Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders speaks July 11, 2025 at the Family Leadership Summit in Des Moines about her time working in Iowa during her father's 2008 presidential campaign. (Photo by Tom Foley/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders celebrated her family’s legacy with the Trump administration and Iowa ties Friday at the Family Leadership Summit.
Sanders is the former White House press secretary. Her father, Mike Huckabee is the current U.S. ambassador to Israel.
“When the president hired me, I was only the third woman and the very first mom to ever serve that role. I soon discovered that being a mom was actually the greatest preparation I could ever have for the White House press secretary,” Sanders said.
At the time Sanders was hired, she said, her kids were “five, three and one,” respectively. She claims her kids trained her in having the patience to “say no a lot” and “answer the same question over and over again.”
The Summit, sponsored by the Family Leader, is an annual event promoting pro-life and anti-LGBTQ+ policy, religious liberty and “Christ-centered leadership.” The event is often a stop for GOP presidential hopefuls. In 2024, visitors included Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, and others. Past speakers include President Donald Trump and U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem.Â
While at the summit, she told a story of the time her father took her to Yad Vasheem, Israel’s monument to the Holocaust. She also read aloud a to Trump sent by her father in Israel, in which he wrote, “You sent me to Israel to be your eyes, ears and voice and to make sure our flag flies above our embassy. My job is to be the last one to leave.”
Sanders said her father has spent “the better part of a month working from a bunker as Iranian missiles rain down on the country.”
Sanders also mentioned her work on AI policy, leading a group of 17 Republican governors in sending a advocating for the removal of the10-year AI regulation moratorium from the “one, big beautiful bill” act. She also an op-ed about the dangers of AI if left unchecked by Congress. The moratorium was removed from the budget bill on July 1.
“Doing what’s right led us to empower parents against big tech, keep explicit material out of the hands of our kids, protect our right to safeguard against some of the worst abuses of AI,” Sanders said.
She thanked Iowans for the 2008 presidential campaign she says helped propel her father to his current position. She said, “Iowa will always hold a very special place in my heart.”
Sanders has made no official statement indicating interest in a presidential run in 2028.