HENNIKER, N.H. -- Former Governor Mike Huckabee spoke to the largest New Hampshire audience he has ever seen turn out for him.

He entertained them with his band. He brought actor Chuck Norris. He made jokes.

In his first remarks since arriving in New Hampshire, he said he was grateful to Iowa voters for giving him a first place finish in the Republican caucuses there.

"I left very grateful that those people in the state proved money in politics cannot beat message in politics," he said. "They proved they weren't for sale, they even proved that they were not for rent."

Over 500 people and over a dozen press video cameras attended the event at New England College.

"There is a fresh new wind that blows in America," Huckabee said. "It is a wind that blows for change and new America."

When he was introducing Huckabee, Norris said he would never want to run for president.

Huckabee said he was glad because he would likely lose to Norris.

"But how about this," Huckabee said. "Chuck Norris for Secretary of Defense."

The crowd roared.

John McCain's presidential campaign is accusing Mike Huckabee's campaign of using push polling against him.

The McCain campaign told their supporters to write down any information on these calls. Here is the statement McCain issued:

"Last night, the McCain campaign received disturbing reports of new push-polling calls in New Hampshire paid for by a group supporting Governor Mike Huckabee for president. Similar to previously reported calls in Iowa, the calls were to designed to disparage John McCain in an effort to advance Governor Huckabee's campaign. Governor Huckabee should immediately condemn these tactics and urge his supporters to stop this activity attempting to smear John McCain or any other candidate, and allow this campaign to be waged on the issues and each candidate's merits.

"The New Hampshire Attorney General's office is currently conducting a full investigation to determine who was behind push-polling activities last month. The McCain campaign initiated the investigation and called on all Republican campaigns to join us as parties to the complaint, and we look forward to the results of the Attorney General's investigation.

"Granite State voters are rightly proud of our state's first-in-the-nation primary and see no place for negative attacks in New Hampshire politics. John McCain is running a positive campaign based on his experience, judgment and positive vision for America's future. All Republican campaigns should join with him and pledge to the voters of New Hampshire that they will conduct their campaigns with the dignity voters deserve."

CONCORD, N.H. -- The New Hampshire chapter of the National Education Association will soon publicly endorse Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Mike Huckabee for their respective party's nomination for president, the organization tells the Globe.

The news first appeared on MSNBC's First Read blog.

This is the first time the 16,000 member chapter has ever endorsed a Republican.

The chapter plans a big announcement tomorrow in Manchester, possibly with Senator Hillary Clinton there. A separate event for Huckabee has not been put together.

GOFFSTOWN, N.H. -- In response to a direct question about whether or not he would pick Mike Huckabee as his vice president, Rudy Giuliani said it was presumptuous to vice presidential picks before he has the presidential nomination himself.

"I have no idea who I would pick as vice president," Giuliani said at a town hall meeting at Saint Anselm College in Goffstown. "I really respect Mike. I've know him for a really long time.

"There are probably 20 others on that list," he said.

BEDFORD, N.H. -- Fred Thompson fought back today against Mike Huckabee who accused Thompson of "cut and running" from important social issues.

On "Meet the Press" yesterday Thompson said he disagreed with the Republican Party's platform that called for a human life amendment. He said that while he was personally pro-life he wanted every state to decide for themselves on the issue.

"I don't believe I need to explain myself to the governor. It is clear that I am 100 percent pro-life. I have been pro-life all my career," said Thompson in live Fox News Channel interview in Bedford. "Governor Huckabee talks about this, I suppose, because it's the only conservative position he's got. Talk about sanctuary cities, he wanted to sanctuary a state in Arkansas. He's very weak on immigration policy. He was once of the highest taxing governors that we had in this country. "

Seacoast Republican activist Wendy Stanley Jones joined the staff of Mike Huckabee's presidential campaign today, she tells the Globe.

Jones will organize and train volunteers for the campaign through the New Hampshire Primary, whenever that may be.

Jones has served on the Exeter Board of Selectman and last month lost a bid to become a Repubican National Committeewoman. She was also a co-founder of the Vesta Roy Series, a Republican women's leadership group.

Longtime former Executive Councilor Ruth Griffin is supporting former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee.

Griffin, long viewed as the patriarch of Seacoast Republicans, retired form the council last year. Campaign finance records from the third quarter show she wrote Huckabee a check from a Concord fund-raiser she attended in the summer.

She is expected to appear with Huckabee as he formally signed papers placing him on the New Hampshire Primary ballot this afternoon.

To this day she remains very close to President Bush. She is often invited to visit with Bush when Air Force One lands in Portsmouth before he travels to his parents' compound in Kittery, Maine.

SALEM, N.H. -- Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee told a Christian youth group today that his faith makes him humble and not feel superior over non-believers.

"My faith humbles me," Huckabee said to some "amens" in the audience. "When I get closer to Jesus I know I am frail."

Huckabee, a former Southern Baptist preacher, has been the only presidential candidate this year to routinely campaign in churches in the state. New Hampshire residents are among least religious in the country, surveys have shown.

Huckabee said his faith has shaped who he is as a candidate, but it also helps not take himself too seriously.

He will speak at a church in Amherst Sunday.

Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee jokingly said a simple solution may come about to all the changes in scheduling when various states will hold their presidential primaries.

