Mike Huckabee endorsed Lieutenant Gov. Andre Bauer for Governor of South Carolina today.
"André Bauer is a champion we can believe in. He has fought for the people of South Carolina since the day he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1996. As Lt. Governor, he has ruled against every single proposed tax increase, saving the people of South Carolina $2 billion."
This isn't a big surprise, considering Bauer endorsed Huckabee in the 2008 Presidential primary, but it's an association that might cause some Huck fans queasiness.
His tenure as South Carolina's lieutenant gov was marked by controversy, particularly at the personal level, and his behavior during the Sanford Saga was seen as transparently self-serving.
There's one more thing. Red State has been a big cheer-leader of Bauer's opponent, Nikki Haley. In fact, expect Haley to continue to pick up a lot of national buzz among grassroots conservatives. As a young, conservative female who's largely working outside the party's structure, she would have been a good fit for a HuckPAC candidate.
But on the face of it, this endorsement seems to hint Huck's not done with South Carolina politics -- Bauer's got a better shot of winning the gubernatorial mansion than Haley, and a Governor's support would certainly be useful come 2012.
