Former U.S. ambassador to Canada David Wilkins. (DAVID BLOOM/QMI AGENCY)

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Ambassador David Wilkins says he's "flattered" he is being talked about as a possible replacement for Jim DeMint in the U.S. senate.

But Wilkins, the former U.S. ambassador to Canada under president George W. Bush, told QMI Agency Friday he hasn't spoken to South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley about the possible appointment.

DeMint, a staunch fiscal conservative senator, announced Thursday he was leaving Congress at the end of the month to head up the conservative Heritage Foundation think-tank.