Why It Works In both cases, a two-term governor (Arkansas for Huck, California for Reagan) known for his rhetorical gifts runs to the right of a moderate, party-backed candidate. Longtime Reagan strategist Ed Rollins is now Huckabee’s campaign chair and is advising him to use Reagan’s ‘76 strategy as a blueprint for another run in 2012.
Why It Doesn’t A flurry of late primary wins got Reagan to within 100 delegates of Ford; Huck trails McCain by some 600 and seems unlikely to close the gap. Plus, Huck’s support comes largely from religious conservatives. If he runs again, it’s doubtful that he could rally the kind of broad coalition that Reagan built in 1980.
