Huckabee Challenges McCain to Debate

Mike Huckabee posted a letter to John McCain on his blog yesterday afternoon, challenging the Senator to a debate -- Lincoln-Douglas style.

Clearly, Huckabee shows no sign of backing down, despite the almost mathematic impossibility of his being able to nail down the Republican nomination. In the letter he states that he would like to have the debate before next week's March 4 primaries.

Scoop08 has strongy supported the idea of Lincoln-Douglas style debates being tried again, as we believe that they would lead to better and more substantial policy discussions. Though, Huckabee's challenge here is politically charged. As the candidate with less money and no momentum, Huckabee is counting on the fact that McCain is still having trouble appealing to certain parts of the Republican base, and that the media coverage the debate would provide woud let Ohio and Texas voters hear his ideas, even though he doesn't have the funds to compete with McCain's advertisements.

Especially in Ohio, there are former Bush voters who would most likely embrace Huckabee's religiously toned populism and his fierce opposition of the IRS - if only they could hear his message. While it's doubtful that McCain will accept this challenge, it wouldn't be the strangest thing that has happened in the campaign thus far.