Well it seems that former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is none to pleased with the moniker that he, and a few others, have been saddled with. So much so that he took it upon himself to call on Republicans to stop using the "pejorative term" RINO, Republican In Name Only, against each other. Huckabee, who some, including himself, view as being a potential Republican presidential candidate in 2016, said in a letter to supporters that the word should be banned, and claimed the in-fighting among Republicans, due to differences over policy issues, could hurt the GOP in elections. I hate to disagree with him, but there is a point that needs to be made. That point being, that when Republicans repeatedly side with Democrats on issues considered to be detrimental to this country, they deserve to be referred to as RINOs. Because they are!
He wrote said in his letter, "Many of you used a term that I'd like to see outlawed from the vernacular of the party — RINO. It stands for Republicans in Name Only, and it's a pejorative term that questions the authenticity and orthodoxy of someone's party purity." He continued, "With all due respect, I've fought in the trenches of Republican politics for over two decades, but I wouldn't pretend that I'm Lord over determining who the real Republicans are vs. the so-called RINOs," he continued. And he went on to write, "If factions within the Republican Party insist on spending time and money to attack other Republicans, I wonder if they want to win elections and save the country, or just proudly boast to their party pedigree." Sounds to me like maybe the good governor is protesting just a bit too much.
The term RINO really has nothing to do with one’s "party purity". But it is very often used by conservatives against those viewed as being a bit too moderate or considered to be establishment Republicans as a way of saying, not that they are not Republican enough, but that they are not conservative enough. Huckabee said in the letter that a united GOP will have a better chance of making "more gains politically," and also referred to the Gospel of Matthew while declaring that Jesus once said, "A house divided against itself cannot stand." Huckabee wrapped up his letter in typical Huckabee style, with a folksy proverb. "I'd rather have a loyal dog who licks me than one with a pedigree who bites me," he wrote. "I'd rather go to battle with someone who isn't perfect than with someone who thinks he is." I want to go into battle with someone who’s on my side.
And to use the governor’s own analogy, personally I’d rather have a dog who’s maybe not the friendliest but who will help me protect what’s mine, than I would a dog who licks me when no ones around but keeps me cornered while the crooks to get away with my big screen television. And that’s what we continue to get from RINOs in Congress, they say one thing while in front of the TV cameras and then something quite different once when they get behind closed doors. So Gov. Huckabee is free to sound all indignant if he wants, but there is a very good reason why he and those like him are referred to as being RINOs. And I get a little pissed when politicians think that I’m gullible enough to fall for their claims of being conservative, and too stupid to recognize that their actions are telling me that they are actually anything but.
Look, the days of my supporting someone simply because that they have an ‘R’ after their name are long gone. And an excellent example for why that is took place just yesterday when the House RINOs got together with the House Democrats and passed a $1.1 Trillion spending bill that does nothing more than to add to our already staggering $17 Trillion national debt. And word now has it that these same two groups have now made it known that they intend to shove through Congress, this year, some manner of amnesty. That, even though only 3 percent of Americans say that immigration reform should be a top priority. So you tell me, is Gov. Huckabee justified in his whining about the "pejorative term" RINO? Somebody should tell him that nobody likes a whiner and that when one is referred to as a RINO there’s usually a very good reason. Right, Mike?
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