Huckabee's Questionable Baggage

As former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee tries to convince the electorate that he is the most qualified candidate to lead the United States, news emerges that he may have abused his authority as governor by thwarting an investigation of his son. It's unknown where "thwarting investigation of a possible crime" fits under the category of leadership skills.

As a youth in 1998, former Gov. Huckabee's son, David, 27, was accused of hanging a stray dog and subsequently fired as a Boy Scout camp counselor. An animal rights group complained to a local prosecutor who then asked the Arkansas State Police to conduct an investigation to determine if animal cruelty laws were violated. However, nothing happened.

The director of the state police, John Bailey, said he was pressured by Huckabee's chief of staff and personal lawyer to deny the prosecutor's request.

Bailey, a career officer who had been appointed chief by Huckabee's Democratic predecessor, said he viewed the lawyer's intervention as improper and terminated the conversation.

Seven months later, he was called into Huckabee's office and fired. "I've lost confidence in your ability to do your job," Bailey says Huckabee told him. One reason Huckabee cited was "I couldn't get you to help me with my son when I had that problem," according to Bailey.

"Without question, [Huckabee] was making a conscious attempt to keep the state police from investigating his son," says I. C. Smith, the former FBI chief in Little Rock, who worked closely with Bailey and called him a "courageous" and "very solid" professional.

So, the Arkansas State Police director reportedly had the audacity to think that everyone is treated equally under the law and Gov. Huckabee made it clear that some people are more equal, like the governor's son.

On the other hand, Huckabee maintains that Bailey is a bitter liar. He said, he said, take your pick.

Frankly, I lean towards Bailey's account. In fact, the whole episode is consistent with what America has seen as "Arkansas bubba politics" and I'd suggest that Mike Huckabee is not all that dissimilar at the core from a predecessor bubba politico, Bill Clinton. Both, by the way, are from Hope, Arkansas.