Huckabee inside on the right of Jeb Bush

Huckabee’s decision instantly shakes up the emerging race for the Republican presidential nomination.  (I'm wondering if Huckabee's decision might be more about TV ratings than politics...nothing like having a Presidential Campaign to turn around a media career).

Although Governor Jeb Bush positions himself as a Republican darling for 2016 Presidential ambitions, the candidate racing inside on his right is Governor Mike Huckabee. It's difficult to understand how Huckabee seems to believe his past unsuccessful attempts to run for President would somehow be reversed, especially when competing with a member of the Bush family dynasty. Nevertheless, it appears as though right wing GOPers wants a more conservative choice than another Bush, who would likely be an appealing candidate, if only he were more "right wing", like them.


Washington Post reports:

Huckabee to depart Fox News to consider 2016 presidential

Mike Huckabee is leaving Fox News to decide whether he wants to run for president.

Republican former governor of Arkansas said that Saturday's episode of "Huckabee" will be the last.

"There has been a great deal of speculation as to whether I would run for President. If I were willing to absolutely rule that out, I could keep doing this show. But I can't make such a declaration. I won't make a decision about running until late in the spring of 2015," Huckabee wrote.

He said the swirling speculation as to whether he will run or not is not fair to Fox.

"As much as I have loved doing the show, I cannot bring myself to rule out another Presidential run. So as we say in television, stay tuned!" he wrote.

Ending his show is essentially a requirement for laying the groundwork for a presidential run. As a policy Fox ends relationships with politicians who form exploratory committees or seriously intend to run for office.

The Fox network said it has "amicably parted ways" with Huckabee. It was "in the best of both of their interests," a network spokeswoman said.

Huckabee’s decision instantly shakes up the emerging race for the Republican presidential nomination. Particularly in the Iowa, where Huckabee surged from the bottom of the polls in 2008 to win the presidential caucuses, his move will have consequences for other conservative contenders as they plot their own possible paths.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.), Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), and Gov. Rick Perry (R-Tex.) have been courting Iowa’s evangelical voters for months, believing the support of that bloc is up for grabs. Huckabee’s entry would make the battle for those conservative votes a messy and crowded contest, with the Arkansan bringing a deep base of support from his 2008 campaign with him.

Huckabee’s decision comes after months of private discussions with his family, his advisers, and his top donors about his political future and whether he should leave the Fox program, which has provided him with a hefty salary and enabled him to purchase a beachfront estate in Florida.

Julie's note - Is Senator Ted Cruz healthy enough to run for President?  I'd like to see media request medical records for all candidates.  

So, like the 2012 campaign, the GOP's conservative insiders will keep coming up from the rear to erode the electability of a Republican candidate, like Governor Jeb Bush. 

My advice to Governor Bush is to stay out of politics, because his dynasty doesn't give him much to brag about. Moreover, the conservative GOP base wants to rule by ideology, rather than by compromise. It's time to let radical right wing conservatism sail into Valhalla.  Probably, the only way to accomplish their eternal demise is to let their ideology loose.....and soon.  Governor Huckabee is a good candidate to lead the GOP into it's delusional "promised land" of extremism.