TEXARKANA, Ark. - Some 250 to 350 local residents collected on the Old Tyme Burger parking lot to greet GOP Arkansas gubernatorial candidate Sarah Huckabee Sanders as she dropped by her former hometown Friday.
According to Sanders, running for a job that her dad, former Gov. Mike Huckabee, held for at least a decade, made her feel honored.
"People remember me as Mike Huckabee's daughter, and I really kind of like that," she said, noting that her dad's longevity seem to reflect his effectiveness. "Both my parents had a heart for public service, and it gave me a heart for public service."
Sanders went on to say that once she became President Donald Trump's chief spokeswoman, she felt even more empowered by Trump's honesty and confidence in the country.
"I was proud to work for a president that did exactly what he said he would do," she said. "He made our friends around the world feel safe, and he also made our enemies respect us."
Sanders then spoke to her audience about how she learned how to be an effective presidential spokeswoman.
"I can't think of anything that trained me better then having to deal with my three small kids," she said. "Being a mother really helped me become a press secretary, because first of all, you have to be forceful, and you have to repeat a lot of things over and over again."
Sanders went on to say that the freedom America has for it citizens is incredible, adding that the reason she is running for governor is to give Arkansas a much higher quality rating than it has had in the past.
"Instead of ranking near the last, we need to have Arkansas rank first, and this is the reason we need a fighter. And I'm that fighter," she said. "I look forward to moving Arkansas up in the ratings. It's really an incredible blessing to wake up and say that I'm proud to be a citizen in the United States, the very best and greatest country on the face of this earth."