I’m waiting for the teleconference to begin with Mike Huckabee, hosted by Strang Communications. They sent out an email saying that 5000 people signed up but only the first 3000 will get on. Presently, they have all the lines open and 3000 people are talking (well, 2999, because I’m not saying a word … it is truly chaos). I’ll be blogging as the call progresses … hopefully they will stop the chaos.

Finally, they closed all the lines.

They have welcomed Gov. Huckabee and Steve Strang. I will identify their comments by MH, Mike Huckabee and SS, Steve Strang) …

SS: as you know Governor, you are on the current cover of Charisma Magazine with a headline that says “What’s Next?”

MH: Other than trying to make sure I get on the right airplane (which thanks to AA, has been interesting the past few days), what’s next starts with my observation … that this campaign was not about me, but about people who were being overlooked by what is becoming a “ruling class” in this country that seems to be completely unaware of the struggles, the values, the hopes and dreams of ordinary Americans. Our campaign brought these people back into the process and believing that they could actually make a difference and be heard in Washington.

MH: There is a huge gap between the economic conservatives and the true social conservatives. If we want less government, we have to create strong families. The cost of government is directly related to the breakdown of the family …. prison beds, police, rehab, social services … the level that people act immorally, illegally is directly related to the cost of government. We must not lose the voice we built in this campaign, first by supporting other candidates all around the country who represent our values.

SS: Well, we decided to support you early in this campaign (New Man Magazine/Charisma Magazine) because it was important to me that this message of conservative values was heard. I want to thank you for running. The response to this conference call shows that there are many people who agree with us. We have only had one other conference call with an author, and it had 2400 people in attendance on the line. Tonight, we have over 6000 people and are blown away.

Q: from Kristy: I am upset with the way the GOP establishment treated you. What do we do now?

MH: we must not grow weary in well-doing, and the best way to do that is to remain active. We can only advance the cause we are committed to if we stay the course. If we do nothing, it won’t save any unborn babies. We had heart, energy and enthusiasm that carried us farther than money ever could.

Q: from Gail: now that you are no longer in the race, who do you believe is God’s choice for President?

MH: let me be careful here, because I never said of myself that I was “God’s choice” for President … that is something that each of us must decide. As I’ve said before, I am fully supporting Sen. McCain, because he is better than what Obama or Clinton will do for this country. He is closer to our conservative convictions. It is also important to support candidates at every level and vigorously help them get elected.

Q: would you run as McCain’s running mate?

MH: well, that’s not my decision to make, that’s Sen. McCain’s. I have said publicly that I am not expecting or sitting around by the phone. I have told him I will campaign for him and we haven’t heard any instructions from his campaign yet as to what they will have us do.

Q: Evan – your environmental and tax views were refreshing. What will you need to do in the next 4 years to get your record and views out there?

MH: one of the problems we had was without enough money, other people were able to get bits of information out there and form perceptions based on partial information. If people want to be for or against me, I want them to know fully what I stand for. I think we have launched a new generation of republicans who are interested in disease and the environment … I’m not saying we will worship the environment, but they we should be good stewards of all that God has given us.

Q: Eric, what do you think of the continuing trend of eliminating God from the public square?

MH: one of the great things about the US, is that we have always championed the rights of the minority, and that has always been good. However, now we are trampling the rights of the majority – it’s not just evangelicals, but all of the mainstream judeo-christian view, including the Catholic church (he referenced recent attacks on the Pope here in the US). Today, it has become acceptable to lampoon judeo-christians, but there would be outrage if another group were treated that way.

Q: Valerie – we currently have millions of illegal aliens in this country … how do we fix this problem?

MH: well, as I’ve said before, is that the federal government has failed miserably in this area. the US is the only country on the planet that has not secured its borders. This is absurd. Until we secure the border, we can’t do anything about the illegals that are here. First we secure the border. Second, those who are here would have to go back to their own country and go to the back of the line to enter here again, but legally. People did not just walk into this country decades ago … they had to go through the gate of Ellis Island.

Q: Greg – what can be done about the high price of gasoline?

MH: the price is really hurting the working family, but I was thinking especially of those independent truck drivers and what this is doing to them. The airlines are at the point of meltdown. Even just driving back and forth to work is eating up more and more of your paycheck. What do we do about it? Well, as I’ve said, we have to become energy independent in 10 years … I know cynics said it wasn’t possible, but I say if we really want it, then it will be realistic. It’s also time we become more forceful to those countries in the middle east who pledged millions of dollars to fight the war on terror but have not paid up.

SS: how do we change the fundraising paradigm to bring in more money, because as you said, you donations came from ordinary working people who had never given to a campaign before, and not from the deep pockets.

MH: one of the positives that came out of our campaign is that people who thought they couldn’t make a difference now know that they really can. As Clebe McClary says “I’ve never lost at anything … sometimes the game has ended before I was done playing” … that’s how I feel about this campaign, the game just ended too soon. What’s important for us is that we need more early money to build that base (kind of like yeast to dough) … if leaders of the conservative movement had stood with us early, the outcome would be different. So many leaders said to me, “well, Mike, I think you’re the best candidate, but I’m not sure you can win, so if you get some traction, come back and talk to me later”. That was tough to hear.

SS: Next week is April 15th, which is Income Tax day. You were the only candidate to pledge to change the tax system, while the three remaining want to give the fed more power and grow the IRS. What do you say?

MH: well, it is very troubling. What you reward you get more of … if you penalize people who are working and productive, then you’ll get less productivity. The FairTax changes the rules … we would finally be competitive.

Q: the african american community is conservative in family values, but the GOP does not attract them.

MH: this is a great question, because I have been very frustrated with the GOP in this area. You can’t show up in October and hope to get the vote. It takes years not weeks to build the kind of relationships needed to get that support. You must show absolute equality, and you must show up even when it does not appear to give you any political revenue.

Q: if the GOP doesn’t win in 2008, can I hold out hope that I can vote for you in 2012?

MH: well, I’m flattered that you would want to. I’m not making any announcement just yet, but I’m certainly not ruling that out. Right now my focus is to get conservatives in offices around the country in this cycle. I certainly won’t be too old in 2012. Next Tuesday we’ll be launching our website in a whole new direction, and specifics will be growing there. We didn’t just build a campaign, but we built a community that encouraged and carried us every day on the trail. The great lesson I learned from this campaign is that this is an amazing country with some of the greatest people on earth. I was heartened by what I experienced, and I very much want that community to continue.

SS: you have restored our faith and belief in politicians, and we are honored to have been your supporter.

You can listen to this conference call by going to Charisma Magazine

MH: I just want to thank everyone who has been involved this evening and with my campaign. Thank you Steve for your personal friendship and to all who called, God Bless you all … I appreciate you more than I can tell you.