Homophobia meets populism: Is there an upside to Huckabee’s “backside” politics?

[pampango]

If the right-wing populist is as tough on Jeb Bush as he is on women and Big Gay, he could shake up the GOP race

In 2016, Huckabee promises to be far nastier than he was last time around. In his declaration speech on Tuesday, Politico’s Roger Simon cracked, he looked like “an angry beach ball in a suit.” Most of his fire is reserved for the culture war: He’s nastiest when talking about Democrats who think women “can’t control their libidos,” women who in fact indulge their libidos, the gay marriage lobby and Barack Obama. He’s smeared the president as imbibing left-wing values “growing up in Kenya” (he did not) and urged Christians not to enlist in the military until there’s a new commander in chief.

But Huckabee has not abandoned the populist economic rhetoric that got the big-spending former Arkansas governor into trouble with anti-tax conservatives last time around. In fact, he’s learning how to meld populism with homophobia: Crusading against the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Huckabee told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell that American workers would “take it in the backside” if the trade deal was approved. And we all know nobody’s supposed to take it in the backside.

Could there be an upside in Huckabee’s populist backside politics? Maybe, though he’s still a very long shot for the nomination. Salon’s Jim Newell argues that melding his culture warrior stands with economic populism could give Huckabee a lane of his own in the GOP primary, even if he’s unlikely to win it. Alone among the GOP candidates, he’s committed himself to defending Social Security and Medicare. And now he’s taking on the TPP, when most of his rivals are teaming up behind it with Obama.

Yes, Huckabee is now a 1 percenter who’s posing as a working stiff. And he still seems more likely to play to his base’s old-fashioned homophobia than their fear of taking it in the backside from the ruling class. Fiscal hawks hate Huckabee the way defense hawks hate Rand Paul – but unlike Paul, he’s mostly stuck to his policies. It may doom him with most wealthy donors, and anti-spending conservatives.

http://www.salon.com/2015/05/08/homophobia_meets_populism_is_there_an_upside_to_huckabees_backside_politics/

Combining homophobia, antagonism towards Big Gay (never heard that before) and "liberal values" with economic populism - support for Medicare, Social Security, higher taxes and opposition to TPP is different coming from a GOP candidate. Obviously, none of us want him anywhere near the White House, but he is a somewhat different republican primary candidate. The republican field seems to understand that they are competing for the white working class vote (as long as they don't alienate the 1%). Culture wars is a way to do that since the 1% doesn't care much about that but beyond that tax and trade policy could lead to some fighting in their primary.

[Bluenorthwest]

1. Respectfully, this highlights the reality and historical context of populism in the US and

demonstrates very well why progressive populists need to be extremely proactive in welcoming LGBT and other minorities and why they should, if they are progressives, expect and understand skepticism from populations that have been victimized by right wing populism over the years. They should not assume nor should they expect others to come to them, they need to be leading with open hand extended and full embraces of equality for all people.
This is why the 'civil rights don't really matter' posts are greeted with such hostility. We already have Mike Huckabee to do that.