By Klaus Marre
September 30, 2007
Former President Bill Clinton and his one-time adversary former House Speaker Newt Gingrich have found something to agree on. They both said Sunday that they view Mike Huckabee as the most likely Republican dark horse candidate for the GOP nomination.
“I think Huckabee is very effective, and if Huckabee can find money, he will be dramatically competitive almost overnight,” Gingrich said. “He’s probably the best performer in terms of giving speeches and being appealing…”
Gingrich, who announced Saturday that he would not seek the presidency in 2008, heaped more praise on Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas.
“I mean, there’s something about him that is just - you just have to like Mike,” Gingrich said on ABC’s “This Week with George Stephanopoulos,” adding that Huckabee would become “instantly competitive” if given the funds to succeed.
Bill Clinton, who also appeared on the show, said Huckabee is the only GOP “dark horse that’s got any kind of chance.”
Gingrich, who said that there is an 80 percent chance that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) would be the next president, said that her Republican opponent would only be able to beat her on the issues and not by attacking her.
“I think trying to beat Senator Clinton personally is just insane,” the former speaker said. “Everybody in America who’s ever going to vote against Senator Clinton knows everything that anyone’s going to tell them. And everybody in America who’s going to vote for her knows everything you could possible tell them. This is over.”
Bill Clinton defended his wife, saying that she can bring the country together. He repeated his claim that voters will like Sen. Clinton if they are given a chance to get to know her.
The former president also handicapped the GOP race, saying that the outcome depends on whether former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani can hold on to his lead once other candidates begin attacking him.
Clinton also said that “you can’t rule out is John McCain making a comeback with no money.”
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Of course this is just my opinion, but I am expecting Gingrich to endorse Gov. Mike Huckabee. In the past week he has made a number of comments like this one about Huckabee and he made a surprise guest post during Huckabee's Vertical Day. I beleive once this happens Huckabee's polling numbers and financial contributions will go way up. Gingrich still has a number of followers.
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