Mike Huckabee is telegraphing his willingness to run for the Republican nomination in 2016, but only if he gets billionaire backing.
After ending his radio show this week, he told the New York Times "there's a real opportunity" but only if the money boys make an early and large commitment.
“If I talk to people and they say, ‘If you run, we’re in and we’re in a big way,’ that’s going be helpful,” he said. “If I don’t hear that, you know what? This will be a real easy decision for me to make because I’ve jumped in a pool without water before and it’s a hard hit at the bottom.”
He's not being especially coy about it. Armed with polls, facts and figures, he told his interviewer he's frustrated that he didn't receive the respect he should have for his 2008 showing, and said he was "prophetic" about the economic downturn and its effect on the working class.
He might play one on TV, but Mike Huckabee is no populist. Since 2008, his books, Fox News gig, and radio show have made him wealthy, with a net worth in the millions and an annual income of around $500,000.
Still, he has Islamophobe creds, Rupert Murdoch's backing, and could probably score the backing of the Koch network and Sheldon Adelson without too much work. I'm pretty sure we'll see him in the pack before too long.
Update: Video of his interview with David Brody of CBN added.
