Damn you Huckabee... you made me look like a fool, what with predicting not that you would run, but win the GOP nomination. Now all that's left is to watch the fight to be the anti-Romney unfold from afar.
Mike Huckabee said Saturday there would be no sequel to his surprisingly strong 2008 White House bid, in which he won the Iowa Republican caucus and finished second in the primaries to Sen. John McCain.
"All the factors say go, but my heart says no," Huckabee, who was considered the GOP frontrunner in several national polls, said on his Fox News Channel show.
The show is normally prerecorded before it airs at 8 p.m. ET, but Huckabee saved the last 10 minutes of tonight’s broadcast to make his announcement live.
"The past few months have been times of deep personal reflection," Huckabee said. "Even though I wasn't actively establishing a campaign organization or seeking financial support to run again, polls have consistently put me at or near the top to be the Republican nominee.
"But I know that under the best of circumstances, being President is a job that takes one to the limit of his or her human capacity," he continued. "I can't know or predict the future, but I know for now my answer is clear and firm: I will not seek the Republican nomination for President this year."
Oh, Mike. Mike, Mike Mike... we could have been so happy together. See, for the last six months, I've basically been your liberal Twitter hype man, assuring anyone and everyone that not only WERE you running, but that you'd get the nomination. Made a pretty convincing argument for you, too. And now, you do this.
And I'm not even really sure why. He never really addressed it head-on, but it sounded a lot like "why would I give up the media empire sapling I've spent the last two years growing in order to get dragged down a cobblestone street by a deranged horse run for President." Oh, and it sounded like God told him not to run. God apparently tells a lot of Republican politicians whether to run or not. You'd think some of them would do better electorally.
But whatever the reason, Mike... I'll never forget you. I'll forever be Flava Flav to your Chuck D.
Obviously, the ramifications of a Huckless race are going to be significant. As he mentioned (several times, really... almost to the point of rubbing it in) Huckabee had a lot of support that now needs to find a new home. PPP's latest results in a full field, Huck led with 19% of the vote. Luckily, PPP also did a version without him, as if foreseeing not only Huckabee's announcement, but my need to make this point:
Mitt Romney 24%
Newt Gingrich 20%
Sarah Palin 17%
Ron Paul 12%
Tim Pawlenty 8%
Michelle Bachmann 8%
If I were someone close to Sarah Palin who would hypothetically benefit financially from her running for President, today would be a good day. Also, the half-joking comment I made recently about Gingrich being the likely "anti-Romney" candidate? Knock that back to "quarter joking."