On CNN’s “Late Edition” today: Mr. Huckabee: Well, I think it always would probably pull votes away from the Democrats, not the Republicans. So naturally Republicans would welcome his entry into the race and hope that maybe a few more will join in.z
CNN’s John King: As you know, there has been chatter from time to time about the prospect of a third party candidacy from the right. Have you picked that up at all in your travels? That if John McCain is the Republican nominee, perhaps there would be a significant third party challenge from the right?
Mr. Huckabee: I don’t think so. I mean, a couple of times it will get mentioned. But people will say, would you ever consider it? And my answer is emphatically no. I think it is a suicide mission, third party candidates are not going to win the election. At best they are going to take away from one of the major parties.
Senator Chuck Hagel, Republican of Nebraska was asked today on CNN about Mr. Nader’s nascent candidacy and about Mr. McCain’s run.
Mr. King: Ralph Nader dropped his toe into the race today, saying he is going to run again. What is the impact of that? And is Chuck Hagel out of the mix here? Have you talked to Mayor Bloomberg lately?
Mr. Hagel: Chuck Hagel is out of the mix. I’m going to continue to focus on my job in the Senate, and do what I can do to influence the direction of our country over the next year.
As to Nader, I think it’s one of those years that is very unpredictable, and I think there will be many twists and turns with a very unpredictable current running right now. Mr. King: You say Chuck Hagel is out of the mix. You are still the Republican senator from Nebraska, a fellow Vietnam veteran. John McCain is likely to be your party’s nominee.
Any question — will you support John McCain?
Mr. Hagel: Well, I’ve not been involved in the primary and I am still not involved in any of that. At the appropriate time, then I’ll have something to say about it.
Mr. King: Are you saying you might not support the Republican Party’s nominee?
Mr. Hagel: I said at the appropriate time, I’ll have something to say about it.
"Nader's participation offers him the chance to air to a wider audience his view on corporate power and what he sees as the failure of traditional Washington politics dominated by lobbyists. "You take that framework of people feeling locked out, shut out, marginalised and disrespected," he said. "You go from Iraq, to Palestine to Israel, from Enron to Wall Street, from Katrina to the bumbling of the Bush administration, to the complicity of the Democrats in not stopping him on the war, stopping him on the tax cuts."
Does Huck sound sweet on Nader?.