Metro Weekly

No one hearts Huckabee for appalling defense of Duggars

Mike Huckabee takes to Facebook in defense of the Duggars. Facebook bites back.

Mike Huckabee - Credit: Gage Skidmore/flickr
Mike Huckabee – Credit: Gage Skidmore/flickr

Former Arkansas Gov. and 2016 presidential contender Mike Huckabee has (foolishly, some would say) taken to his Facebook account to defend the (homophobic, several would say) Duggar family in their time of (sex) scandal. Of course, Huckabee is using the “He Confessed His Sins So All Is Good, Let’s Get Ice Cream” defense popular with so many fundamentalist bigots.

“Janet and I want to affirm our support for the Duggar family,” Huckabee writes in his post. “Josh’s actions when he was an underage teen are as he described them himself, ‘inexcusable,’ but that doesn’t mean ‘unforgivable.’ He and his family dealt with it and were honest and open about it with the victims and the authorities. No purpose whatsoever is served by those who are now trying to discredit Josh or his family by sensationalizing the story.”

C’mon, Mike, you think they might have told TLC (which has since removed the show 19 Kids and Counting from their schedule) about this incident before they 1) became rich off the network and 2) became a national poster family for why condoms should only be used in water balloons fights.

“Good people make mistakes and do regrettable and even disgusting things,” Huckabee blathers on. “The reason that the law protects disclosure of many actions on the part of a minor is that the society has traditionally understood something that today’s blood-thirsty media does not understand — that being a minor means that one’s judgement is not mature. No one needs to defend Josh’s actions as a teenager, but the fact that he confessed his sins to those he harmed, sought help, and has gone forward to live a responsible and circumspect life as an adult is testament to his family’s authenticity and humility.”

As members of today’s bloodthirsty media, we would merely posit in the most polite way imaginable: ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FUCKING MIND, MIKE??!!

And this is a man who would lead our country.

“Those who have enjoyed revealing this long ago sins in order to discredit the Duggar family have actually revealed their own insensitive bloodthirst, for there was no consideration of the fact that the victims wanted this to be left in the past and ultimately a judge had the information on file destroyed — not to protect Josh, but the innocent victims.”

Sure. Right. Uh-huh. Tell that to Josh’s four sisters.

“Janet and I love Jim Bob and Michelle and their entire family,” the post concludes. “They are no more perfect a family than any family, but their Christian witness is not marred in our eyes because following Christ is not a declaration of our perfection, but of HIS perfection. It is precisely because we are all sinners that we need His grace and His forgiveness. We have been blessed to receive God’s love and we would do no less than to extend our love and support for our friends. In fact, it is such times as this, when real friends show up and stand up. Today, Janet and I want to show up and stand up for our friends. Let others run from them. We will run to them with our support.”

Good. Because an attitude like that will keep you from running toward the White House.

The post has generated a slew of responses on Facebook, most of them not very supportive of Huckabee’s stance. Here are some favorites:

“That’s right, Mike Huckabee… tell us how America can’t possibly survive the ‘sin’ of same sex marriage even as you publicly embrace a serial incestuous sexual deviant and hold him up as a model for the nation as a whole.” 

“What about accountability for Jim Bob and Michelle? They weren’t minors and they didn’t report this to protect even their own daughters. I have a way bigger problem with that action (or, inaction).”

“You all are insane. He molested children. And Mr. Huckabee if he was a child not aware of his actions, why is a 14 year tried as an adult for killing. Give me a break. So if abusers repent they dont deserve to be punished??? Or just “good” Christians on tv. Does it worry anyone he has children. Wow.”

“Well you have lost my support! I’m a conservative Christian, and was once a Duggar supporter, but I believe that 14 years old or not he should have never been allowed to continue to live in the home with the girls, and the show should have never aired. He damaged those girls for he rest of their lives, and anyone who can carry on and say it’s ok now because he admitted he was wrong is just as sick as him.”

“I was really happy that you decided to run for president but now you have lost my support. I’m was a victim of sexual molestation and it may go away for the abuser nut it doesn’t for the victims. We may forgive, but we don’t forget. Child molesters takes away our chance of having a normal child, a normal teenager, and a normal adult. I will mo longer support or vote for you. Nobody is thinking about victims on all this.”

“Once again, Christianity is used to condone pedophilia. Religion is a harmful scam.”

“Let me get this straight (no pun intended). This man will publicly support an admitted child molester, but will condemn a gay couple. What sense or logic is involved with this?”

“You sir just lost my vote. I’m all for forgiveness but on the victims terms not the parents who won’t protect their own children. They covered up the abuse and allowed him to remain in the home. This was not a one time thing it was multiple times, multiple victims and over multiple years…that is not a mistake, that is a sexual predator and I cannot vote for someone who supports a sexual predator.”

“Puh-LEASE! This is the family that launched robo-calls to tell people that transgender people would molest their children–THIS, while knowing that one of their own actually HAD molested children. This isn’t a ‘mistake.’ It’s a crime.”

We could go on, but there’s just so much of it and it’s all so pointedly vehement toward Huckabee. You just need to relish it for yourself.

Go here. Read the comments. And enjoy the “bloodthirst” as Huckabee loses all his hearts.

 

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