Former Arkansas Governor and former Republican Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee visits Jefferson City to speak at lunch and dinner programs sponsored by the Vitae Caring Foundation – a national pro-life organization based in Missouri’s capital city. More than 1,400 tickets were sold for the afternoon and evening events held at a Jefferson City hotel.

Mike Huckabee Huckabee compared his view of the need to respect life – both the born and the unborn – to rejection of slavery.

"What are we saying to the generation coming after us," asked Huckabee. "When we tell them that it is perfectly okay for one person to own another human being? I thought we dealt with that 150 years ago when the issue of slavery was finally settled in this country, and we decided that it no longer was a political issue, it wasn’t an issue of geography, it was an issue of morality."

The former GOP presidential hopeful went on to suggest the issue of abortion is an issue of morality and civilization.

"The idea that one person, in this case a biological mother, would have life and death control over another human being – albeit her own child – but could have that level of ownership over another is no longer just an issue of politics or culture, but the utmost essence of moral behavior of a civilized people."

Huckabee stressed his belief that the effort must be made to encourage and to embrace a cultural transformation focusing on the sanctity of life – a message promoted by Vitae.

"Vitae stands uniquely alone," said Huckabee. "In its approach, which is that before the people are going to change their actions, they first must change their attitudes. And that we must, in fact, be moving toward a cultural transformation and that before laws get changed we have to change minds and hearts."

Download/Listen: Mike Huckabee addresses Vitae luncheon (30:00 MP3)