In a sign of the rapidly shifting dynamics of the Republican presidential contest, Mitt Romney on Monday became the first candidate to run a TV attack ad, slamming Mike Huckabee on immigration in a bid to brake his rival’s sharp rise in the polls.
Romney’s assault comes amid new polls suggesting that white evangelicals — a major Republican voting bloc — have started rallying strongly behind Huckabee after months of wavering among candidates across the field.
Huckabee’s surge is especially threatening to Romney, a former Massachusetts governor who has long hoped his rightward tilt would appeal to evangelicals despite their often skeptical view of his Mormon faith.
Romney’s new ad, which began airing in Iowa, describes him and Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor and Southern Baptist preacher, as “two good family men.”
“Both pro-life, both support a constitutional amendment protecting traditional marriage,” an announcer says.
“The difference? Mitt Romney stood up and vetoed in-state tuition for illegal aliens, opposed driver’s licenses for illegals. Mike Huckabee? Supported in-state tuition benefits for illegal immigrants. Huckabee even supported taxpayer-funded scholarships for illegal aliens.”
Responding to a similar Romney attack last week in a Florida debate, Huckabee defended his Arkansas policies on college aid for students whose parents were illegal immigrants. “In all due respect, we’re a better country than to punish children for what their parents did,” Huckabee said.