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• Media Matters: Anti-gay "hate group" MassResistance is source for right-wing media attacks on Jennings.
• Alan Colmes: GOP CA Councilman Wears Sign Equating Pelosi With Stalin.
• Good As You: Manhattan Declaration's most eye-opening signature yet.
• Minnesota Independent: Bachmann tied for voice GOP insiders most want to ‘mute’.
• Towleroad: Annise Parker Takes Distinct Lead in Houston Mayoral Race.
• Steve Benen: Don't Feed The Crazies.
• Think Progress: Right-wing activists demand that Rep. Periello move office to make protesting him easier.

Over the weekend, Mike Huckabee suggested that he wasn't particularly interested in running for president in 2012, saying that even though he is leading in several polls, he really likes his job at Fox News:

WALLACE: Governor Huckabee, I want to show you a couple of polls that I suspect you already know about, but let’s put them up on the screen.

Seventy percent of Iowa Republicans view you favorably. That is more than any of the other mentioned likely presidential possibilities for 2012. And a national poll of Republicans last month had you in first place -- national poll -- ahead of Romney, and Palin and Gingrich.

So, Governor Huckabee, why wouldn’t you run for president in 2012?

HUCKABEE: Well, there’s obviously a lot of smart people in Iowa and the rest of the country. Let me acknowledge that. But the reason I wouldn’t is because this Fox gig I’ve got right now, Chris, is really, really wonderful.

And you know, it’s easy to say, “Oh, gee, don’t you just want to jump back in it?” But jumping into the pool -- you’ve got to make sure there’s some water in it. And there’s a whole different deal of saying some folks take a poll and whether there’s the financial support.

Howard [Dean] and I have both been there, done that. It’s a wonderful experience. But I am nowhere near ready to say that that’s what I want to do three years from now.

WALLACE: So let me ask you a silly question three years out. What do you -- would you say at this moment are the chances that you will run, 50/50, better, worse, what?

HUCKABEE: It’s hard to say. A lot of it depends on how the elections turn out next year and whether Roger Ailes continues to like my show on the weekends. And if all those things factor in, you know, it’s less likely than more likely, just because I would have to see that the Republicans would be willing to unite behind me.

The last time out, my biggest challenge was with the establishment Republicans who just never showed their support. And while I think a person can possibly win without them, the Republican Party needs to unite if it’s going to win in 2012. And anyone who thinks Barack Obama is an easy mark off, just remember Bill Clinton was just labeled politically dead and came back to win a resounding re-election in 1996.

Given the other tragic event over the weekend, it looks like Huckabee's decision about whether or not to make another run in 2012 might have been made for him:

The man whom police are seeking as a "person of interest" in the slaying of four police officers was released from an Arkansas prison nine years ago after a controversial decision by then-Gov. Mike Huckabee to commute his sentence.

Maurice Clemmons, 37, was identified late Sunday by the Pierce County Sheriff's Office as a man sought for questioning . Clemmons has pending charges in Pierce County Superior Court for second-degree child rape and third-degree assault for an attack on a police officer. He was released from custody in those cases after posting a $150,000 bond, according to the Lakewood Police Department.

Long before coming to Washington, Clemmons was serving a 35-year prison term in Arkansas for armed robbery but his sentence was commuted by then-Gov. Huckabee, who unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination in his 2008 presidential bid, according to the Arkansas Times Web site.

After his release, he committed two armed robberies and other crimes and was sentenced to 10 years, but was later paroled, according to this column in the Arkansas Leader.

HuckPAC has released this statement, saying that if Clemmons is responsible for this crime, laying that fault of the "criminal justice system": 

The senseless and savage execution of police officers in Washington State has saddened the nation, and early reports indicate that a person of interest is a repeat offender who once lived in Arkansas and was wanted on outstanding warrants here and in Washington State. The murder of any individual is a profound tragedy, but the murder of a police officer is the worst of all murders in that it is an assault on every citizen and the laws we live within.

Should he be found to be responsible for this horrible tragedy, it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington State. He was recommended for and received a commutation of his original sentence from 1990, this commutation made him parole eligible and he was then paroled by the parole board once they determined he met the conditions at that time. He was arrested later for parole violation and taken back to prison to serve his full term, but prosecutors dropped the charges that would have held him. It appears that he has continued to have a string of criminal and psychotic behavior but was not kept incarcerated by either state. This is a horrible and tragic event and if found and convicted the offender should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. Our thoughts and prayers are and should be with the families of those honorable, brave, and heroic police officers.

