Mike Huckabee told the “Todd Starnes Show” he is not surprised by recent developments in Arizona because “people have lost their minds.”
Huckabee referenced recent news out of Arizona that the Washington Elementary School District has voted to ban student-teachers from Arizona Christian University due to its commitment to Christian values.
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“We cannot continue to align ourselves with organizations that starkly contrasts our values, and say that we legitimately care about diversity, equity and inclusion and that we legitimately care about all of our families,” said school district president Nikkie Gomez-Whaley.
Three board members identify as members of the LGBT community — including Tamillia Valenzuela. She wears cat ears and identifies as a bilingual, disabled, neurodivergent queer black Latina.
“Imagine just reversing that and saying, we’re not going to allow any we’re not going allow a gay university. We’re not going to allow any of your teachers to come into our classrooms. This would be wall-to-wall national news coverage,” host Todd Starnes said.
“Well, it truly would,” Huckabee responded, “And I think we’re seeing more and more people on the Left who are afraid of a point of view that is different than their own.”
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Starnes asked the former Arkansas governor if he ever thought something like this would happen in America, and this was his response.
“A few years ago. No, I didn’t,” he said. “But in the last few years, yes. I’m not surprised at all because people have lost their minds. They’ve just forgotten that America is supposed to be a place where we can get along, disagree, and take our positions.”
Huckabee is not the only one to speak out on this new development in Arizona. ACU President Len Munsil has also spoken out on the controversial decision from the Arizona school board.
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“The school board’s recent decision to ban ACU students from serving as student teachers was done for one reason only: our university’s commitment to our Christian convictions. That’s wrong, it’s unlawful, and it will only hurt the district’s students,” Munsil said in a statement to The Christian Post.
“Religious liberty and freedom of conscience are bedrock American principles. We are exploring our options to defend the rights of our students,” he added.
Listen to the full interview below:
The following is a rush transcript from the Todd Starnes Show, which airs daily from noon – 3:00 p.m. EST.
TODD STARNES: [01:27:14] Good friend of this program, great host over at TBN. Our good friend, Governor Mike Huckabee. Hey, Governor, how are you today? [01:27:20][6.1]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:27:22] You know, if I got any better, it’d be a crime. So I’m doing beautifully. It’s a wonderful, wonderful day in the great state of Arkansas today. [01:27:30][8.3]
TODD STARNES: [01:27:31] And across the river, it’s looking pretty good here in Tennessee, too. So good for both of us. [01:27:36][5.1]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:27:38] Well, we have a lot to be grateful for. And today’s weather is one of those things for sure. [01:27:42][4.7]
TODD STARNES: [01:27:43] You know, Governor, we were talking about this story in the last segment, Arizona Christian University, a school district out there, a majority gay school board, says we’re no longer going to allow you guys to partner with us. No more student teachers in our classrooms because we have a problem with your religious beliefs. Did you ever think something like this would happen in America? [01:28:04][20.6]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:28:07] A few years ago. No, I didn’t. But in the last few years, yes. I’m not surprised at all because people have lost their minds. They’ve just forgotten that America is supposed to be a place where we can get along, disagree, and take our positions. But we don’t want to completely destroy somebody just because they disagree with us. But that’s where we are. [01:28:29][22.1]
TODD STARNES: [01:28:30] You know, it’s I was reading and, of all places, the Arizona Republic, which is not a conservative publication. And one of the columnists said, you know, hey, look, this is clearly discrimination. Imagine just reversing that and saying, we’re not going to allow any we’re not going allow a gay university. We’re not going to allow any of your teachers to come into our classrooms. This would be wall-to-wall national news coverage. [01:28:51][20.9]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:28:53] Well, it truly would. And I think we’re seeing more and more people on the left who are afraid of a point of view that is different than their own. I’ve always believed that if you had a point of view that you really believed in and thought was right, not only were you willing to have someone challenge you, you wanted them to challenge it because that’s what made your own position even more acceptable to you and an ability to share it with other people. That’s not where we are these days. [01:29:21][28.1]
