Stoney McFried
Well-Known Member
By Yael T. Abouhalkah, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist
Poor Mike Huckabee. He's complaining about how poorly he fared in a 2012 presidential straw poll at the weekend's Conservative Political Action Conference.
So who won?
Ron Paul got the surprising -- and meaningless -- thumbs-up victory. While Paul, a Texas Republican congressman, isn't exactly a household name, CPAC sure loved him.
That irritated Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor. He said: "CPAC has become increasingly libertarian and less Republican over the last years, one of the reasons I didn't go this year."
In a statement to CNN, said of Huckabee, "We were frankly a perplexed by Governor Huckabee's comments about CPAC given our long and cordial relationship with him and his family."
Keene is chairman of the American Conservative Union, which organizes the CPAC gathering.
But one thing should comfort Huckabee: Paul is not going to be president. He is mostly known for his ultra-conservative views, such as wanting to get rid of the Fed.
In the poll:
-- Paul got 31 percent of the 2,400 votes.
-- Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney got 22 percent.
-- Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin got 7 percent.
-- Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty got 6 percent.
Also-rans included better-known potential candidates such as former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Huckabee.
Each got 4 percent.
Follow Yael T. Abouhalkah on Twitter.