• Dick Cheney will endorse Kay Bailey Hutchison's campaign for Texas governor next month.
• 7 in 10 people say Sarah Palin is not qualified to be President. What are those other 3 people thinking?
• Bill Donohue does not like the phrase "opposite sex marriage." But then again, is there anything that Donohue does like?
• Harry Jackson disputes the Washington Post's estimate of the crowd size at his "People's Rally," insisting that there were 2,000 people in attendance, rather than the 150 the Post estimated.
• Finally, WorldNetDaily is now selling its Birther video for a mere $5, so stock up on gifts for the holiday season.

Right-wing groups have long made unsubstantiated claims about voter fraud the supposed rationale for pushing legislation that would erect new barriers to the ballot box. A How to Take Back America workshop on “Voter Fraud, the Census, and ACORN” made it clear that right-wing politicians will try to use ACORN’s recent troubles to build momentum for restrictive voting laws.

Kris Kobach, a lawyer and failed congressional candidate who has made a name for himself on the Right as an anti-illegal immigration crusader, announced this summer that he is running to be Secretary of State in Kansas. His theme is combating voter fraud, a solution in search of a problem in Kansas. Kobach, like other speakers, implied that Al Franken’s Senate seat was somehow illegitimate, referring to Franken’s “pseudo-election.”

The workshop was largely a tirade against ACORN and the “hard left,” which is supposedly engaged in a massive effort to steal elections. No one, said Kobach, is disenfranchised based on the color of their skin these days. He slammed the Obama Justice Department for signaling to states that they’re “on their own” when it comes to fighting voter fraud.

Kobach’s five-step prescription for states, which he hopes he can implement in Kansas as a model, includes ramping up prosecutions for voter fraud, enacting photo-ID laws, taking more aggressive steps to “clean up” voter rolls (otherwise known as purging), requiring proof of citizenship for voter registration, and standardizing provisional ballot and recount procedures, which he said “the left” was abusing.

The other workshop speaker was Ed Martin, who is preparing to mount a challenge for the congressional seat now held by Rep. Russ Carnahan. Martin bragged about taking on ACORN as chair of the St. Louis City Board of Elections and argued that voter fraud next year could be financed by federal stimulus money. One solution he offered was to get “tea party” activists to sign up as poll workers.

In spite of the worskhop’s name, little was said about the census in the session or at the conference generally – even by census-bashing Michele Bachmann – possibly because people were feeling a little chastened about the recent murder of a census employee and the creepy anti-government overtones to that crime. Helen Blackwell, the workshop’s moderator, did quip that its title referenced “three of my very favorite atrocities.” And Kobach made reference to the “pernicious” move by the administration to bring oversight of the census into the White House and the Census Bureau’s have included ACORN among its partner organizations.

No surprise here:

Mike Huckabee won the Values Voter Summit Presidential Straw Poll. This is the second straw poll that was ever conducted at the Values Voter Summit and was only open to registered participants, who were in attendance. Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said, “We were surprised that the event’s turnout was more than double our expectations, clearly showing intensity among social conservatives. This was the first time potential conservative candidates could present their vision for change. We have over 1,800 registrants and over 175,000 unique online viewers.”

Below are the results of the poll:

1. Mike Huckabee (170 votes, 28.48%)
2. Mitt Romney (74 votes, 12.40%)
3. Tim Pawlenty (73 votes, 12.23%)
4. Sarah Palin (72 votes, 12.06%)
5. Mike Pence (71 votes, 11.89%)
6. Newt Gingrich (40 votes, 6.70%)
7. Bobby Jindal (28 votes, 4.69%)
8. Rick Santorum (15 votes, 2.51%)
9. Ron Paul (13 votes, 2.18%)
10. Undecided (31 votes, 5.19%)
11. Other (10 votes, 1.68%)

Huckabee actually won the last Values Voter Straw Poll as well among votes cast by those in attendance, but lost the overall straw poll because Romney supporters dominated the on-line voting.  This year, FRC did away with the on-line voting and, not surprisingly, the change worked to Huckabee's advantage.

Though I have to say that Huckabee doesn't seem particularly impressed with his own victory, given this rather muted statement he released:

Its always flattering to win one of these but its a long way from deciding to run and from the election. My heartfelt thanks for the affirmation of the people at the values voter summit.

Last week, LifeSiteNews reported that former Sen. Rick Santorum had been speaking to a room full of prominent US Catholic leaders when he was challenged to run for the Republican Presidential nomination in 2012.  Santorum responded that, six months ago his anwer would have been "no way," but given that President Obama is destroying our nation, he is indeed "thinking about it" making his own run for the GOP nomination.

