have largely dismissed Republican candidate Mike Huckabee as a serious contender for the GOP nomination. But a group of black conservatives rallied behind him Monday ahead of the much-anticipated Super Tuesday contests to tell him to stay strong and stay in the race.
Supporters of the Republican underdog pointed to his consistent conservative record, his authenticity and his humble beginnings as reasons for their endorsements.
“He (Huckabee) does not waver from his views and we know that he is not a recent convert to conservatism,” said Don Scoggins, president of Republicans for Black Empowerment.
“And we like that his life story pretty much mirrored the background of many African Americans,” Scoggins added. “He comes from humble beginnings, he’s worked hard, and gone to college – first one in his family who has graduated from high school. We feel that his life story is something to be emulated.”
Huckabee, during his 10½ years as Arkansas governor, appointed more than 300 black Americans to state boards and commissions and received over 47 percent support from black voters during his re-election to the governorship.
“What many of us feel is that the Republican Party, hopefully with a President Huckabee, will start to be more inclusive [of black voters],” the president of Republicans for Black Empowerment hopes.
Other black speakers echoed Scoggins’ sentiment about their candidate’s conservative record and contrasted it with chief Republican rival Mitt Romney, whom they accused of flip-flopping on the values issues.
They argued against Romney’s claim that a vote for Huckabee is a vote for Sen. John McCain, calling it “absolutely not true” and that support for Huckabee should not be misunderstood as support for Romney. (more…)
