Mike Huckabee,  President 2008

Mike Huckabee Watch: AIDS Comments Alarm Ryan White’s Mother; Update: See What Flap Means

AIDS victim Ryan White, of Kokomo, Ind., and his mother Jeanne White enter U.S. District Court in Indianapolis, Aug. 16, 1985. Jeanne White-Ginder the mother of the teenager whose life-ending battle with AIDS in the 1980s engrossed the nation, said Monday, Dec. 10, 2007, she wants to meet with Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee over his statement 15 years ago that AIDS patients should have been isolated.

Remember the comments of former Arkansas Governor and Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee during his race for the Arkansas Senate in 1992:

  • “If the federal government is truly serious about doing something with the AIDS virus, we need to take steps that would isolate the carriers of this plague…. It is difficult to understand the public policy towards AIDS. It is the first time in the history of civilization in which the carriers of a genuine plague have not been isolated from the general population, and in which this deadly disease for which there is no cure is being treated as a civil rights issue instead of the true health crisis it represents.”
  • “In light of the extraordinary funds already being given for AIDS research, it does not seem that additional federal spending can be justified….”
  • “An alternative would be to request that multimillionaire celebrities, such as Elizabeth Taylor, Madonna and others who are pushing for more AIDS funding be encouraged to give out of their own personal treasuries increased amounts for AIDS research.”

Now, Ryan White’s mother, Jeanne White-Ginder says she is alarmed at Huckabee’s comments.

The mother of Ryan White, an Indiana teenager whose life-ending battle with AIDS in the 1980s engrossed the nation, wants to meet with Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee to discuss his comments 15 years ago that AIDS patients should have been isolated.

The former Arkansas governor and GOP front-runner in the important Iowa caucuses said Sunday that he stood by the comments.

That has infuriated Jeanne White-Ginder, who said: “It’s so alarming to me.”

In a telephone interview Monday with The Associated Press from her home in Leesburg, Fla., she said: “It’s very important to me that we don’t live in the darkness” when people thought AIDS was transmitted through casual contact, such as by “kissing, tears, sweat and saliva.”

“We have to treat this disease like a disease, and like Ryan always said, not like a dirty word,” she said.

White was 13 when he was diagnosed with AIDS in December 1984, having contracted the disease from the blood-clotting agent used to treat his hemophilia. He was barred from school the following year out of fear the disease was spread casually. He died in 1990 at age 18.

Do Mike Huckabee’s responses REALLY carry ANY weight?

No, and what is the most alarming is that Huckabee was many YEARS behind the science of AIDS – to the point of playing the AIDS Card (or was it the anti-homosexual card) to be elected the the United States Senate (Huckabee lost the race).

So, what would you call Huckabee’s response?

Disingenuous indeed. In 1992, we in the dental profession had for many years understood the transmission routes of HIV/AIDS infection. The Kimberly Bergalis case was in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s – NOT as late as 1992 when Mike Huckabee answered the questionnaire. Moreover, C. Everett Koop issued his Surgeon General’s report in 1986.

Here is the 1986 information:

United States. Public Health Service. Office of the Surgeon General. “Surgeon General’s Report on Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.” United States. Public Health Service. Office of the Surgeon General, [October 1986]. Brochure. Official Report. 19 Images.

So, why did Huckabee advocate quarantine in 1992?

Jeanne White-Ginder has a RIGHT to be alarmed as every American voter should.

Flap can see the television commercials now in the general election. The GOP may nominate Huckabee but he will be slaughtered by the Democrats in November 2008.

Huckabee’s electability as President is ZERO.

Update:

See what Flap means?

The latest banner from Drudge:

From Drudge:

Democrat party officials are avoiding any and all criticism of Republican presidential contender Mike Huckabee, insiders reveal.

The Democratic National Committee has told staffers to hold all fire, until he secures the party’s nomination.

The directive has come down from the highest levels within the party, according to a top source.

Within the DNC, Huckabee is known as the “glass jaw — and they’re just waiting to break it.”

In the last three weeks since Huckabee’s surge kicked in, the DNC hasn’t released a single press release criticizing his rising candidacy.

The last DNC press release critical of Huckabee appeared back on March 2nd.

[DNC Press Release Attack Summary:

Governor Mitt Romney (R-MA) – 37% (99 press releases)
Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R-NY) – 28% (74)
Senator John McCain (R-AZ) – 24% (64)
Senator Fred Thompson (R-TN) – 8% (20)
Governor Mike Huckabee – 2% (4)]

In fact, as the story broke over the weekend that Huckabee said he wanted to isolate AIDS patients back in 1992, the DNC ignored the opportunity to slam the candidate from the left.

“He’ll easily be their McGovern, an easy kill,” mocked one senior Democrat operative Tuesday morning from Washington.

“His letting out murderers because they shout ‘Jesus’, his wanting to put 300,000 AIDS patients and Magic Johnson into isolation, ain’t even scratching the surface of what we’ve got on him.”

Previous:

Mike Huckabee Watch: Homosexuals “Miss The Mark”

Mike Huckabee Watch: Huckabee Flip Flops on Illegal Immigration and Cuba Embargo

Mike Huckabee Watch: My Entry into Politics – “Getting Inside the Dragon’s Belly”

Mike Huckabee Watch: Huckabee Parses AIDS Quarantine Statement

Mike Huckabee Watch: AIDS and Homosexual Statements Plague Huckabee? ; Update: Huckabee Responds

Michael Ramirez on Evangelical Christian Vs. Mormon in the GOP

Mike Huckabee Watch: Huckabee Opens Up Commanding Lead Over Mitt Romney in Iowa

Mike Huckabee Watch: Arkansas Clemencies – Is Huckabee Too Soft on Crime?


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