On Friday afternoon, CNN's liberal contributor Roland Martin suggested that most people who are pro-life seem "hateful" as he was describing Mike Huckabee's need to reach out to non-evangelical voters. During an appearance on CNN Newsroom at about 1:47pm EST with anchor Kyra Phillips, Martin contended that Huckabee needs to pursue a strategy similar to that of President Bush in 2000: "Sure, [Huckabee is] a staunch pro-life person, but he isn't perceived as being hateful as other people who are pro-life."
[This item, by the MRC's Brad Wilmouth, was posted Saturday on the MRC's blog, NewsBusters.org: newsbusters.org ]
Below is a transcript of the relevant portion of Martin's comments from the Friday, January 4 CNN Newsroom:
"What Huckabee also has to do, though, because the conventional wisdom says Huckabee is only attractive to evangelicals, and so what he is trying to do is what George W. Bush did in 2000. Take his faith and be able to say, 'Now let me be compassionate when it comes to the economy, when it comes to education, when it comes to health care. Sure, I'm a staunch pro-life person,' but he isn't perceived as being hateful as other people who are pro-life."