I now officially like Mike Huckabee, who is running for President. I don’t endorse him, and may not vote for him. But I like him. Why? Because he plays bass in his church’s praise band.

Time magazine has a very interesting column by Joe Klein called The Second Commandment Republicans. Klein contrasts what he calls the “grace” views of Huckabee and Sam Brownbeck with the “condemnation” proclivities of Jerry Falwell, James Dobson, and Pat Robertson. I think that’s a bit simplistic and unfair, but there’s only so much you can do in a short column. And it does point out something worth pointing out.

Huckabee attends a church in Little Rock, Ark., which he describes as “very similar to Rick Warren’s. We’ve gone from 25 members to 5000 in eight years. Our focus has been to minister to people who were otherwise neglected….We are a multicultural, multiracial congregation, with rich and poor.”

I like that. I feel like Huckabee is a lot like me, and a lot like the new wave of Christian leaders, who emphasize causes that previously were the habitation of Democrats–concern for the poor, the environment, AIDS, etc. Rick Warren is perhaps the foremost person in this movement of new leaders, though he’s not particularly leading anything (except by example). It’ll take a long time for displace Falwell, Dobson, Robertson, et al, but the day is coming.

Klein mentions heaing Huckabee speak to the National Review’s Conservative Summit, and stressing his views on feeding the hungry and healthcare. A person told Klein, “I think he’s in the wrong party.”

We’ve got a highly committed Christian interested in the poor, and Republicans are saying he sounds ilke a Democrat–that he doesn’t belong in a Republican setting. Yes, there’s a change coming, and it’s a good one.