George W. Huckabee?

A reader writes:

Now that I'm looking into this Huckabee/Dumond case, I'm astounded at the similarities to Bush's mindset and actions - the lack of judgment, the undue influence, the lawlessness, the resulting disaster, then the lies, the lack of accountability, the coverup - this is not a man we need in the White House.

Murray Wass' original reporting on the case from the Arkansas Times is a must-read. Money quote, citing Deborah Suttlar, former member of the parole board in question:

“For Governor Huckabee to say that he had no influence with the board is something that he knows to be untrue. He came before the board and made his views known that [Dumond] should have been paroled ... “

Suttlar noted that just prior to Huckabee’s appearance before the board the board had voted 4-1 against Dumond’s parole. After Huckabee’s board appearance, her colleagues largely reversed themselves, voting 4-1 for Dumond’s release.

“Why did all the votes change?” Suttlar asked. The board members knew the governor’s position. And Huckabee knows what influence a governor has over a board. Who’s going to turn down a governor?”

Max Brantley, executive editor of the Arkansas Times, put it best:

"The whole deal about the Dumond case, and it can be overanalyzed, was that this was a bad guy with a proven record of sexual misconduct and violence. This is the last guy you want to set free.... And Huckabee formed the judgment to do this not after consulting anyone but after being sold a story and buying it. It's kind of like Bush and weapons and mass destruction."

(Photo: Yana Paskova/Getty.)