Huckabee keeps Iowa network intact through endorsements

Photo: Dave Davidson, www.TEApublican.com

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is rarely, if ever, more than a stone’s throw from Iowa politics. His grassroots network has chugged along nicely since his win during the 2008 Iowa caucus, and he continues to offer his critique of candidates vying for both state and national offices. Because Huckabee is the national social conservative that most Iowa Republicans know and have come to trust, his nod of approval carries significant weight among so-called “values voters” in the Hawkeye State.

Huckabee added 11 more Iowa politicians, all Republicans, to his list of endorsements this week. Notables on the list include Brenna Findley, a former staffer in U.S. Rep. Steve King’s office who is running for Iowa Attorney General, Brad Zaun, who hopes to unseat U.S. Rep. Leonard Boswell, and Kent Sorenson, who is looking for an upgrade to the Iowa Senate in a race that pundits refer to privately as “ground zero on same-sex marriage in Iowa.”

Although this is Huckabee’s first foray into Iowa politics following the primary season, it is still early enough in the general election campaigns for his grassroots network to relinquish endorsements of additional candidates. That being said, however, the Huckabee list is most notable for whom it doesn’t endorse.

Terry Branstad, who ran a heated gubernatorial primary against Huckabee-approved Bob Vander Plaats, still doesn’t make the cut. Neither do U.S. House hopefuls Mariannette Miller-Meeks in the 2nd District and Ben Lange in the 1st District.

Despite Lange being considered a dark horse in November when voters decide between his campaign and that of well-financed incumbent Bruce Braley, there aren’t any readily apparent reasons evident as to why Huckabee would shy away from making an endorsement. After earning his law degree from Minnesota’s Hamline University and working for Minnesota Congressman John Kline, Lange returned to Iowa, where he now operates a small business. The decision not to endorse could be based on the fact that Lange’s campaign website focuses heavily on economic issues, and makes little, if any, mention of the issues deemed important by social conservatives.

The absence of Miller-Meeks, who earned a second chance during the primaries to unseat incumbent Dave Loebsack, could signal that social conservatives haven’t forgotten a 2008 newsletter article published by Iowa Right to Life that labeled the candidate as a “great pretender” on the issue of abortion. Many 2nd District GOP members believe that the attack effectively derailed the campaign just as it was gaining momentum, and resulted in Miller-Meek’s eventual double-digit defeat. If the lack of a Huckabee nod is a signal that the attack isn’t completely forgotten, there could be trouble brewing even for her much improved and efficient 2010 campaign, which by sheer virtue of being in a Democrat-leaning district needs to pull every available social conservative Republican vote as well as left-minded independents in order to claim a victory.

When it comes to Branstad, the shocker would have been if Huckabee had signaled his approval without Vander Plaats doing the same. Instead of thrusting his network of social conservative voters behind Branstad, Vander Plaats has instead chosen to launch a campaign against the retention of three Iowa Supreme Court justices who participated in a April 2009 ruling that legalized same-sex marriage in the state.

The fact that Huckabee has remained mum in the gubernatorial race signals absolutely nothing short of Huckabee’s continued support of Vander Plaats. And, so long as Huckabee and Vander Plaats are content to stir the political pot toward the judicial branch and avoid the state race, the Branstad people are content to hope that a large turn-out to oust judges will translate into additional votes for their candidate as well. It’s a win-win situation in which Vander Plaats gets to remain influential without sacrificing principles, and Branstad gets to be the candidate without alienating fiscal conservatives by overtly professing social conservative rhetoric.