Huckabee Guests

Barry and Dari Anne Amato met while performing at Opryland, USA in "Music City" (aka Nashville). They’ve been married 24 years and have performed everywhere from the Nashville Network to the CMA Awards. They also produce shows for TV, corporate events and theme parks like Dollywood. They’re currently starring in their award-winning show, “We Need A Lot of Christmas,” and we get the privilege of seeing them perform on the Huckabee stage to kick off the wonderful Christmas season.

Learn more about the "We Need A Lot of Christmas" dinner show via the links to the left.

Barry Meguiar is the third-generation president of Meguiar’s Inc., which produces one of the top selling car waxes in America. He’s also the founder and president of Ignite America, a ministry focused on igniting Christians to ignite America with revival – one person at a time. His television show “Car Crazy” aired world-wide for many years on the Discovery Networks and his “Ignite Your Life” television show airs on Christian television networks in the United States and online. “Ignite With Barry Meguiar” radio features are heard daily on over eight hundred Christian radio stations, and Meguiar hosts a podcast by the same name. He has served on the Assemblies of God World Missions Board and has been honored with the National Religious Broadcasters’ Billy Graham Award for Excellence in Christian Communications and Moody Theological Seminary’s 1886 Legacy Award.

Becky Isaacs is the guitar player and vocalist for The Isaacs. She started writing songs as a teen and landed her first number one with “Stand Still” and has since had charting songs recorded by many artists. Sonya and Becky penned “Heroes,” which won Bluegrass Song of the Year from the Dove Awards as well as other fan favorites, “Waiting in the Water,” “Your Cries Have Awoken The Master,” and “A Miracle Today.” She has also provided background vocals for a variety of artists including Paul Simon, Alabama, Dolly Parton, Don Williams, Merle Haggard, Trace Adkins and Russ Taff to name a few and has received several Female Vocalist and Songwriter of the Year nominations. In 2022 she released her first solo project, “Songs That Pulled Me Through The Tough Times” that debuted at #4 on the Billboard Bluegrass Chart and #6 on the iTunes Country Chart. Becky has a passion for the Lord and loves to minister through song and testimony. She is married to singer/musician/minister John Bowman.

Her new album, "Songs That Pulled Me Through The Tough Times," is out now. 

Ben Peterson is an eight-year Army veteran who served two years in Iraq, so he knows firsthand the trauma war can inflict on our troops. After he came home, he realized most Vietnam veterans never got the warm embrace and help they deserved. So he founded a nonprofit called Engage Your Destiny to help them heal. Don't miss his inspiring story this weekend on "Huckabee."

Learn more about Engage Your Destiny by clicking the globe and social media icons to the left.

Growing up in London, Ben Thompson began performing as Elvis Presley at 15. He went on to perform worldwide, win multiple titles and be crowned the Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist World Champion by Elvis Presley Enterprises. This weekend, he headlines for of the  Nashville Elvis Festival.

For more information about the Nashville Elvis Festival, click the globe icon to the left.

Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne proudly represents the 24th Congressional District of Texas, which includes portions of Dallas and Tarrant counties. Cities which are wholly, or partially included in the 24th District include: Addison, Bedford, Carrollton, Colleyville, Coppell, Dallas, Euless, Farmers Branch, Flower Mound, Fort Worth, Grapevine, Haltom City, Hurst, Irving, Keller, Lewisville, North Richland Hills, Richardson, Roanoke, Southlake, Trophy Club, Watauga, and Westlake.  The DFW International Airport, of which Beth is former board member, is centrally located in the heart of the district. 
 Now in her 2nd term, Beth was selected to serve on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee which is responsible for initiating tax and financial policies.  Assigned to the Taxation and Oversight Subcommittees, Beth is focused on delivering solutions to help individuals keep more of what they earn, businesses to expand operations and compete in globally competitive markets, and hold Administration policies and management accountable for actions which are detrimental to U.S. economic expansion or growing prosperity for our families.  As a Texan, Beth is particularly interested in fostering policies that will empower our country with an abundant, affordable, and reliable energy supply to lower costs for families and deliver the power needed for our nation to enjoy an expansion of U.S. based manufacturing. 
Beth was also chosen to serve as Chair of the House Small Business Subcommittee on Oversight where she concentrates on policies to encourage workforce development, labor participation, and reviews Administration actions directly related to the health and well-being of American small businesses.
Prior to being elected to Congress, Beth served as Regional Administrator for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Mayor of Irving, Irving City Council Member, and a businesswoman.  In 2017, Beth was appointed to serve as the Regional Administrator for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Southwest Region. Working under Secretary Ben Carson, Beth was tasked with overseeing HUD programs and operations in the Region’s five states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas, where she worked on many of the Trump Administration’s proudest economic successes, such as opportunity zones, and led HUD’s disaster recovery efforts at the southwest border in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.
Before being named Administrator, Beth was the first woman elected to serve as the Mayor of Irving from 2011 to 2017 after beginning her career in public service as an Irving City Council Representative from 2004 to 2010. Under her leadership, the City of Irving witnessed unprecedented economic growth and development with an added 40,000 jobs and an estimated $3 billion in growth and new developments while also being named the fifth safest city in America.
Throughout Beth’s career, she has worked with small startup companies, mid-size private companies and Fortune 500 corporations alike. Beth also ran a consulting business where she helped executives develop strategic business plans as well as negotiation strategies, grassroots coalition building and federal and state legislative policy strategies.
After graduating magna cum laude from Cornell University, Beth moved back to Irving, Texas, which has been her home for over 30 years. Proud mother to Katie and Pearce, Beth was only the second Republican woman from Texas to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.

