Regardless if Governor Mike Huckabee wins in his bid for the presidency, he should still be a favorite for "Salesman of the Year" award. His talent for selling himself wins admiration from fellow salesmen throughout the country.

A rookie salesman would probably not even consider the idea that you could tout as a major selling point the fact that you finally got around to fixing your product, which was once considered the worst on the market. That's where a rookie salesman could learn a lot from Governor Huckabee. You see, Governor Huckabee did not inherit the "worst highway in the country", but four years into his term Overdrive magazine did rate Interstate 40 across Arkansas, between Memphis on the eastern border and Fort Smith on the Oklahoma border, the "worst highway in the country."

Now, on almost every televised debate and campaign stop, Governor Huckabee touts that "Truckers" magazine recognized this road as the "most improved highway" (PoliFact.com could find no such magazine, but Overdrive magazine did say this). Any good salesman would know that you should focus your sales pitch on how much your product had improved rather than why you had let it become the worst, but only a master salesman can turn this into a reason why he should become President of the United States.

Well, besides this one road, overall did the roads actually improve during his term? In the January 2008 issue of Overdrive, Arkansas is rated fifth worst - the same as when Huckabee took office. Again, only a master salesman could take a record of being in the bottom 10% with no overall improvement in 10 years, and turn it into a selling point for election to the highest office in the land.

Ah, but Governor Huckabee has proven his salesmanship skills in many areas beyond roadways. He hardly ever fails to point out that he was considered "one of the best governors in America".

In 1998, two years into his governorship, Huckabee received a B from the Cato Institute, which praised him for instituting a large, broad-based tax cut package in the previous year. However, Huckabee's Cato grade steadily dropped from there: The group gave him C's in 2000 and 2002, a D in 2004 and finally an F in 2006. In its report last year, the organization declared that Huckabee "went from being one of the best governors in America to one of the worst."

But a Master Salesman is not inhibited by a record of going from one of the best to one of the worst. A Master Salesman knows that all you need to do is constantly point out the "best" part and ignore the rest. His success so far is proof that this sales strategy works.

There is no denying that Governor Huckabee would make a top-notch used car salesman. The question as to whether he becomes President may depend on how many people "look under the hood".

Jeff Teismann

Cheraw