It was the epitome of middle-class middle America: a bowling alley in Milwaukee, Wis., on a Sunday afternoon. Nachos and pizza and pitchers of Miller Light for $8, NASCAR on TV, kids plunking tokens into arcade games, Mike and Janet Huckabee bowling 10 frames. Fresh from a trip to the Cayman Islands, where he gave a paid speech at a black-tie leadership awards banquet Saturday night, Mike Huckabee returned to the trail in preparation for Tuesday’s Wisconsin primary with a trip to Olympic Lanes in South Milwaukee. He and his wife, Janet, were greeted by a few hundred supporters, though some had clearly shown up just to throw a few frames and were surprised by the gathered media. A few recoiled at the sight of cameramen amassed at the door and decided to go home. But by the time the Huckabees made their way to lane 23, surrounded by a huddle of media and fans while donning their bowling shoes, the whole place was paying attention. The Huckabees combined for an 86 in ten frames with each throwing a few gutterballs and Janet picking up a spare (the highlight of the effort). The former first couple of Arkansas displayed solid, if rusty, form. “He took me bowling on our first date,” said Janet, who was a little more consistent as a bowler–Mike’s attempts, in a metaphor of political leanings, strayed to the far right on most of his throws. They took on a team of media members, including yours truly, who outdid the Huckabees with a 112. Huckabee picked out a few reluctant members of the traveling press and hammed it up by turning the cameras on them as cameramen and embedded network producers lined up for their turn to bowl.
After shaking hands and signing “I Like Mike” campaign signs for a good 45 minutes, Huckabee gave an impromptu press conference, where he was immediately asked about his trip to the Caymans. His tanned face and beet-red ears weren’t from sitting on the beach, he said, but from running seven miles on Saturday. (Huckabee still hopes to run the Boston marathon in April.) Huckabee has spent the last few months railing against offshore tax havens such as the Caymans for keeping “$12 trillion” out of the U.S. economy, and Sunday he said that he had met for an hour with a Caymans official whom he called “the equivalent of the prime minister.” Though the campaign has refused to name the official, Huckabee said the two discussed “efforts to clean up the banking industry and make themselves a financial services center, not so much to launder money.” Not that there’s anything shady about the Caymans’ financial dealings. “It’s perfectly legal,” he said. “The problem is why should U.S. investors have to put their money in places other than the United States? Because our tax system is chocking the daylights out of investors.” Which brought him to his idea for the Fair Tax, which he argues would bring capital back to the U.S. by doing away with the federal income tax. So, what did the Caymans official think of the Fair Tax? “I’m sure he would rather not see us have it.”
Today, Huckabee is making three campaign stops around Wisconsin before flying to Little Rock, Ark., later this afternoon, just as he did on the eve of last Tuesday’s Potomac Primary, to spend some time at home. He’ll continue on to Texas and Ohio later in the week no matter the outcome of the Wisconsin primary.