Betsy DeVos has decades of experience in the education freedom trenches. She served as education secretary in the Trump administration, and she says the time has come for a new approach to American education. We've tried throwing truckloads of money at schools, that didn’t make them open any sooner during the pandemic; we tried banning poisonous ideologies like critical race theory, but that's not stopping radicals from trying to indoctrinate our kids. So maybe the answer is educational FREEDOM! Secretary DeVos joins "Huckabee" to detail the ideas from her fantastic new book, HOSTAGES NO MORE, to give students, parents, and teachers more education freedom.

Learn more about Betsy DeVos and her book HOSTAGES NO MORE via the links to the left.

Bill Spadea is an entrepreneur, media personality, father, husband and vocal advocate for working and middle class families. Spadea is the top morning drive talk show host in New Jersey on 101.5 FM. For seven years he hosted a successful show on FOX TV, “Chasing News with Bill Spadea”. He’s done a little bit of everything over his 25-plus year career, serving as a political strategist, analyst, candidate for office and business executive. He also regularly hosts music festivals and comedy shows in the New York/New Jersey area. 
Before getting into media, he served as an executive in the real estate industry for 18 years, coaching, recruiting and selling. He is currently a licensed broker in several states, including New Jersey, Washington and Massachusetts, working with a national real estate company. \Following the show on FoxTV, Spadea launched and continues to manage budget and production for a film company which sold their latest movie “Psycho Storm Chaser” to LifetimeTV.​
He took on a three-term Democratic House incumbent in New Jersey’s 12th Congressional District in 2004. Highlights of the campaign included a 200-mile walk through all 44 towns in the district, knocking on 16,000-plus doors and beating expectations as the top Republican challenger in New Jersey.
Most recently, Spadea founded and serves as the head of the “Common Sense Club” which advocates and mobilizes people to support policies which help small businesses and families through smart, fiscally responsible management in government, education that does away with radical political agendas which characterize many public schools today, and support for civil, economic and medical liberty. He is also the honorary chairman of "Elect Common Sense", a New Jersey Political Action Committee supporting Common Sense candidates that continues to be the fastest growing Conservative PAC in recent years with an average donation of $11.13.
He graduated from Boston University with a B.A. in history in 1991. Upon graduation he enlisted in the Marines and received an honorable discharge from the United States Marine Corps Reserves after serving eight years. Bill has been married 29 years to his wife Jodi and resides in Princeton, NJ. Their son, Michael, is an honors student at San Diego State University. Their daughter Elizabeth graduated from the University of the Arts in London and has launched a successful career as a producer and brand manager in the UK.

Billy Dean is a Grammy-winning country artist with 16 hit singles, including 5 Number Ones. His classic “Somewhere in My Broken Heart” was named ACM’s Song of the Year. His first new album in a decade is called “The Rest of It’s Mine.” The last time he was here, he lost his voice. Let’s see if he’s found it yet. Don’t miss Billy Dean!

Learn more about Billy and his new album via the links to the left.

Two-time Dove Award winner Billy Gaines has inspired audiences worldwide for more than four decades, spreading the gospel in song through television, radio, albums, and live performances, including multiple national Promise Keepers Conferences. A masterful performer, he has a unique vocal style that spans musical genres and has been described as “smooth, captivating, and anointed.”  One of Billy’s most recent accomplishments is his singing/acting role in the new Kathie Lee Gifford movie “The Way” as the character Moses, singing the song “The God of The How and When” which premiered September 1, 2022. He also became a published author with his first book “ Other Side of This Trial” My Story, His Plan, His Hand released November 28,2023.