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Negotiating the dicey waters of presidential diplomacy would be easier than resolving differences among Baptist groups, Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said in a campaign appearance. This is the same Mike Huckabee who last May accepted—then rejected—an invitation to speak at a historic pan-Baptist gathering at the end of this month.

“Being president—that’ll be a heck of a lot easier job than getting all the Baptists to agree on everything,” Huckabee, a Baptist minister, said at a December 6 political event in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Mike Huckabee went from long-shot candidate to serious GOP presidential contender in only a few weeks—and the tone of media coverage went from bemusement to serious critical analysis of his record.

The result is both good and bad for the former governor of Arkansas and pastor who served as president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention.