Huckabee: GOP must restore confidence

WASHINGTON, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- Former Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee said Monday that if the GOP is to get back on track it must regain the confidence of U.S. voters.

The former Arkansas governor said Republicans have lost their small-government mentality, CNN reported.

"People will forgive you for being a little left or a little right, but they won't forgive you for not taking them up instead of down," he said in an interview between appearances on his 56-city tour to promote his new book, "Do the Right Thing: Inside the Movement That's Bringing Common Sense Back to America."

Huckabee said Republicans have become known as "budget busters" -- lawmakers unwilling to raise taxes to cover expenditures they approve.

"But it's not that they do it by curbing spending, they just kick the can down the road and put the burden on our grandchildren," he said, adding it is "morally wrong" to incur debt for which future generations will be responsible.