Why is Huckabee Talking to Bryan Fischer?

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Yesterday, we flagged an interview in which possible GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee alleged that President Obama developed an anti-colonialist worldview because he was raised by his father and grandfather in Kenya. Huckabee later clarified that he misspoke—he meant to say that Obama was raised by his father and grandfather in Indonesia. Which is also incorrect. Today he doubled down in an interview with the American Family Association’s Bryan Fischer, explaining that while his words have been distorted, he really does believe that the Mau Mau Revolution has deeply influenced Obama’s thinking.

Adam Serwer says Huckabee threw conservatives under the bus, but maybe the larger concern isn’t what Huckabee said but who he said it to. Why is Mike Huckabee appearing on Bryan Fischer’s radio show? Let’s review the record: Fischer has previously argued that gay sex is “domestic terrorism,” that Native American societies were a “slop bucket” that deserved to be wiped out by Christians, that the President is a “fascist dictator,” that Muslims should be banned from serving in the military, that gays literally caused the holocaust, and that grizzly bears should be slaughted to appease an angry God.

There’s no evidence that Huckabee agrees with any of that, but Fischer’s radical views aren’t exactly unknown—and it’s not the first time Huckabee’s been on the show. We’ve contacted Huckabee’s PAC for a response; we’ll let you know if we hear back.

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DONALD TRUMP & DEMOCRACY

Mother Jones was founded to do things differently in the aftermath of a political crisis: Watergate. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after, and go deep on, stories others don’t. And we’re a nonprofit newsroom because we knew corporations and billionaires would never fund the journalism we do. Our reporting makes a difference in policies and people’s lives changed.

And we need your support like never before to vigorously fight back against the existential threats American democracy and journalism face. We’re running behind our online fundraising targets and urgently need all hands on deck right now. We can’t afford to come up short—we have no cushion; we leave it all on the field.

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