Giuliani's fast decline, Huckabee's rise

I alway feared Huckabee's potential, though was heartened by his utter inability to raise any money. Well, he's gotten a serious boost from the 1-2 punch of the YouTube debate and the Sex on the City scandal.

On 11/30, Rasmussen's tracking poll had Giuliani at 27%, 14% ahead of his nearest competitor. Today, he limps in at 20% after three consecutive days of losses. Meanwhile, Huckabee, at 13% on the 30th, is now at 17% and surging.

According to Rasmussen polling conducted 11/26-27 -- before Sex on the City -- already had Huckabee leading Iowa. (11/12  results in parenthesis.)

Huckabee 28 (16)
Romney 25 (29)
Giuliani 12 (15)
Thompson 11 (14)
Paul 5 (4)
McCain 4 (6)
Tancredo 4 (4)
Hunter 1 (2)

In addition, Huckabee was essentially tied for second in New Hampshire, again, in polling conducted before Sex on the City exploded on the media scene. (11/5 results in parenthesis.)

Romney 34 (32)
Giuliani 15 (17)
McCain 15 (16)
Huckabee 14 (10)
Paul 8 (4)
Thompson 3 (14)
Tancredo 1 (3)
Hunter 1 (2)

All of this, keep in mind, by a guy that has been utterly incompetent in raising money -- spending a grand total of $1.7 million as of the end of Q3 -- the least amount of any candidate in the race except for Alan Keyes and Mike Gravel. Talk about an object lesson about money in politics. His $2.35 million raised thus far is less than everyone except the two fringe candidates listed above, as well as Dennis Kucinich and Duncan Hunter. In other words, Huckabee has contender numbers (if not "frontrunner" ones) while his fundraising numbers hover in "fringe" territory. That's pretty amazing.  

In comparison, on his side of the race, Romney has raised $63 million and spent almost $54 million of it, while Giuliani has raised $47 million and spent about $31 million of that.

That lack of money has allowed Huckabee to fly under the radar. That will now likely change. And he won't have to contend with just his opponents in the race. Expect the Club for Growth -- Huckabee's arch nemesis -- to go in big against Huckabee any moment now. Perhaps not in Iowa, but it would make sense for them to build a firewall against Huckabee in tax-adverse New Hampshire.