Huntsman Jr. getting a bit 'o blog buzz

[Lunar]

I was a strong advocate and wrote up a mini-essay on why Huntsman Jr. was the ideal VP choice for John McCain, but I suppose choosing another Mormon was a bit too insulting for Romney.  The guy seems authentic, can speak about the issues, and has a compelling, modern biography.

Here's JMart's post on the subject, with my bolded emphasis:

He was an early supporter of John McCain and won some initial veep buzz before falling off the radar to run his own breeze of a re-election campaign.

But to chat with him here at the RGA and then see him address a room full of reporters, it seems that Utah Gov. Jon M. Huntsman Jr may very well be in the presidential mix in 2012.

Huntsman, 48, cuts an impressive figure and has a fascinating personal and political story to tell, including the sort of foreign policy background most governors lack.   The scion of a prominent Mormon family, he served as U.S. Ambassador to Singapore for Bush 41 when he was in his early 30s, did trade stints in the Commerce Department and was a Deputy U.S. Trade Representative under the current Bush, overseeing trade with Africa and Asia.

Fluent in Mandarin Chinese -- a few words of which he put on display to an unexpectant press corps -- Huntsman is the father of seven, including two adopted girls from China and India.

As any Utah governor would be, Huntsman is in line with the GOP base on social issues.  But he takes a more centrist tack on the environment, and had some blunt words for his party on an issue he believes is hurting them with younger voters.

"We as Republicans can’t shy away from speaking the word environment and we shouldn’t shy away from speaking the words climate change," Huntsman told reporters at a press conference this afternoon.  "When you’ve got a body of science that already is rendering certain judgements about what is happening in our world, for us to shy away, say it doesn’t matter as an issue, I think is foolhardy, it’s short-sighted and it’s bound to do us damage in the longer-term."

Huntsman also talked fluently about education, energy and health care, making the case, as many of his fellow governors have, that the GOP needs to come up with practical solutions on such day-to-day concerns.

He said the party must look at the results of last week's election, and make changes to stay relevant.

"We’re fundamentally staring down a demographic shift that we’ve never seen before in America," Huntsman said.

Asked about a potential White House ambitions in a brief interview, Huntsman offered the usual non-denials but conceded he wanted to be part of the GOP's coming conversation about how to rebuild.

"I think most of us are interested in being part of the policy debate that's going to re-energize the party," he said.   

Now in his second term, Huntsman said he would not seek re-election in 2012.

[Lunar]

Huntsman Jr. would have access to a lot of money from from the Mormon social network.   He'd be like a more authentic Romney, more familiar with the Utah machine, but without the immense personal wealth.  I'd say that Huntsman would have a very large initial fundraising base before he even gave a single speech.

And he's not running for reelection in '12, so he's clearly eying a run or a potential cabinet spot or retirement.

Also, remember that there are a few electorates in the early primary states, Wyoming, Nevada, and New Hampshire, which are not likely to be particularly anti-Mormon.  He'd have a decent shot at Iowa and Florida if his opponents natural electorates were divided between multiple contenders as well.  South Carolina would be hard.

I'm a Huntsman booster.

[Lunar]

Why do you call him "Huntsman Jr." rather than just "Huntsman"?  I know his father is a prominent businessman, but only the son is in politics, and it's pretty obvious when you say "Huntsman" with regard to potential 2012 presidential candidates that you're referring to the current governor of Utah, not his father.

I mean, no one calls Barack Obama "Obama Jr.", so why do the same here?

That's his formal name.  I don't know, I call people by how they like to be called unless I'm being snarky.

[Lunar]

Why do you call him "Huntsman Jr." rather than just "Huntsman"?  I know his father is a prominent businessman, but only the son is in politics, and it's pretty obvious when you say "Huntsman" with regard to potential 2012 presidential candidates that you're referring to the current governor of Utah, not his father.

I mean, no one calls Barack Obama "Obama Jr.", so why do the same here?

Huntsman Sr. is still alive.

So?  No one called our former vice president "Gore Jr.", though his father was alive until 1998.

Well, the media constantly uses the "Jr." and even the wikipedia entry has it.  So, at some level, we have to assume that he prefers the Junior.  


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Huntsman,_Jr.

Even Jon Huntsman Jr.'s website uses the Jr. in its homepage title, if you just google for "Jon Huntsman" so I have no idea what you're getting at here.  Google it, c'mon.

http://www.utah.gov/governor/index.html

[Lunar]

I don't know much about him, but I like his biography (speaks Chinese fluently + two adopted daughters + seems relatively principled).

He wouldn't win and he might not be the right direction for the GOP right now, but perhaps he could and is.  It all depends if he can come up with some resonating non-cultural ideas to challenge an Obama weakness.  A Hispanic Bobby Jindal would be ideal.

Romney left a bad taste in the media's and political junkies' collective mouths though, perhaps that might stain the next Mormon Governor's attempt at the presidency?

[Lunar]

Yay, we win Utah! Seriously, can we nominate someone that can be advantageous electorally like Crist, Pawlenty??

Isn't it best to find the best candidate?  I mean, it's sort of ironic that John Edwards would have had no chance in hell at North Carolina but Barack Obama, from Illinois, did.

[Lunar]

Heck man, I'm a big Huntsman fan, relatively speaking.  I started threads dedicated to him being the dark horse ideal VP candidate for McCain. 

I think I read too much into your comment.  I thought you were talking about having someone with an advantageous home-state but I see now that you simply meant electoral appeal and that makes a whole bunch of sense.  I think it';s reasonable to assume that any Republican presidential victory in 2012, should one occur, will occur by a narrow margin, thus making every electoral vote count.  Being of the right message is most important, but being able to convince those swing states to vote for you is even more important.

Doubling down on the Midwest with Pawlenty would be a solid move.

[Lunar]

I like him because I "discovered" him as a rising star and thought he was the best available VP for McCain.

I like that he speaks Chinese fluently, has two adopted Asian daughters, and is pro-environment.  He's like a fresher, more modern version of McCain that is a better fit for the Republican Party as it transitions itself to encompass 50%+1 of the electorate. 

I mean, I'm still going to hope he goes down in flames if he runs against Obama in 2012