Exclusive: Mike Huckabee reacts to Obama-Netanyahu fallout

Prime minister of Israel set to address Congress

This is a rush transcript from "The Kelly File," March 2, 2015. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

MEGYN KELLY, HOST: Here now in a "Kelly File" exclusive Governor Mike Huckabee, former Arkansas governor and a former presidential candidate. He returned from Israel last week where he had a chance to meet with Mr. Netanyahu.

Good to see you tonight, Governor.

And so there have been real questions about why Benjamin Netanyahu is doing this. Why if it's not about politics did he not say to John Boehner, I'll do it but I'll do it after the Israeli election? Then I'll come, then I'll address the American people. If he had done that, no one would be accusing him of playing politics with this. But he took the invitation without alerting the White House. And now some are crying foul.

MIKE HUCKABEE, FORMER ARKANSAS GOVERNOR: Well, I think that if he had waited until the Israeli elections, the deal might have been already done. And part of the issue is the deadline with which this negotiation goes forth that's dangerously close. This is not a good idea for Netanyahu for his own political benefit. And anybody who thinks he's doing this in advance of the Israeli elections because it's good for him, well, they haven't been reading the Israeli press.

Megyn, I was just there. I'm telling you, this is very destructive to him politically. He's doing it because he realizes that a nuclear Iran is really a death sentence to Israel. And it is a proliferation of nuclear arms across the Middle East. And he's risking his political life because he values not just the future of Israel but really the future of civilization. The Iranians are just crazy enough to use a nuclear weapon if they had one.

KELLY: Secretary of State John Kerry says, look, give the president the benefit of the doubt in these negotiations. He is not going to and has no incentive to strike a deal with Iran that would not actually curb its nuclear abilities or be acceptable to the American people.

HUCKABEE: Well, this is a president who told us we could keep our doctors, we could keep our health insurance, they're going to get to the bottom of Benghazi. And that was all about a video. We were told they're going to get to the bottom of the IRS scandal. We're going to get to the bottom of the Fast and Furious.

I'm sorry, but the president has no credibility when it comes to saying, look, you can trust me. Actually, we can't. And the truth is we certainly can't trust the Iranians. And whatever legacy the president wants to have by saying, look, I made a deal with the Iranians, it can't be a good deal because you can't trust a government that is vowed openly and publicly that it's going to wipe another nation off the face of the Earth.

KELLY: It was just like, you know, within the last year they had their nine-point plan for doing exactly that.

HUCKABEE: Well, Megyn, this is like saying they had 19,000 centrifuges, we're going to only let them have 6,000. This is the equivalent saying, we're not going to let a pyromaniac have a blow torch but we'll let them have, you know, a cigarette lighter and a can of gasoline. You just don't put those kind of opportunities in the hands of crazy people who would use those destructive forces.

KELLY: What do you make of the fact -- because we're going to have a Democratic representative, a Jewish Democratic representative who is going to boycott the speech tomorrow coming on right after you? What do you make of the some 50-some democrats who will not be there, who will walk out of a packed U.S. Congress tomorrow and Mr. Netanyahu shows up. And not even one member of the administration including our ambassador to Israel will attend.

HUCKABEE: It's disappointing and disheartening. And I would say this, listen to the speech. If you don't agree with it, then in a free country you can certainly say that you disagree with it and you can explain why. But to not listen, to say we want diversity of views as long as they agree with ours, shouldn't we want more information not less information? Shouldn't we want more voices speaking to this, not fewer voices? I don't understand this boycott mentality.

Look, if you want to go and fold your arms and say I'm not going to stand up and I'm not even going to applaud, knock yourself out. Go for it. But I think the Prime Minister's speech is an important speech certainly for members of Congress because they need to monitor this deal. But, Megyn, this is important for all the American people and for all the people of the free world who value their liberty and who believe that there is a threat to it from the Iranians.

KELLY: It's a pivotal moment the month of March. Governor, good to see you.

HUCKABEE: Thank you, Megyn.

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