Mike Farris:
This week we’ll be talking with former Governor Mike Huckabee from Arkansas. He is seeking the Republican nomination for president in 2008. Mike, we’re very honored to have you with us here today.
Governor Huckabee:
Well, thank you Michael, it’s a pleasure to be with you.
Mike:
What is your position on homeschooling? Including in that, how much involvement, if any, should the government have in a family’s decision to homeschool?
Governor Huckabee:
Well, the government should have no decision role in what a family wishes to do with their children. That’s a family decision. Mothers and fathers make that decision, not the government. And if the family decides that homeschooling is the best environment, then the state should do everything they can to help support that family to carry out that decision. And that’s why, when I was governor, I appointed my very first appointee to the state board of education, a homeschool parent. And I think, to the best of my knowledge, it was the first time that a governor had appointed a homeschooling parent to a state board of education. And, I did that because we have a lot of homeschoolers in our state and they’re responsible parents. They are homeschooling because they love their children; they want the best for them, and they believe that homeschooling provides that option.
Mike:
Thank you so much, Governor Huckabee. I’m Mike Farris.
