‘The Most Successful Failed Presidential Candidate in the History of Our Country’

By kevin 

That’s what Chip Saltsman, Mike Huckabee’s 2008 campaign manager, declares the former presidential candidate and current Fox News host in Howie Kurtz‘s latest WaPo profile.

“There’s an assumption that I’m just itching to run again,” Huckabee tells Kurtz. The success of his Fox News program and his bestselling book coupled with his involvement in Republican politics has led many to speculate whether he will campaign for the presidency in 2012.

But, for the moment, Huckabee says he’s enjoying his current job.

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“If I were to be a candidate, I’d have to walk away from every bit of that. I’m not going to jump in a pool with no water. If you don’t have the support — not just financial, but the structural support from the activists and party regulars — it’s very risky.”

Saltsman says Fox makes sense for Huckabee right now: “It’s an amazing outlet for a conservative guy to reach conservative voters.”

According to Kurtz, “Huckabee says the three cable news channels approached him after he dropped out but that he felt most at home with Fox.”

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