by Jason George
HENNIKER, N.H. — In the hours after his Iowa win Thursday, Gov. Mike Huckabee told reporters that he did not plan to change his message for Granite State voters, but he surely tailored at his only appearance on the stump Friday, when he focused his attention on replacing the federal income tax with the Fair Tax, a proposed national sales tax.
Unlike in Iowa, Huckabee also began his speech on the topic of immigration reform – a popular issue here – and transitioned into talking points on states’ rights, and applauded New Hampshire’s strong local governments.
“That’s the government that’s most accountable to the people,” he said at his rally in Henniker.
The candidate, a former Baptist minister, also only mentioned God a few times, a fraction of such utterances he was known to do in evangelical-heavy Iowa.
One thing that Huckabee didn’t change during his first day in New Hampshire was his recent habit of rare public events, punctuated with numerous television appearances –Huckabee spent Friday morning under the lights for 8 network and cable morning shows, where he said his anti-income tax stance should play well with Live Free or Die voters.
“Iowa is a wonderful state and the people are focused a lot on social issues,” Huckabee told Harry Smith on CBS’s “The Early Show.”
“My tax plan, which would completely overhaul the tax system, is connecting with voters in New Hampshire.”