Juicy tidbit about GOP presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee: He comes from Hope, Arkansas, the very same small town that produced President Bill Clinton.
Clinton used Hope as a key theme throughout his 1992 presidential campaign, even ending his nomination acceptance speech with the words, “I still believe in a place called Hope.”
Clinton moved to Hot Springs as a second-grader in 1953. Huckabee was born in 1955 (nine years after Clinton), so they didn’t exactly cross paths at the local dime store. But still.
If Huckabee were elected in 2008, he and Clinton would become the first presidents born in the same town since John and John Quincy Adams. They were born in homes just a few paces apart, in what was then called Braintree but now is part of Quincy, Massachusetts.
Here’s a fascinating little map that shows the birthplaces of the presidents and their distance from the birthplaces of their wives. As it happens, John Quincy Adams wins the far-away derby; his wife Louisa was born in London, 3289 miles from Quincy.
Jimmy Carter wins closest-to-the-bride: he and Rosalynn were both born in Plains, Georgia.
Between Plains and Hope, Plains wins small-town bragging rights: Hope has a population of 10,162, Plains only 650.