TODD STARNES: [01:29:22] No, no, it’s not. And it’s just a reminder that religious liberty is always under attack. You have to keep watch over it. And it’s our bedrock freedom. And we cannot let that be chipped away. Governor, I want to move on to these Jan. 6 tapes that came out yesterday. What’s your take on your observation of what you saw last night on Fox News Channel? [01:29:45][23.4]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:29:47] I think the immediate concern is how come they didn’t want us to see that? Why were Chuck Schumer and Liz Cheney and Bennie Thompson and all these people ripping their garments because somebody might actually see the non-edited, very highly slickly produced version that was shown on television during those so-called hearings? Why were they are so afraid of letting us see the unedited versions and even some very revealing parts? For example, when you see Ray Epps, and you realize he lied to the committee, he said he had left for his hotel. 30 minutes later, he’s still wandering around giving orders. When you see the way that they tried to portray Josh Hawley as having run away from the crowd, truth is, he was the last one of several dozen who were being escorted out of the Capitol building. They never told that truth. Ah, the Brian Sicknick story, which I find to be one of the most disturbing because they continue this lie, these five police officers were murdered that day. That’s not true. The one person who was murdered was actually Babbitt, murdered by a policeman. And we don’t ever hear anything about the inquiry into was a justified shooting; reverse that situation, and my goodness, that person would have long since been in prison. I’m just disturbed by that. I think, as much as anything. [01:31:10][83.3]
TODD STARNES: [01:31:11] It does make you wonder what’s really going on here. And when you start to put the puzzle pieces together, it certainly looks like there was there may be another narrative forming. We still don’t know how many FBI agents were involved. We know they were there, but they’re not telling us how many. They’re not telling us how many were involved in the planning of what happened on January the sixth. And why is it that Nancy Pelosi turned down additional security? Why is it that those police officers, based on the videos we saw last night, just let people into the building itself? And were those people charged with their crimes? [01:31:47][35.9]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:31:49] And I think, too, we also ought to be concerned as to why there has been such a coordinated effort to use the exact same words. One of the things that struck me about the report last night on Tucker Show was how many times you heard this armed insurrection line, and it was repeated by the media and by members of Congress that clearly was orchestrated. That doesn’t just bubble out of every person who talks about something. So who wrote their script, who did that report and told them what they needed to say, and why did they say it? I just think that’s something that we really need more information about. [01:32:27][38.2]
TODD STARNES: [01:32:28] I mean, it’s not too far of a stretch, and I’m not willing to go there just yet. But it certainly looks like somebody was trying to set up Donald Trump. [01:32:36][7.8]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:32:39] Well, I know it’s a stretch to say that that’s what it was. Look, I think there were people who did criminal activity that day. [01:32:48][9.2]
TODD STARNES: [01:32:48] No doubt about it. [01:32:49][0.5]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:32:50] I’m not defending some of the action. Some of it was simply of it was just stupidity and hot-headedness, but some of it was criminal. And those people truly do need to be charged. They need to have accountability for it in the same way that people in Portland and Seattle, and other places need to be held accountable for criminal activity and something that goes beyond vandalism and protest and gets into the place of potentially injuring people and destroying public property. That aside, there were thousands of people there that day who did not break into the Capitol and did not engage in criminal activity. And quite frankly, some of them have sat in jail for more than a year. And it’s just the outrageous assault on some people’s civil liberties that is very disturbing to me. And maybe Kevin McCarthy and the House Republicans will get to the bottom of it. One thing we know for sure, the so-called January six committee didn’t get to the bottom of it because they weren’t even interested in the top of it. They were an anti-Trump hate group. That’s what they were. The reason Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney got on that committee was that they hated Trump, and they were willing to do whatever they were told to do to make it look bad for Trump. Now, that is, I think, inescapable as a conclusion whether or not the whole thing was a setup. I don’t know. But there is no doubt that the motives of most of the people in that arena were specifically targeting Donald Trump to make sure he could never run again because they are afraid that if he does, he probably will win. [01:34:37][106.9]
TODD STARNES: [01:34:38] Governor, we got about 15 seconds before we got to go to break. What’s coming up on the show this weekend? [01:34:42][3.6]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:34:43] Mayor Rudy Giuliani is going to be with us. We’ll be talking with him about some of the ongoing legal issues of the Trumps. We also have Dennis Kucinich, a Democrat, who is taking on his own party and a wonderful band from the sixties that I still love, the zombies. They’re going to be with us as musical guests. [01:35:01][18.0]
TODD STARNES: [01:35:02] That’s going to be fun. I haven’t heard from Kucinich in a long time. Good guy, though, so looking forward to that. [01:35:06][4.6]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:35:07] Yep. [01:35:07][0.0]
TODD STARNES: [01:35:08] All right, Governor, we got to leave it there. Always good to hear from you. [01:35:10][2.5]
MIKE HUCKABEE: [01:35:11] Take care of my friend. [01:35:12][0.6]
TODD STARNES: [01:35:12] All right. Hope he enjoys that beautiful day over in Arkansas. We’re having a good time here in Tennessee. Hope you’re having a great day where you are. [01:35:20][7.3]