The Huck and Ron show

LITTLE ROCK — Regardless of what you might think of former Gov. Mike Huckabee or the fact that he has a rather unpresidential last name, you've got to admit he's making a favorable impression in the nationally televised debates.

Even I thought he did very well, and the man refers to me as a snarling "bulldog." Clever rejoinders have always been amongst the Huck's strengths and he's never been in better form than during these debates.

Asking Huckabee for a one-minute response about health care is akin to dropping a well-baited hook into the trout pond at feeding time. He is blessed with a phenomenally sharp mind that allows him to recall facts, figures, jokes and clever asides at his command. His ability to tint serious events with humor endears him to many who find the down-home style refreshing.

So far, our former governor has displayed sufficient quip and chutzpah to keep him floating somewhere around fifth place behind the "top-tier" candidates, who include Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, Fred Thompson and John McCain. But I believe the maverick Ron Paul, with his strict conservative and constitutionalist views, has been steadily gathering more grass-roots support across the Internet thanmost mainstream media will admit.

In fact, at this point, I'd have to say that Paul, a medical doctor, Texas congressman and former Liberterian Party candidate for president, looms ahead of Huckabee. He's gaining popularity with his passionate devotion to our Constitution and the desires of our Founding Fathers.

Potential voters who Google Paul's name seem to discover-despite his gomerish mannerisms and agitated style-a renewed respect for the man and his consistent record as a public servant. For instance, they appreciate his decision not to participate in the cushy congressional retirement program and the fact that his office regularly returns money to the federal Treasury. Seems there are enough Americans who respect a person who walks their talk.

There's a grass-roots Internet crusade under way on Paul's behalf to raise $10 million on Nov. 5. It's asking 100,000 people to each contribute $100 to his campaign.

I found it interesting that, in the highly informal text-messaging poll taken after the recent Sunday debate, Paul yet againfinished first with 34 percent of the vote while Huckabee was second with 26 percent. That's 60 percent between them on what these many voting viewers felt became "The Huck and Ron Show."

Giuliani, Romney and Thompson all hovered ataround 10 percent. This must say something about both Huckabee and Paul, although I'm not wise enough to interpret what.

Like Paul, Huckabee, an ordained Baptist minister, strike me as a more conservative candidate. He always has had a high likeability quotient. He seems warmly approachable, like that amusing, huggable uncle we all loved as kids, thewhiskery one who smelled of aftershave and always carried Life Savers.

Then again, the citizens of this Arkansas "banana republic," teeming with its triple-wides, which became punch lines for Huckabee's witty appearances on Don Imus' radio show, witnessed a different Huck than the fully polished version America is seeing now.

Many across our state remember his deeply controversial actions. They recall, for instance, how Huckabee inexplicably failed to properly account for his extensive use of the state's airplane during his final years in office and the computer hard drives that wound up destroyed upon his departure from the office.

Consolidating the state Departments of Health and Human Services proved to be a poor move on his part, as was his role in establishing a Mexican consulate in Little Rock and pushing for costly free college classes and prenatal care for illegal immigrants in Arkansas. The Wayne DuMond parole remains stuck like warm road tar to the soles of Huck's brogans.

Look for those controversies, and a Wal-Mart list of others that unimpressed Arkansans have accumulated to loom larger if Huckabee's stock rises much higher in the GOP primary.

Include me in the group of those who hope Huckabee continues making a good impression across the nation. I say that because for now, anyway, the image he projects can only cast a positive light on our small state.

We can discuss the inevitable glare of the national media spotlight and those ramifications of his success if and when that day dawns.

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Staff columnist Mike Masterson is the former editor of three Arkansas daily newspapers.