Former Presidential Candidate’s “Extraordinary Opportunity” as TV Host

By SteveK 

In a presidential election cycle that often pitted press vs. politician, former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is an anomaly. He’s gone from one-time GOP frontrunner to Fox News host.

“To be able to do something at this level is an extraordinary privilege, and a great opportunity as well,” Huckabee told TVNewser today by phone in between speaking engagements that will take him to Michigan, Oklahoma and Virginia over the next few days. Come Friday night, he’ll be back in New York to tape his Fox News program, which debuted September 27.

“I had a background in it,” Huckabee says of joining the press. “I was doing radio when I was 14, so it’s kind of going full circle.”

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And Huckabee’s already talking like a TVNewser. Last weekend the former Arkansas Governor interviewed “Joe the Plumber.” “We scored a coup by getting him in his first prime time interview,” said the FNC host. “We had invited him to be on the show before the debate and before he became so famous. So it felt like quite a score. I credit the team of people working for me for saying, ‘This is a guy we need to get.'”

The interview gave Huckabee its best ratings yet, with an average of 2,316,000 Total Viewers, making his the #1 show in cable news Saturday night.

So how has he been received by his new colleagues at FNC?


“They’ve been great,” Huckabee says of his colleagues. “It is a really collegial atmosphere here, and it has been a terrific experience. Geraldo, Cavuto, Hannity, Greta; everyone has been extraordinarily encouraging.”

Huckabee says he doesn’t know how long the show will continue, but, “I hope it’s going to be awhile. As long as people watch, and the FOX folks are happy.”

The guitar-playing Governor also gave a shout-out to some others who rarely see the spotlight. “Something I’m impressed by is the incredibly talented group of people on the tech. side,” Huckabee says. “Sometimes I think they’re the unsung heroes.”

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