Huntsman says Pres. Obama is a "remarkable leader" yet wants his job (Yuri Gripas/Reuters)
So Jon Huntsman, the former Utah Governor who served as President Obama's ambassador to China and who
in early 2009 said Republican opponents of the stimulus plan were guilty of "gratuitous political griping" is announcing his Presidential campaign today at 10:00AM Eastern. The live video feed is embedded below, to the right.
Hunstman's announcement, live
Huntsman is going to run as a pragmatist, positioning himself as a bipartisan politician, making a calculated gamble that there are still some Republicans who don't see Democrats as a mortal enemy and hoping that independents will respect the fact that he was willing to work for a Democrat.
Of course, the flip side to his message of bipartisanship is that within a few months of praising President Obama as a "remarkable leader," he's announcing a presidential campaign to replace him, so there's more than a little bit of schizophrenia to Huntsman's message. But hey, welcome to the modern GOP.
More examples of Hunstman's contradictions: he has embraced civil unions, but in 2004 he fought for a constitutional ban on gay marriage, supporting a constitutional amendment to do just that. He also has said Republicans need to be more moderate on immigration, but he in 2008 he supported and signed one of the harshest anti-immigration laws in the country.
Huntsman logo: Presidential
candidate or hotel chain?
Despite these contradictions, Hunstman is perceived as a moderate in D.C. political circles. Whether that perception becomes a liability for him is one of the biggest early questions his campaign will face. If he gains any traction, there's no doubt his opponents will challenge him on things like his enthusiastic support for
accepting stimulus funds as governor of Utah as well as his
willingness to support an individual mandate. Matt Bai recently asserted that Huntsman
refuses to call himself a conservative, though I suspect that was overblown, because in the same article Bai also said Hunstman refused to attack President Obama, but Hunstman has already
accused Obama of being a "failed" president on economic issues.
Public policy issues will probably dominate the initial coverage of Hunstman's campaign, but he will also face scrutiny over his family's petrochemical business, one of the world's largest companies that until recently did business with Iran.
On the surface, Huntsman's bid seems aimed squarely at Mitt Romney, especially since both are from prominent Mormon families with ties to Utah. Romney may actually benefit from Huntsman's presence, however, because it means there will be a candidate aiming to position himself to Romney's left. As long as Huntsman doesn't surge in popularity, Romney may treat him as a useful foil.