Photo by: Heather Coit/The News-Gazette
CHAMPAIGN — Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said he believes a Republican presidential candidate could win in Illinois in 2012.
"I'm always the optimist," said Huckabee, who ran for president in 2008. "I think the economy is going to cause a lot of people to realize that the steps taken by this administration have not been helpful in getting people to work, getting people their jobs back and getting kids coming out of college to be able to pay off their student loans with a job."
Huckabee was in Champaign on Tuesday for a book signing at the Hilton Garden Inn and to take part in a fundraiser at the Virginia Theatre for Merci's Refuge.
Merci's Refuge, named in honor of a baby who was aborted, will be a new 12-bed residential center for young women in crisis, where they can carry their babies to term. The center will be an extension of Champaign's Pregnancy Resource Center.
Huckabee, who autographed a guitar that was auctioned off as part of the fundraiser, said providing a place to live for women in crisis is an issue he is passionate about.
"I've been a very strong pro-life advocate for a long time, and I do quite a few events for pro-life groups every year," Huckabee said. "For me it's not a political issue at all. It transcends all the politics."
Huckabee described Merci's Refuge as a refuge not only for the baby, but for the baby's mother, who may experience rejection by her own parents and friends.
"This is a person who needs love, needs acceptance and needs arms put around her," Huckabee said.
The former governor said that, during his 12 years as a pastor, he counseled many grief-stricken women in their late 20s who had undergone abortions during their teen years.
"Maybe their parents were pushing them or their boyfriend was pushing them, and they needed to get out of the dilemma they were in," Huckabee said.
"But move the clock forward 10 years and now they have kids. They start to understand the child that they aborted would have been one of their children. I cannot tell you the extraordinary sense of guilt many of these women carry."
Huckabee said he plans to decide sometime this summer whether he will make another run for president.
"It's a very difficult decision to make, and I am certainly mindful that our poll numbers are very strong," Huckabee said. "But I won't make the decision solely on the poll numbers. It's a decision deep within my own heart and soul. I'm grateful for the encouragement I'm getting, but I'm also mindful it's going to be a very brutal process."
Huckabee said his first campaign for president was an eye-opening experience for him.
"I learned you've got to have a whole lot of money to be successful, but I also learned that the American people are some great people.
"I didn't come away from it soured and down on the country and its future. I came away rather relieved that America is still a place where ordinary people can make a difference and make an impact."
Huckabee said it was his first visit to Champaign-Urbana.
"The Virginia Theatre is a beautiful facility," he said. "It's a great treasure for the community."
Don Bartos drove from Paris, Ill., for a chance to meet Huckabee.
"He's got some unique perspectives that I think are on target," Bartos said.
Rhonda Cloin of Tolono said she was impressed with the former governor.
"He's very personable, he's a great guy, and I like what he stands for," Cloin said.
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