Today, Santorum was on a RNC conference call and reiterated that he is considering such a run:

Rick Santorum affirmed on an RNC conference call -- aimed at attacking Arlen Specter -- that he's considering a run for president in 2012 -- because, he said, the Obama presidency is "injurious to America."

"The dynamic has changed," Santorum said. "A lot of folks who might not have thought about running against an incumbent president" are now considering it.

He cited Obama's lower poll numbers and his failure to "transform" and unify the country.

"A lot of people are going to take a look and see wht they can do to try to confront this presidency, which many of us -- as you're seeing from the tea parties and the like -- which many of us believe is injurious to America," Santorum said, saying the 2012 race is "something that I think I would consider."

I always assumed that getting routed in your re-election bid for Congressional office pretty much doomed any hope a candidate had for seeking higher office, but apparently not.

I wonder if Mitt Romney will try to stuff the ballot box at this straw poll too?

Next week, one of the first major presidential straw poll events of the 2012 election cycle will be held at FRC Action's fourth annual Values Voter Summit. The ballot will feature ten possible presidential candidates, several of whom will be speaking at the Summit, who have also exhibited leadership on key issues - Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee, Bobby Jindal, Sarah Palin, Ron Paul, Tim Pawlenty, Mike Pence, Rick Perry, Mitt Romney, and Rick Santorum.

"The 2012 presidential primaries may be several years away but many value voters are already surveying the field of possible candidates," said Family Research Council Action President Tony Perkins. "This straw poll is an early test for possible presidential contenders who have shown leadership on the major issues facing our country."

Public Policy Polling released a poll yesterday showing that among possible 2012 GOP presidential contenders, Mike Huckabee is currently faring the best in a possible match-up against President Obama:

Our fifth monthly national survey matching up Barack Obama against some possible 2012 opponents comes to the same two primary conclusions as the other four:

1) Obama leads all comers

2) Mike Huckabee, at least at this early stage, is the strongest GOP candidate

In this particular iteration of the poll, Huckabee comes the closest to Obama that he has yet, trailing just 47-44. That's tightened since the President led 48-42 a month ago.

Huckabee also has the best overall favorability rating of the Republican quartet we tested, at 45/28.

Obviously, polls conducted three years before the next election don't mean very much, but the results are still interesting nonetheless, especially in light of another poll PPP recently released on just who the "Birthers" are and what they seem to believe.  Today, PPP broke out the numbers a bit and found out that, among the Birthers, Sarah Palin is their favorite candidate, followed by Huckabee:

The birthers love them some Sarah Palin. She's the most popular politician in the mix with them at 66% favorability. Next is Mike Huckabee at 58%, followed by Newt Gingrich at 46%, and Mitt Romney at 43%.

In a follow-up post, PPP's Tom Jensen says that non-Birther Republicans tend to like Huckabee most:

60% of those folks (the reasonable wing of the party?) have a favorable opinion of Mike Huckabee, 58% have one of Sarah Palin, 57% have one of Mitt Romney, and 52% have one of Newt Gingrich.

Since Huckabee appears to have a 58% favorability rating among Birthers and a 60% favorability rating among non-birthers, it'll be interesting to see what happens to his ratings after he appears at the How To Take Back America Conference next month, which is being hosted by three bona fide birthers, foremost among them conference co-host Janet Porter who has recently been obsessed with spreading claims about how government internment camps and mass evacuation buses are part of a nefarious plot by the government to kill millions of Americans under the guise of providing flu vaccines.

You know, somebody really ought to ask Huckabee whether or not he agrees with the insanity being spread by the hosts of this event at which he is scheduled to be a keynote speaker, seeing as there have been a couple of polls recently sugesting that he just might be the GOP front-runner in 2012.

• Steve Benen: For some reason, a recent Gallup poll showing strong "pro-life" numbers was a huge story, even though the results were dubious, whereas a new Gallup poll showing weaker "pro-life" numbers is a complete non-story.
• Eleanor Bader at RH Reality Check examines the Right's campaign against ENDA and hate crimes legislation.
• David Weigel reports that conservative TEA Party and town hall protesters are literally taking a page out of Saul Alinsky 1971 book “Rules for Radicals."
• Autumn Sandeen: "I couldn't be more surprised to find out that I'm apparently now the honest to gawd, serious 'face' for the second tier religious right organizations regarding Obama Tranny-Care."
• David Hart debunks Exodus International's new study that claims a 53% "success rate" in converting gays.
• Good As You reports that the Family Research Council has gotten into the act of peddling Paul Cameron's bogus "research."
• Truth Wins Out: Even though Focus on the Family is facing a $6 million budget shortfall, it doesn't mean it is necessarily hurting for money.