Republicans still desperately seeking a presidential candidate to support may find their liking in former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. The second-tier possibility met with reporters today to explain his platform and answer questions.

Huckabee weighed in heavily on tax issues, claiming taxes should be, "flatter, fairer, finite, and family-friendly."

He supports the Bush tax cuts and opposes the death tax, though has been criticized by the Club for Growth for raising taxes in some areas. But Huckabee touted himself as a helper of Americans, saying it is "important to give people the opportunities to reach the next rung of the ladder no matter where they are."

He mentioned a humorous gesture he made recently, called the "tax me more fund,” which allowed those who opposed tax cuts to take a "tax me more" envelope for donation of their personal funds to the government. "There's nothing in the law that says there's a limit on how much you can contribute," said Huckabee, adding that almost no one took the envelopes.

He played up the fact that Arkansas was a primarily Democrat landscape when he came onto the scene in the early 90s, but that reality didn't hinder his success in claiming the governorship. Additionally, Huckabee comes from the same area as former President Bill Clinton and claims insider knowledge on Hillary Clinton.

"Nobody knows her better in the Republican race for President than me," said Huckabee. "And no one would be able to wage a more skillful race against her than me."

Huckabee was a natural speaker and offered well-crafted explanations for questions about a range of topics including Virginia Tech (it's not about the guns), the Imus controversy (have you watched cable television lately?), marital values (there's been a decline in religious values), and Iraq (we should listen to the people with “the mud and blood in their boots.”)

He believes foreign policy should be about talking to everyone -- especially those we sharply disagree with -- but negotiating with no one unless they have proven trustworthy.

Huckabee articulated a strong candidacy, advocating his consistency in voting records and relevant experience running as a Republican in a very Democratic environment. He’s not a frontrunner now but you never know what can happen in the next 17 months.