Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has a message for the Republican Party writ large following former President Donald Trump’s formal Tuesday announcement he will again seek the GOP presidential nomination in 2024.
Huckabee, who’s daughter Sarah Huckabee Sanders was elected governor of the state last week, warned other Republicans who are considering seeking the nomination themselves not to waste their time.
“The construct of the speech is pitch perfect,” Huckabee said about Trump’s speech on Tuesday night. “If he keeps on like this tonight, he is unbeatable in 2024, nobody can touch him, not a Republican, not a Democrat. He stayed on message, one of the key things he said was ,‘not my campaign this is our campaign.’
“He has made it about the American people. He has reminded them that the reason they voted for him once, and most of us twice, was because he was fighting for us. And he made the comment this is not about critics and complainers, he’s looking forward,” Huckabee told Fox News.
“I’m telling you, this was an absolutely brilliant speech, the best I’ve heard given in a long time. And he stays on this message, I agree with Pete, he stays and keeps it between the ditches, and this focus, he’s unbeatable,” Huckabee continued.
WATCH:
.@GovMikeHuckabee: "This was an absolutely brilliant speech." pic.twitter.com/iA54f0uu4d
— MAGA War Room (@MAGAIncWarRoom) November 16, 2022
Trump wasted no time in putting the Washington establishment on notice.
“To further drain the swamp, I will push for a constitutional amendment to impose term limits on members of Congress. It’s time,” he said during his speech.
“And I will ask for a permanent ban on taxpayer funding of campaigns, a lifetime ban on lobbying by former members of Congress,” he continued.
Neither proposal is likely to sit will with career politicians in either party.
And while some Republicans had encouraged the party to move on from the former president, others have already embraced his return to the fold.
“I fully support him running again. Under his presidency, America was strong at home and abroad, our economy was red hot, our border was secure, our neighborhoods were safe, our law enforcement was respected, and our enemies feared us,” Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), the House’s No. 3 Republican, said.
.@EliseStefanik:"I fully support him running again. Under his presidency, America was strong at home and abroad, our economy was red hot, our border was secure, our neighborhoods were safe, our law enforcement was respected, and our enemies feared us." https://t.co/juxQVQL0GT
— MAGA War Room (@MAGAIncWarRoom) November 16, 2022