An answer Mike Huckabee gave last night, while superficially well done, was more than a little bit troubling to me. Here's the question and answer,

Joseph: I am Joseph. I am from Dallas, Texas, and how you answer this question will tell us everything we need to know about you. Do you believe every word of this book? Specifically, this book that I am holding in my hand, do you believe this book?

Huckabee: Sure. I believe the Bible is exactly what it is. It's the word of revelation to us from God himself.

(Applause)

And the fact is that when people ask do we believe all of it, you either believe it or you don't believe it. But in the greater sense, I think what the question tried to make us feel like was that, well, if you believe the part that says "Go and pluck out your eye," well, none of us believe that we ought to go pluck out our eye. That obviously is allegorical.

But the Bible has some messages that nobody really can confuse and really not left up to interpretation. "Love your neighbor as yourself."

And as much as you've done it to the least of these brethren, you've done it unto me. Until we get those simple, real easy things right, I'm not sure we ought to spend a whole lot of time fighting over the other parts that are a little bit complicated.

And as the only person here on the stage with a theology degree, there are parts of it I don't fully comprehend and understand, because the Bible is a revelation of an infinite god, and no finite person is ever going to fully understand it. If they do, their god is too small.

Now, on its face, this might seem like a great answer. In fact, when I was talking to my brother last night about it, he told me that he liked it and so did his wife.

However, this part of Huckabee's comments struck me as worrisome,

But the Bible has some messages that nobody really can confuse and really not left up to interpretation. "Love your neighbor as yourself."

And as much as you've done it to the least of these brethren, you've done it unto me.

Those are nice sentiments -- for a preacher, but not for a President. Make no mistake about it, you cannot have the same mentality in the White House that you do in the pulpit and be successful. Look at Jimmy Carter whose misguided morality has led him to give away the Panama Canal, stand by helplessly while Islamic radical wackjobs took over Iran, and to naively trust foreign dictators around the world.

You just can't be thinking, "Love your neighbor as yourself" when you're dealing with Al-Qaeda. A President cannot be thinking, "as much as you've done it to the least of these brethren, you've done it unto me," when he's dealing with illegal aliens.

Put another way, Machiavelli once said this, "(F)or there is such a gap between how one lives and how one ought to live that anyone who abandons what is done for what ought to be done learns his ruin rather than his preservation: for a man who wishes to profess goodness at all times will come to ruin among so many who are not good." You take a pastor's mentality into the Presidency and you most assuredly, "will come to ruin among so many who are not good," in the world and in Washington, DC.

PS #1: Last night they asked a "what would Jesus do" question and Mike Huckabee was wise enough to answer, "Jesus was too smart to ever run for public office, Anderson. That's what Jesus would do."

That's a great answer and Huckabee should take it to heart. You can be a preacher leading a congregation or a President leading a nation, but they're very different jobs.

PS #2: I have always said Huckabee reminds me of a charismatic George Bush. Now, he is starting to remind me a bit of a Republican version of Jimmy Carter. Either way, it's no great shakes...