Halperin's Take

The Iron Law of First in the Nation always holds true: No one goes to Iowa by accident. Although Huckabee’s reluctance to spend time raising big money still threatens to hamper a presidential bid, he can run cheaply if he simply figures out how to defend his Iowa crown. It is safe to assume that a very high percentage of Huckabee voters from 2008 would be with him in 2012 and that gives him a base to build off of that no one else can match any time soon. There is no way to measure it cleanly, but Huckabee’s time as a Fox News host and radio commentator has greatly increased his ties to grassroots conservatives.