A second place finish--just what Huckabee needed

Wow, I must say I'm a little surprised. When I originally wrote my analysis of the Iowa Straw Poll, I said that Huckabee, even though he came in second, was still far from Romney, who nearly received double the votes, and may not get the momentum a closer finish to Romney would have given him. But boy was I dead wrong. Huckabee has capitalized on his win and is quickly gaining momentum.

The attention the media has given to Huckabee has really amazed me. He is on the front-page of just about every political website. He has given interviews with all the cable news channels, including a very good interview on Morning Joe this morning, where he disclosed a very interesting piece of information. That piece of info led me to see why Huckabee was so excited and why his second place victory energized his campaign. While Romney spent anywhere from $4-5 million on the Straw Poll, Huckabee only spend $90,000. Do the math: Huckaebee got half the votes Romney did, but didn't spend close to half the money Romney did. Its actually pretty damn impressive that Huckabee has the amount of support he does with so little money. If this buzz about Huckabee continues and he does well in the next debate, I could actually see Huckabee break into the front-tier and get some big donations. While I might not like his ideas or principals, I must say there is something refreshing about Huckabee, he does appear to be the most approachable guy on the Republican side. I might have wrote the governor off to soon, as I'm starting to see big things for Huckabee.

Iowa Straw Poll: quick results

Here is a quick look at how the candidates fared in the Iowa Straw Poll, I will be back tomorrow morning for a full analysis.

1. Mitt Romney 4516 votes
2. Mike Huckabee 2587
3. Sam Brownback 2192
4. Tom Tancredo 1961
5. Ron Paul 1305
6. Tommy Thompson 1009
7. Duncan Hunter 174
8. John Cox 41

*While the following we're not actively taking part in the Straw Poll their names were still on the ballot:

Fred Thompson 231 votes
Rudy Guiliani 183
John McCain 101

Ron Paul...putting Mitt Romney to good use!

Ron Paul is a genius. He is the only person in the world that could find a good reason to keep Mitt "flip-flopper" Romney around.
"Ron Paul’s supporters are actively encouraging Iowa voters to take advantage of Mitt Romney’s offers of free transportation to the Iowa Straw Poll in Ames on Saturday and then, once they are there, to vote for Mr. Paul."
(from the NY Times)

Not only is this a great way to get Ron Paul supporters to the polls, but it also limits the power of money in the Iowa straw poll. If people, who aren't Romney supporters, take the buses, Romney's financial advantage will be reduced. And thats a good thing, because in a democracy, money shouldn't decide elections.