Huckabee: In it to win it?

The Associated Press

Mike Huckabee won big in Kansas. Is it too late to challenge McCain?

Featured Topic | Posted 40 weeks 6 days ago

Maybe it's early to start fitting John McCain for the Republican crown. Mike Huckabee -- who has refused requests to withdraw from the GOP race -- beat McCain handily in Saturday's Kansas caucus, by a more than 2-to-1 margin.

Is the GOP race still open? Is Huckabee's win an isolated event, or does it signify that McCain still has big troubles with the Republican base?

Ben likes: Huck, for the long haul

John O'Sullivan/National Review

We may see Huckabee in the race till after the Texas and Ohio primaries and, if he wins them, maybe well beyond.

He does well by running against the establishment, it seems to me, and the longer he stays in by winning or doing respectably, the more he builds up his reputation for 2012. After all, suppose he ends up with more delegates than Romney?
That is now quite likely. Huckabee is getting his own votes, the votes of all those dubious about McCain who don't want Ron Paul, and the votes of those who simply want the race to continue—people who, like Huckabee himself, are having fun.

Joel likes:Kansas

Kevin Drum/Political Animal

What a blowout. Usually, even among true believers, you expect a party to rally around its presumptive nominee. But Kansas Republicans weren't buying, and they weren't content just to show a pro forma lack of enthusiasm. They crushed McCain like a bug, voting for Huckabee 60%-24%. Hell, "other" almost beat McCain.

There's no point in making too much of this. McCain is going to win the nomination and the party faithful will support him. But it's going to be a fight for McCain to win their love, and that fight might well keep him from broadening his appeal to the middle. Come November, liberals might not be the only ones asking What's the Matter With Kansas?