Huckabee knows how to move a crowd

I attended a fundraiser tonight of Denver's Faith Christian Academy, where the featured speaker was former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. I will say up front that I was not a Huckabee supporter as he sought the GOP presidential nomination this year. I'm more of a Club for Growth type, and found Huckabee's tax and spending policies in Arkansas pretty hard to swallow. It is questionable if he would be an improvement on the Bush spending policies, and probably not as good on tax policy.

Nonetheless, as a platform speaker, he is without peer. There were two thousand people present, and largely in sync with his moral views. That, frankly, is something of a set-up and very hard to live up to the expectations the crowd has for you. Huckabee was very eloquent, articulate and easy to understand. There was no complicated jargon, no attempt to show himself superior to the crowd.

The essence of his remarks was to contrast the cost of educating children in a Christian school, versus paying the costs in society later on, when unprincipled youth with no character get in trouble. Drawing dramatically on his experience as Governor to carry out the death penalty and administer the prison system and the attendant costs for people run amuck, he pointed out what a great investment--and bargain-- education is.

Faith probably got a bargain itself, as Huckabee has just signed up with the William Morris Agency, the nation's number one talent firm in booking speakers into paying venues. That will be Huckabee's career until he runs for President again. By booking many months ago, presumably Faith got off for a lot less than the William Morris charge.

Whatever it cost, they got more than what they paid for. There is no doubt, agree with him or not, Huckabee has a presence and stage manner that will be heard from again.