"What we may end up doing is having a Halloween primary where all states participate. Every candidate goes trick or treating, go door-to-door and whoever has the best candy wins the presidency," Huckabee said on a conference call with reporters.

Huckabee's comments were in response to a question about Michigan's plan to hold their primary on Jan. 15, which would be one of the earliest states to hold a contest.

"It is a crazy game," he said of the shifting calendar. "I think that everybody is sort of saying, man we need to insert some sanity into the process."

Following his success at the Iowa straw poll and a four day visit to New Hampshire over the weekend, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee has picked up the endorsement of two well known New Hampshire conservatives in his race for president.

Former state Senator Russell Prescott and former Executive Councilor David Wheeler will formally endorse Huckabee later today, the Globe has learned.

Both lost re-election races in 2004, but Prescott remains a hero to many social conservatives and Wheeler is still a leader among advocates for the Second Amendment.

In addition to Prescott and Wheeler, former Transportation Commissioner Carol Murray and five additional state representatives are expected to also endorse Huckabee.

With newfound attention on Mike Huckabee from his strong second place showing at the Ames Straw Poll Saturday, the former Arkansas Governor is planning a jam packed four day trip to New Hampshire this weekend.

Huckabee is scheduled to be in the state from Friday though Monday, a campaign aide said.

Among the events, Huckabee will attend two picnics and a spaghetti dinner and meet privately with local pastors. He will even speak at a service in Auburn Sunday morning.

First, we have video of former Governor Mike Huckabee and his band playing "Free Bird" at a gathering in Nashua.

And then, for all Red Sox fans like Chris Dodd, Paul Simon changed the lyrics to "Mrs. Robinson" to read "Where have you gone Ted Williams". But the event took place in Chicago Cubs country, Iowa.

Not to be left out John Edwards told New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd over the weekend that he grew up listening to the Allman Brothers, the Doors and the Rolling Stones. Today he plays U2, Springsteen and Dave Matthews on his iPod. But he doesn't dance.

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee said he was pleased with his performance in last night's debate, but he was upset that education was never brought up in a question.

"I don't see a lot of people sitting around their kitchen tables wondering what the next president will do about teaching evolution in school, but the entire issue of education should have been addressed," he said.

"We spent an enormous amount of of time on Iraq... but nine of us really aren't that far apart on the issue," Huckabee told reporters. "
"But there are a lot of differences when it comes to the life issue, the second amendment, and health care and I hoped we could have explored that more."

He said he was glad to see there was a health care question in the debate, even if he didn't get a chance to answer it.

Overall, Huckabee is getting good reviews for his performances in the last two debates. As a result, Huckabee said he is raising a lot of money through his website.

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee will begin a day of presidential campaigning in New Hampshire with a five-kilometer "fun run" in the streets of Downtown Manchester.

In addition to local Republican runners, Huckabee will be joined by Republican state chairman Fergus Cullen, who is also the Kingswood High School cross country coach, and Concord Monitor beat reporter Melanie Asmar.

Later Huckabee will visit a music store to borrow a bass guitar to play with the band at Oyster River High School in Durham.

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee said the Bush Administration's efforts to federalize areas like education "has been horrible" and is not in line with the Bill of Rights.

Campaigning in New Hampshire Wednesday, Huckabee said on an hour-long talk show at New Hampshire Public Radio that Bush and the Republican Congress were trying to take power away from states.

"What happened to the 10th Amendment?" asked Huckabee, referring to the amendment granting individual states all responsibility on issues not explicitly granted to the federal government in the Constitution.

Besides the radio show, Huckabee is also appearing at a fund-raiser for state Senator Bob Clegg.

NASHUA, N.H. -- While campaigning in New Hampshire Friday, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, a Republican, announced who would head up his efforts in the state.

Cliff Hurst, the former head of the Manchester Republican Committee, and Fred Bramante, a state school board member, will serve as New Hampshire co-chairs of the campaign.

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, who formed his presidential exploratory committee Monday, has the support of a well-connected New Hampshire Republican.

New Hampshire State School Board member and two-time gubernatorial candidate Fred Bramante told the Globe that he will support Huckabee.

“I have never heard another candidate for president talk so passionately about education and the role the arts play in it,” said Bramante, who started Daddy’s Junky Music stores.

“He understands that for [America] to compete we need to have a creative economy and that comes from arts education,” said Bramante.

In 2000, Bramante supported Senator John McCain. After McCain won New Hampshire, Bramante traveled to South Carolina to help the campaign.

He said he still has a great deal of respect for McCain, but it is different this time.

“I am not sure he is the same maverick candidate I fell in love with,” said Bramante.

The Associated Press out of Arkansas picks up on our scoop last week that former Manchester Republican Chair Cliff Hurst will chair the New Hampshire campaign of Governor Mike Huckabee if and when he decides to run for president.

In the article Hurst said he was unsure where Huckabee was in the process of deciding to run, but that the model was to "build from the ground up" anyway.

A Manchester Republican activist has agreed to head up the New Hampshire organization of Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee if he decides to run for president.

Cliff Hurst, the former chair of the Manchester Republican Committee, will be Huckabee's New Hampshire campaign chairman. Hurst's son, David, is also expected to work on the campaign if Huckabee runs.

Huckabee said he will decide whether or not to run after the holidays.