Huckabee Didn’t Run In 2012 Because He Knew Obama Would Win

Former governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee addresses the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., on Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2012. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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Mike Huckabee opted against an encore presidential run in 2012 partly because he didn’t think the incumbent was beatable.

The pastor-turned-governor-turned-pundit detailed his thinking in an interview with the New York Times published Friday:

He said he did not run for president in 2012 because he did not think President Obama could be defeated, but he also acknowledged he has enjoyed earning a measure of financial comfort and celebrity through his show.

It is those two factors, along with the rise of “super PACs” that let a single wealthy individual sustain a candidate lacking a major financial network, that he says are making him look closely at a second presidential run.

Huckabee used the interview to float the idea of launching another White House bid in 2016. His radio program came to an end this week.

 

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