--- ---  # Mike Huckabee: Gay Marriage Is Like Drinking  by [Jack Linshi](https://time.com/author/jack-linshi/)  ## Jack Linshi Feb 1, 2015 6:21 PM UTC  Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee speaks during the second day of the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord International Hotel and Conference Center on March 7, 2014 in National Harbor, Md. Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee speaks during the second day of the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord International Hotel and Conference Center on March 7, 2014 in National Harbor, Md.Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  by [Jack Linshi](https://time.com/author/jack-linshi/)  ## Jack Linshi Feb 1, 2015 6:21 PM UTC Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee, who has previously expressed opposition to gay marriage, defended on Sunday an excerpt from his new book that describes his gay friends. “People can be my friends who have lifestyles that are not necessarily my lifestyle. I don’t shut people out of my circle or out of my life because they have a different point of view,” Huckabee said of the excerpt from _God, Guns, Grits and Gravy_ on [_CNN’s State of the Union_](http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/01/politics/huckabee-gay-marriage/)_._ “I don’t drink alcohol, but gosh, a lot of my friends, maybe most of them, do. You know, I don’t use profanity, but believe me, I’ve got a lot of friends who do.” Huckabee, who won the 2008 Iowa caucuses, also said that his Christian views on same-sex marriage will not change. “It’s like asking someone who’s Jewish to start serving bacon-wrapped shrimp in their deli,” he said. “Or asking a Muslim to serve up something that is offensive to him, or to have dogs in his backyard. We’re so sensitive to make sure we don’t offend certain religions, but then we act like Christians can’t have the convictions that they’ve had for 2,000 years.” In [a recent interview with _Time_,](http://time.com/3668770/mike-huckabees-encore-in-iowa/) Huckabee previewed a possible 2016 campaign message that promises to include both a Bush and a Clinton. “Well, there hasn’t been a Huckabee yet,” he said. “There is room for some new options.” ### Photos: Meet America's 10 Newest Senators  Joni Ernst A Lieutenant Colonel of the Iowa Army National Guard, Ernst has served on the Iowa State Senate since 2004. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  David Perdue A businessman from Macon, Ga., Perdue makes his political debut in the seat of retiring Sen. Saxby Chambliss. David Goldman—AP  Tom CottonA U.S. Army Veteran and lawyer, Cotton has served as Representative for Arkansas's 4th district since 2012 and now moves on to the Senate. Justin Sullivan—Getty Images  Cory Gardner Gardner formerly served in the Colorado House of Representatives and U.S. House of Representatives. He beat incumbent Sen. Mark Udall. David Zalubowski—AP  Thom Tillis Tillis is the Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives and has served there 2006. Davis Turner—Getty Images  Mike Rounds From Huron, S.D., Rounds served as South Dakota governor from 2003 to 2011. Michael Conroy—AP  Shelley Moore Capito The daughter of former West Virginia Gov. Arch Alfred Moore, Jr., Capito has served as a U.S. Representative for West Virginia's 2nd District since 2001. Tyler Evert—AP  Steve DainesA businessman with Procter & Gamble for 13 years, Daines became a member of the House of Representatives in 2013. Michael Albans—AP  James LankfordLankford has served as Representative for Oklahoma's 5th District since 2011. Sue Ogrocki—AP  Ben Sasse The President of Midland University in Fremont, Neb., since 2010, Sasse won the Senate seat vacated by Sen. Mike Johanns. Nati Harnik—AP \[[_CNN_](http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/01/politics/huckabee-gay-marriage/)\] Mike Huckabee: Gay Marriage Is Like Drinking ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3691279/mike-huckabee-gay-marriage/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3691279/mike-huckabee-gay-marriage/"},"headline":"Mike Huckabee: Gay Marriage Is Like Drinking","datePublished":"2015-02-01T18:21:29.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:05:55.326Z","description":"'People can be my friends who have lifestyles that are not necessarily my lifestyle,' the former Republican governor and potential presidential candidate said","url":"https://time.com/3691279/mike-huckabee-gay-marriage/","keywords":["LGBT"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt81d2345b145cfd0f/69877d130b72e3397f6dd751/mike-huckabee.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jack Linshi","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/jack-linshi/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt81d2345b145cfd0f/69877d130b72e3397f6dd751/mike-huckabee.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Held In D.C.","caption":"Annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Held In D.C.","creditText":"Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/lgbt/","name":"LGBT"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3691279/mike-huckabee-gay-marriage/","name":"Mike Huckabee: Gay Marriage Is Like Drinking"}}]}] ```