Earlier this week, Time had an article on Mike Huckabee’s new book in which the former presidential candidate lashed out at various Religious Right leaders like Pat Robertson, John Hagee, and Gary Bauer. Today, Bauer has issued his own press release in response to that article, voicing his own disappointment in Huckabee’s pettiness:
“As a former candidate myself for the GOP Presidential nomination in 2000, I understand the disappointment Governor Huckabee must feel about his failure to win the GOP Presidential nomination in 2008. It is unfortunate, however, at a time when the GOP needs to close ranks and seek unity, that Governor Huckabee in his new book has aimed his fire at his fellow Republicans.
“In addition, Governor Huckabee expresses frustration that when he sought my endorsement in 2006 and 2007, I was concerned about issues of national security and military strength in addition to values issues. I plead guilty. The defense of the United States at a time we are at war with jihadists should be the concern of every American. Indeed, I did not endorse Governor Huckabee in 2008, because I reached the conclusion he did not sufficiently understand national security issues. That was a “deal breaker” for me as I believe it was for many other conservatives.
“In spite of our disagreements, I look forward to working in the future with Governor Huckabee to build a Republican party that is committed to smaller government, lower taxes, a strong national defense, the sanctity of life and family values.”
All I can say about this statement is that it is obviously based on the Time summary of the book and not on having read the book itself. And I can say that because I am currently in the process of reading it myself and Huck makes it pretty clear that he has no use for the likes of Bauer, whom he calls “politically clueless,” as he sees himself as one of the new leaders of the Religious Right movement, along with a bevy of currently fringe right-wing figures who supported his campaign, such as Janet Porter, David Barton, and Rick Scarborough.
