Why is Churchill's bust linked to Huckabee's Kenya gaffee?

[csziggy]

I've been wondering why the story about President Obama sending the Winston Churchill bust back to Britain has been back in internet posts in the last week. So I went looking for the truth behind the story. Inadvertently I found a link to Huckabee's idiotic comments about Barack Obama growing up in Kenya.

Busted: The Churchill Flap
by Katie Connolly
February 21, 2009

Has America's even- tempered new president already ruffled feathers in the land that spawned Borat and Benny Hill? That's certainly how the spiky British press responded after the White House sent back to the British Embassy a bust of Sir Winston Churchill that had occupied a cherished spot in President Bush's Oval Office. Intended as a symbol of transatlantic solidarity, the bust was a loaner from former British prime minister Tony Blair following the September 11 attacks. A bust of Abraham Lincoln—Obama's historical hero—now sits in its place. A White House spokesperson says the Churchill bust was removed before Obama's inauguration as part of the usual changeover operations, adding that every president puts his own stamp on the Oval Office.

But the British press, as is its wont, smells a snub. The Telegraph speculated that British diplomats' pulse rates would soar, while The Times of London wondered if a shadow had been cast over the special U.S.–U.K. relationship. A spokesperson for the British embassy, though, threw cold tea on the notion, pointing out British politician David Miliband was the first foreign minister to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Maybe it's no surprise that Obama wouldn't want Churchill watching over his shoulder. After all, it was Churchill who, in 1952, ordered a crackdown on the Mau Mau rebellion against British colonial rule in Kenya, Obama's ancestral homeland. Obama's grandfather, Hussein Onyango Obama, was labeled a subversive during the uprising and spent months in detention.

More: http://www.newsweek.com/2009/02/20/busted-the-churchill-flap.html

{Emphasis added.}

Now why is a two year old story coming back into the main stream media with this strange linkage of President Obama's ancestors resistance to colonial rule to a freaking statuette? Who decided to dredge this up and make it a right wing talking point? And who garbled the talking points so badly that a slick political hack like Huckabee could not parrot them correctly?

[Ichingcarpenter]

1. A double down dog whistle to his Southern Base

But of course he misspoke again.

But made sure he got both dog whistles out

[csziggy]

2. I just hope does not consider me part of his Southern Base n/t

[Ichingcarpenter]

3. Poll shows Huckabee with huge lead in southern states

He's still not sure he wants to run for president, but a new poll in eleven southern states shows Mike Huckabee leading any other candidate by a huge margin.

Twenty-two percent of probable Republican voters in the poll picked the former Arkansas governor. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich came in second, with 13 percent.
"It's no secret that Governor Huckabee is seriously considering a run for president in 2012 - and various poll results like this one are, quite frankly, becoming hard for the governor and his political team to ignore," said Hogan Gidley, the executive director of Huckabee's Political Action Committee and the former head of the South Carolina Republican Party.

The poll covered likely voters in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Huckabee's popularity can't be chalked up to southern loyalty -- Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour gets only 1 percent of the vote. A more important factor is name recognition: Huckabee is better known all over the country than many other contenders.........SNIP.........

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/thefix/eye-on-2012/huckabee-adviser-poll-results.html

[rfranklin]

4. He's also a Bible thumper...

Mike Huckabee, Israel and Bible prophecy
Submitted by James Besser on Tue, 08/10/2010 - 10:27
11
ShareFormer Ark. Gov. Mike Huckabee, looking an awful lot like a contender for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, is also trying to position himself as Israel's best friend, and plenty of conservative Jews are inclined to buy it.

Judging by a recent interview he conducted in his role as a Fox News host, he may also be positioning himself as the candidate of the Christian apocalypse, which raises some interesting questions.

http://www.thejewishweek.com/blogs/political_insider/mike_huckabee_israel_and_bible_prophecy

[csziggy]

5. You know, the evilness of the Republican candidates

Will be what will get me out to campaign, not the caliber of the Democratic nominee. And religious fakers like Huckabee are the most evil in my book!