Jon Huntsman: Doomed from the start

Let me begin by saying that Jon Huntsman is everything I dream of in a candidate and would be my ideal choice for the White House, after Gov. Gary Johnson. Fiscally conservative, yet somewhat moderate on social issues, Huntsman is one of the few politicians of the GOP who doesn't believe that homosexuals are evil  for wanting  to marry. For standing up for what so many in his party have condemned, I have incredible respect for him. Huntsman would have been a great president, and would have truly made an effort to rebuild the country with help from both political parties. Unfortunately, he was ultimately hampered not by his center-right stances, but by an inexplicably crappy campaign.

To begin, Huntsman did not emphasize his fiscal conservatism enough. As Governor of Utah, he had an astounding fiscal record, and during his time in office, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that Utah led all fifty states in the rate of job growth. He also removed the progressive tax system that Utah had utilized, and replaced it with a flat tax of five percent. While such consumer-friendly regulations might ruffle Warren Butthead's feathers, having an approval rating that was consistently over 80 percent while governor of an extremely conservative state will speak for itself. Maybe it was the lack of time he got at debates.  Either way, he was more concerned about pulling a "John McCain" and appealing to moderates over his own party.

Additionly, Huntsman carried the unwanted label of being a member of the Obama Administration – yes, a proponent of "Hope and Change". Being ambassador to China would seemingly give any presidential candidate an advantage in terms of foreign policy, unless you were nominated to the position by the guy who is detested by 99.9 percent of your party. This should have helped Huntsman, but he played his cards stupidly. While serving as Ambassador, he referred to Obama as "a great leader". When you are running for the Republican nomination for the President of the United States, a statement like that is similar to praising Casey Anthony as a compassionate babysitter. However, he was ultimately doomed by the fact that Obama had chosen him, a moderate Republican, over other candidates. Conspiracy theories and an unwillingness to acknowledge Obama's abysmal record would ultimately derail Huntsman's campaign.

The biggest obstacle that faced Huntsman however, was the other Huntsman in the race. The other Huntsman was beaten and chewed up by the media four years ago in the GOP primaries before ultimately conceding from the race. The number one issue facing the country is the repeal of Obamacare, and Mitt Romney is the only chance Republicans have of defeating Obamacare and lobbying a full repeal of it to Congress. Huntsman lacked this knowledge of electability and voter appeal, and has not served his time in the trenches like other candidates.

Although his excessive horniness is not helping him, Newt Gingrich was a former Speaker of the House and actually balanced the budget while a liberal president was in the White House. While he was not always able to keep it in his pants, he was able to keep the federal deficit at very low numbers. From a fiscal perspective, he is extremely qualified to serve as President of the United States. It is purely because of status and time served in the political world that Newt and Romney carry such high poll numbers, numbers that Huntsman's status as a no-name could not compete with.

A Republican governor from Utah who left his position in its height to go serve in a liberal Democrat's administration obviously has a lot of explaining to do when trying to secure a GOP presidential nomination. It will take time, and perhaps a position serving under the next GOP President, for Huntsman to win over the conservative Republican base. But I have high hopes for Jon Huntsman. I believe he will remain popular in the political world as a former governor with a record of successful tax reform and as one of the nation's top experts on U.S. foreign policy with China.

twarogj@canisius.edu