Jon Huntsman 2012? Obama Ambassador Hints At Run For President

Jon Huntsman, the former GOP Utah governor who President Obama convinced to serve as U.S. ambassador to China, has hinted to Newsweek that he is considering a run for president himself.

Newsweek's McKay Coppins reports:

Now, it appears, the ambassador is ready to make some noise of his own. Sitting in the echo-y living room of his new Washington home, Huntsman, a tall, lean man with silver hair and impeccable posture, pauses only briefly when faced with the question of presidential aspirations. "You know, I'm really focused on what we're doing in our current position," he says. "But we won't do this forever, and I think we may have one final run left in our bones." Asked whether he is prepared to rule out a run in 2012 (since it would require him to campaign against his current boss), he declines to comment.

The winking response--about as close to a hat-in-ring announcement as you'll get from a sitting member of the incumbent's administration--could just be a hollow cry for attention. But sources close to Huntsman (who requested anonymity to speak freely without his permission) say that during his December trip to the U.S., he met with several former political advisers in Washington and Salt Lake City to discuss a potential campaign.

In May 2009 -- prior to Huntsman's appointment as ambassador -- President Obama's presidential campaign chief David Plouffe claimed that the Utah Republican was the one potential 2012 GOP presidential candidate who made him feel a "wee bit queasy...I think he's really out there speaking a lot of truth about the direction of the party." Indeed, when Obama selected Huntsman for the ambassadorial role, it was viewed as an effort to handicap Huntsman's ability to throw his hat in the presidential ring.

Now, however, speculation has been sparked anew. In Saturday's 'Playbook,' Politico's Mike Allen writes, "Former Utah governor Jon Huntsman Jr., age 50, LEANS STRONGLY toward running in 2012 - Heads will explode at 1600 and in RomneyWorld - Obama-appointed ambassador to China shows his cards in Dec. 12 interview with young Mormon reporter for Newsweek."

Read the full Newsweek story here.

Comments

[kimbutgar]

01:25 PM on 01/20/2011

The Mormon thing might be hard for people to stomach. I understand the born again's aren't too keen on Mormons either. And a lot of people think Mormons are a cult. Mitt tried and I think Huntsman is as smooth but again the Mormon thing turns off people.

[binspired]

01:11 PM on 01/20/2011

typical repub weazel

[ProudLiberalDemocrat]

11:54 AM on 01/20/2011

Two things:

1.) I do not agree with even moderate GOP positions and could never find myself voting for a Republican. However, at least Mr. Huntsman is a smart person - and smart people should be President. He could be a very good candidate (although I'd never vote for him).

2.) I believe that Mr. Huntsman will wait until after Mitt Romney has lost, before throwing in his own hat in 2016. Two Mormons running at the same time....are Republican primary voters ready for even one.....

[TheFabOne]

11:11 AM on 01/20/2011

Huntsman will run, people will see he's stale, he'll lose, AND he'll be out of a job working for Pres. Obama.

A no-win situation, indeed.

[jedonspring]

08:39 AM on 01/20/2011

I saw Jon Huntsman on a Charlie Rose interview about a month ago. He did a good job on the interview but the thing I took away was how smooth he was, how polished. Maybe even to the point of sounding a little phony, a little condescending.

[Bob Kellerman]

07:45 PM on 01/22/2011

Look for the videos of the mormon spokesmen explaining away the evil political deeds and discrimination -- same thing, same face

[p456]

08:19 AM on 01/20/2011

Jon Who?

[LewScannon]

09:19 PM on 01/19/2011

I know I said this in 2006 (about Senator Obama), but who?

[AntiClast]

06:07 PM on 01/19/2011

Jon who?

[p456]

08:20 AM on 01/20/2011

we are twins.

[Para Digm]

04:48 PM on 01/19/2011

Yahoo mail is down again in Oregon, is it the same everywhere else?

[IndependentMeans]

05:42 PM on 01/19/2011

Mine is fine.

[IndependentMeans]

05:42 PM on 01/19/2011

CA

[lightbulb10]

04:06 PM on 01/19/2011

Jon Huntsman is HANDSOME.

[p456]

08:21 AM on 01/20/2011

So is Obama, Jon is going to need more than that.

[lightbulb10]

08:55 AM on 01/20/2011

Clearly. I just thought I'd be Captain Obvious on that one.

[PennsylvaniaHero]

04:05 PM on 01/19/2011

This guy has no chance at all

[Black Misfit]

10:45 AM on 01/20/2011

That's what pundits said about Obama and here we are. He's the
President of the United States. In short, don't count him out.

[elfish]

04:15 PM on 01/13/2011

drbillybob Wrote

> "Why I'm Not Hiring "

> "A life in business is filled with uncertaint­ies, but I can
> be quite sure that every time I hire someone my obligation­s
> to the government go up. From where I sit, the government­'s
> message is unmistakab­le: Creating a new job carries a
> punishing price."

This is total propaganda to justify what they are doing.

They have discovered that with computers, they can squeeze a lot more
productivity out of each worker, so their is no point in hiring any new workers.

Poor Babies in Business, taxes are so high. Wait a minute:

Federal, State and Local Tax are at the lowest level since 1958 at 26.6%.

That's 52 years.

The Lowest during the Bush administration was 28.4%

The Lowest during Clinton was 30%

The Lowest during Bush-I was 30.2%

The Lowest during Reagan was 29.2%

The Lowest during Carter was 29.8%

The Lowest during Nixon/Ford was 28.9%

The Lowest during Ken.nedy/Johanson was 26.8%.

The last time it was lower was 1958 during Eisenwhower at 25.7%

http://www.taxfoundation.org/files/sr177.pdf
http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/taxes/2010-05-10-taxes_N.htm

[elfish]

04:14 PM on 01/13/2011

drbillybob Wrote

> "Why I'm Not Hiring "

> "A life in business is filled with uncertaint­­­ies, but I can
> be quite sure that every time I hire someone my obligation­­­s
> to the government go up. From where I sit, the government­­­'s
> message is unmistakab­­­le: Creating a new job carries a
> punishing price."

This is total propaganda to justify what they are doing.

They have discovered that with computers, they can squeeze a lot more
productivi­­ty out of each worker, so their is no point in hiring any new workers.

If  taxes are so bad, why are they at the lowest level in decades?

[elfish]

04:13 PM on 01/13/2011

drbillybob Wrote

> "Why I'm Not Hiring "

> "A life in business is filled with uncertaint­­ies, but I can
> be quite sure that every time I hire someone my obligation­­s
> to the government go up. From where I sit, the government­­'s
> message is unmistakab­­le: Creating a new job carries a
> punishing price."

This is total propaganda to justify what they are doing.

They have discovered that with computers, they can squeeze a lot more
productivi­ty out of each worker, so their is no point in hiring any new workers.

If  taxes are so bad, why are they at the lowest level in decades?

Federal, State and Local Tax are at the lowest level since 1958 at 26.6%.

That's 52 years.

The Lowest during the Bush administra­tion was 28.4%

The Lowest during Clinton was 30%

The Lowest during Bush-I was 30.2%

The Lowest during Reagan was 29.2%

The Lowest during Carter was 29.8%

The Lowest during Nixon/Ford was 28.9%

The Lowest during Kennedy/Jo­hanson was 26.8%.

The last time it was lower was 1958 during Eisenwhowe­r at 25.7%

http://www­.taxfounda­tion.org/f­iles/sr177­.pdf
http://www­.usatoday.­com/money/­perfi/taxe­s/2010-05-­10-taxes_N­.htm

[buddycor]

01:42 PM on 01/08/2011

Wow! I like this guy. He is someone to watch.