Mike Huckabee's decision to forgo a shot at the presidency further muddies the field for a worthy Republican challenger to President Barack Obama, and leaves America's social conservatives without a clear candidate to throw their support behind.
Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, joins Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, South Dakota Sen. John Thune and Indiana Rep. Mike Pence on the sidelines. His decision underscores that for all of Obama's vulnerabilities on the economy, taking on his re-election machine and potential $1 billion treasure chest remains a daunting task.
The 55-year-old Baptist minister insists that he could have captured the GOP nomination, citing polls that showed he could score strong even in the Northeast and among the less conservative rank-and-file party members.
"All the factors say go, but my heart says no," Huckabee, the winner of the 2008 Iowa caucuses, said Saturday night on his Fox News Channel show. He described the decision as a spiritual one.
[...]
Complete article at AP : http://bit.ly/ld99nw
