Mike Huckabee is exactly what we need in the White House.
A friend of mine likes to say, "Pray for a garden, but grab a shovel." That must be our stance regarding the presidential primaries beginning in January. We must pray. If Rudy Giuliani wins the Republican nomination next September, we're in trouble—his candidacy may swing the final election to the Democrats, making Hillary Clinton our next president. To me, that's a frightening prospect.
So I am asking all intercessors to pray. But we must also get involved. There's a lot we can do to make a difference.
This year we have a strong, Bible-believing candidate who articulates our values as well as any politician in my lifetime. You probably know I'm referring to former Gov. Mike Huckabee, whom we have already endorsed. In the last few months he has moved from being simply an asterisk in the polls to being a serious contender—and with only a fraction of the money others have raised. In late October a Newsweek article called him "The GOP's Best Bet."
However, so-called evangelical leaders—most of whom don't have a following but do have the media's ear—have chosen not to publicly endorse him.
The reason? They don't think he can win.
But I believe he can. He is exactly what we need in the White House—a man of principle who takes a firm stand on important issues and doesn't support abortion or gay rights as other candidates, including Giuliani, do.
Interestingly, the more Christians hear his message, the more they are flocking to him. And I'm told by friends in Iowa that he may even win the caucus there in just a few weeks.
What can you do besides pray? Grab these "shovels":
»If you live in a state with an early primary such as New Hampshire, South Carolina or Florida, you can vote for Huckabee and urge your friends to do so as well. Or if you live in Iowa, support him at the caucus.
»You can give to his campaign as I have. Go to his Web site (
explorehuckabee.com) and click on the contribution button. Enter code 128 along with your donation to indicate that it came from a Charisma reader.
»You can endorse him. I'm asking 100 Christian leaders to endorse him publicly. If you lead a church or ministry and want to give a public endorsement, go to charismamag.com/huckabee.
»Or you can go directly to our blog (
strang.com/moveup) and post an endorsement. State the reasons you support Huckabee. And read a letter I sent to Christian leaders asking them to back Huckabee for president.
Huckabee's popularity has been steadily increasing during the last few months. He walked away with a second place finish in the Iowa Straw Poll in August and an overwhelming first place finish in the two Values Voters Straw Polls in September and October, and he has seen a steady rise in polling percentage.
There's a good reason Huckabee is doing so well against the other Republicans in the race. It's because there is a clear contrast between him and the rest of the candidates.
Huckabee is a true conservative who holds values common to most Americans. He has executive and crisis management experience gained during his terms as governor of Arkansas, when he dealt with not only statewide emergencies but also the national disaster of Hurricane Katrina.
He is staunchly pro-life and supports the passage of a federal constitutional amendment that defines marriage as the union between one man and one woman. And he has the support of many African-Americans, as his races for governor of Arkansas in 1998 and 2002 showed. In each of those elections, he garnered more than 40 percent of the African-American vote.
This is not a time to sit on the sidelines. We must fight against the possibility of a Republican with weak values facing Hillary Clinton in the general election. We have just a few weeks to make a difference in an election that has serious implications for America in the years to come—and it won't take much to make a shift. So let's get involved now.
Stephen Strang is the founder and publisher of Charisma. To read endorsements for Huckabee by Chuck Norris and other Christian leaders, go to charismamag.com/huckabee.