Mike Huckabee has a solution for anyone who is tired of hearing about the crowded field for the Republican presidential nomination.

"Encourage all these guys to drop out and endorse me," joked the former Arkansas governor on Friday, speaking to California Republicans at their semi-annual convention.

Huckabee trails far behind in the polls and complained that he didn't get enough attention in Wednesday night's debate.

"I wasn't sure if I was in a CNN debate or standing in line at the DMV," he said.

Huckabee criticized the media for trying to spark strife among the candidates, although he also had veiled criticism for front-runner Donald Trump, the New York real estate mogul.

Without mentioning Trump by name, Huckabee said some voters are so angry, "they don't really care if they elect somebody who has any understanding of what it means to govern. They would just basically say, we don't care if you've ever done this before. If you can do this, just burn it down."

Huckabee said he would take a different approach.

"I don't want to go with a can of gasoline and a book of matches to burn the place down," he said. "I want to get a hammer and a saw and a group of people that want to build this country back to the greatest days it's ever had."

During his speech, Huckabee returned to many of the themes he's emphasized during his campaign -- opposition to President Obama's landmark deal limiting Iran's nuclear program, promoting a "moral code" for the U.S. and abolishing the tax code in favor of a flat sales tax.

He also had a few words of encouragement for California Republicans, who don't hold a single statewide office and are badly outnumbered by Democrats in the Legislature.

Huckabee said the party is in better shape in California than it was in Arkansas when he became governor in 1996.

"Our numbers were more lopsided than yours," he said.