Let's face the hard facts. Huckabee is the Evangelical Candidate for retaking America. There are a lot of Evangelicals in Iowa and they all came out to prove one point: "We Don't Want a Mormon President." Sadly, that is the bottom line.

Mike Huckabee could have been missing two front teeth and still won in Iowa. That is clear. After one major political faux pas after another, Huckabee still garnered in excess of 55% of the Evangelical vote and the Evangelicals made up nearly half of the entire Republican caucus population.

And that is why Mike Huckabee's candidacy is doomed.

The rest of the United States of America, save a few enclaves of deep southern states, is not so single minded as to vote against a candidate simply because of his religion. The rest of America will look to a candidate and vote for that candidate because of his or her track record, positions on important things such as knowing something -- anything -- about foreign policy. Americans want to know how to solve tough economic problems. None of those questions are answered by what religion one professes.

The secret cross in the commercials and whisper campaigns about Satan will not sway many Americans outside of Evangelically slanted states. This is not to say that those Americans who are not guided to vote for a "particular candidate" and against another "particular candidate" by their pastors are not religious, it is simply that they are not, in the majority, superstitious in the vodoo sense.

It is no surprise that Huckabee could only garner 14 percent of the vote of those professing not to be "born again" or "evangelicals." In short, if those voting are religious and conservative, but are not necessarily sporting a twelve inch cross hanging from their neck, Huckabee falls into fourth or fifth place. In other words, an also ran at best.

The Huck-a-boom in Iowa was a well organized statement by Evangelicals who mean to "take back" America for their particular religious persuassion -- which is not particularly good news for Mormons, Jews, Catholics, Anglicans, Presbyterians, Lutherans, other moderate Protestants, Jehovah's Witnesses, Scientologists, Agnostics, Athiests, Blacks, Hindus, Muslims, Philosophers, Scientists, Darwinists, Taoists, and most other groups confessing anything but
a particular endorsed brand of Christianity that requires strict adherence to a narrow set of beliefs or certain condemnation by these same Evangelicals. The problem of course, is that the groups on the outside far out number the Evangelicals and those folks are growing tired of the grandstanding.

And this is the point.

In some of the southern states, Huckabee will win the day -- assuming he can still keep the Evangelicals organized under his wing. One can assume that he can take South Carolina, Alabama and perhaps Mississippi, but after that, he is truly doomed. He cannot win the nomination by only taking 14% of Michigan or 5% of New York.

In New Hampshire, Mr. Huckabee faces a backlash from those who do not profess to be Evangelical, and are a little upset that their Catholicism is considered a cult by Huck and his Hucksters. Who would have thought that Catholics and Mormons would have so much in common. Unless he can import about fifty congretations of Southern Baptists, Huck is in serious trouble.

It is indeed possible that those who know Huck best in South Carolina (because he was considered a liberal in the Baptist ranks in the south) would rather vote for someone they believe can win a national caucus.

Mitt Romney's test was to place well in Iowa. Given the Evangelical vote against Romney, his second place showing is impressive.

Huckabee's real test is in New Hampshire. If he cannot or does not finish in first or second, then he will not prevail in South Carolina as he will not be seen as a viable national candidate. If he can squeek out of close third in New Hampshire and second or third in South Carolina, then he must be able to place at least second in Michigan. That is not going to happen as he will garner no more than 14-15% in Michigan and his campaign will stall. Even Chuck Norris will not be able to kick start it back to life.

When the west starts to speak, we will see a strong base for moderate and fiscal conservatives. When Thompson drops out, those votes will go to Romney or Rudy. A McCain resurgence is strongly in doubt as indicated by his inability to raise money, despite people knowing the candidate and his positions.

In the end, this will be a two candidate race between Romney and Rudy Giuliani with Huckabee, if he is still in the race at that point, falling a distant third or fourth.

Iowa has a good track record on nominations, however, that is the normal voting public in Iowa. This year 75,000 caucus goers were expected and 110,000 or so showed up. The difference was the one-issue (or one religion) voters. If only the hardened voters had voted, it would have been a near tie between Huckabee and Romney.

Let us assume for a moment that Huckabee does have the makings of a Republican nominee. The Obama candidacy will leave Huckabee in the dust, with Huckabee only obtaining 45% of the national vote. Huckabee cannot gather under his Evangelical tent the traditional Republican voters who would distrust him on foreign policy, economics, domestic issues and the like. If he could -- miraculously -- obtain the nomination, the rank-and-file Republicans will stay at home and Huck's Evangelicals will come up dramatically short in the long run.

Either Giuliani or Romney can run a strong campaign against any of the Democratic candidates. Huckabee cannot run successfully against any of the candidates from the left. They have too many votes and Huckabee has too many credibility "issues" to win in the end.

That is why the power brokers in the Republican party are working extra hard tonight to get the word out to the block captains and chiefs -- Vote for Romney early and Giuliani late and if necessary we will broker a deal at the convention.

Mike Huckabee is as divisive as he is well-spoken. His hidden messages to the Christian faithful are intended to be exclusionary. They exclude the other two branches of the Republican base, e.g., the economic conservatives and the moderates. That leaves Huckabee with the exact percentage of voters that he received in Iowa -- 34%.
 
That will not win elections. He has seen the top of the mountain; the crest of the hill. He has peaked. Fair thee well Huck. It was a good win, but one win does not earn you the nomination.