Trump: Huckabee can’t protect entitlements like I can

New York real estate mogul Donald Trump said Thursday that former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) could not prevent funding cuts to entitlement programs if elected president in 2016.

“Huckabee is a nice guy but will never be able to bring in the funds so as not to cut Social Security, Medicare & Medicaid,” Trump tweeted. “I will.”

Trump, a possible 2016 GOP presidential candidate, also argued Huckabee was stealing his potential campaign ideas.

{mosads}“Huckabee copied me,” Trump wrote. “I was the first & only potential GOP candidate to state there will be no cuts to Social Security, Medicare & Medicaid.”

Trump has not yet publicly decided on an Oval Office bid. He vowed on Thursday that, should he run, he would thoroughly test other Republicans over their White House credentials.

“If I run, I will be in all the primary debates, and you will see why I am the only one who can make American great again,” Trump posted.

Huckabee formally launched his 2016 campaign on Tuesday in his hometown of Hope, Ark. The former governor is running on a platform of social conservatism and blue-collar economics.

“Like a lot of Americans, I grew up in a small town that was far removed from the money, the power and the influence that runs this country,” he said.

“We’ve lost our way morally. We’ve witnessed the slaughter of over 55 million babies in the name of choice, and we’re now threatening the foundation of religious liberty by criminalizing Christianity and demanding we abandon biblical principles in natural marriage,” the former Baptist minister added to a cheering crowd of supporters.

Huckabee’s followed two more entrants into the 2016 GOP field on Monday.

Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson each took first steps on the campaign trail the day before.

Republican Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas), Rand Paul (Ky.) and Marco Rubio (Fla.) have all also started campaign operations.