Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee — the winner of the Iowa Republican Party’s Caucuses this past January — stopped in Cedar Rapids and Des Moines Thursday to sign copies of his new book. The book’s title is "Do the Right Thing" and during an interview with Radio Iowa, Huckabee downplayed the idea he’s in Iowa to lay the groundwork for another run for the White House.
"First of all, I’m not anticipating planning or even trying to think about any future campaign," Huckabee told Radio Iowa. "I’m wanting to make sure I get the message of this book out and work on my show with FOX and then starting in January I’ll be doing two, five-minute-a day commentaries for the ABC Radio Network, so I have plenty to keep me busy."
The title of the first chapter in Huckabee’s book is: "I Love Iowa!" Later, on page 99, Huckabee mentions the "grueling" nature of the campaign in Iowa. "Iowa is, obviously, throughout the book and it starts there," Huckabee said during his interview with Radio Iowa. "There are so many references to Iowa events and Iowa people because so much of our campaign, I mean, we spent more time here than we spent here in our own homes during the almost two years up to the caucus."
Huckabee’s book is not just a recounting of the 2008 campaign, though. It articulates his political philosophy. "We’ve got to, as a party, realize that we win when we stand for some things: when we are clearly pro-life/pro-family, for lower taxes, we empower parents…and when we stick by those things and actually govern that way we win elections," Huckabee told Radio Iowa, "but it’s when we don’t govern that way that our message loses any authenticity and we lose."
The book ends with Huckabee’s direct responses to some of his critics — responses that cover three pages with incredibly tiny type. That’s followed with Huckabee’s outline of a "veteran’s bill of rights."
Read more about Huckabee and his book on "The Blog."
AUDIO: Huckabee interview (mp3 runs 8 min)
