Hopefuls take opposite approach in Iowa ads

Huckabee stresses holiday; Romney goes for contrast

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney greeted audience members after speaking at Insight Technology in Londonderry, N.H., yesterday. (Brian Snyder/reuters)

Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee, battling in the Iowa Republican caucuses, unveiled very different TV ads yesterday that illustrate the state of the contest.

In his spot, Huckabee banks on the likability factor that has helped fuel his surge in the race, offering wishes for a "magnificent Christmas season."

Wearing a red holiday sweater and sitting in front of a twinkling Christmas tree as a carol plays, the former Arkansas governor tells viewers they're probably tired of political ads, so he just wants to remind them of what really matters during the holiday: friends, family, and "the celebration of the birth of Christ."

Overtaken by Huckabee in the Iowa polls, Romney is airing a hard-hitting "contrast" ad. Like one last week on illegal immigration, the ad first says that both former governors are "prolife" and support traditional marriage, then raises questions about Huckabee's judgment.

The ad hits Huckabee for overseeing more than 1,000 pardons and commutations in 10-plus years as Arkansas governor, including to 12 murderers. In contrast, the announcer says, Romney didn't issue one in his four years as Massachusetts governor.

Asked about Romney's criticism, Huckabee said Sunday on CNN that many of the pardons were to help people who had served their sentences, often for relatively minor crimes, and were having difficulty finding jobs.

"This wasn't like I stood there with a key at the prison door and let people out," Huckabee said. "Background checks kept them from even so much as getting a job emptying the bedpans in a nursing home."

"The real issue is, was I tough on crime? And the statistics prove, yes, I was."

According to FBI figures, the murder rate in Arkansas declined while he was governor from 8.7 per 100,000 people in 1996 to 7.3 in 2006. The state's overall violent crime rate, however, rose during that period. In Massachusetts while Romney was governor, the murder rate rose from 2.7 per 100,000 people in 2002 to 2.9 in 2006, but the violent crime rate declined, FBI figures show.

Huckabee also pointed out that he signed execution warrants, while Romney never did because Massachusetts does not authorize the death penalty. "What he won't tell you is I did something he never did. I actually carried out the death penalty 16 times more than any governor in my state's history."

Campaigning yesterday in Londonderry, N.H., Romney said the ad highlights points that he and Huckabee have in common and points where they differ.

"My guess is a number of people will look at his positions and say, 'I like them better' and they'll say Romney is running a positive ad for Huckabee," he said. "There will be others - I think the majority of my party - who will say I prefer Romney's positions."

Asked about pulling negative ads during the holidays, Romney replied, "I would imagine so, but I'm not going to tell you when and how."