Posted on 03/02/2009 7:47:36 AM PST by greyfoxx39
There was at least one 2012 presidential contender missing from the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington this weekend, traditionally a testing ground for any Republican even remotely considering a White House bid.
That could be in part because Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. risked getting booed off the stage for some of his views.
-SNIP
After running for governor in 2004 as a supporter of a ballot measure that year that not only banned gay marriage but also civil unions, Huntsman made national news earlier this month by saying that he had changed his mind on civil unions.
Largely under the radar of the national media and even out of sight of many in his own party, Huntsman, 48, is emerging as an articulate, unapologetic and unlikely spokesman for a new brand of Republicanism, one that seems out of vogue at a time when many in the GOP attribute their fall from power to a deviation from right-wing orthodoxy.
Huntsman thinks the party's challenge is more profound, owing less to its excessive spending practices during the Bush era than to sweeping demographic and political changes that threaten to consign Republicans to a long-term minority status and confine their appeal to narrow sections of the country.
The party needs to be more intellectually rigorous, and to compete for the votes of the young, the elites and minorities, he said in an interview with POLITICO. To do so, the GOP needs to tack toward the middle on environment, gay rights and immigration. And, yes, Ronald Reagan is to be admired – but as much for his oft-overlooked pragmatism as for his conservative principles.
It’s a view that places him out of step with the prevailing conservative sentiment among most members of the GOP base, but it’s also one that makes Huntsman, a wealthy Mormon scion, the first 2012 Republican primary prospect to unabashedly embrace a middle ground somewhere between moderate Northeastern Republicanism and Sun Belt conservatism.
-SNIP
To become viable again to the 40-and-under bloc that went overwhelmingly for President Obama and will comprise the future voting majority in the country, Huntsman argued the GOP must shift on two issues as generational as they are political: gay rights and the environment.
-SNIP
Compounding his challenge, though, is Huntsman’s religion – he hails from a rich and powerful Latter Day Saints family with deep roots in Utah.
As Mitt Romney showed in 2008, a Mormon background can be a hindrance in running in evangelical-dominated early primary states such as Iowa and South Carolina.
Wonder which one will get the nod from mormon leaders in Salt Lake, Huntsman, or Romney again.
Will Romney start aiming his daggers at Huntsman instead of Palin now?
Stay tuned.
Another one, saying what is politically expedient, and justifying deception and manipulation as a means to an end. It runs in the crowd.
America had better take note and wise up right now!
Worthless RINO. Full of more Democrat talking points than Howard Dean. Go away already, Huntsman.
Is Huntsman in the race to make Romney look more conservative?
Does Glenn Beck, who is LDS (Mormon) and admires his father greatly, have an opinion?
Beck is one of the few on TV who are clearly sympathetic to Palin. He had Palin on his show already before she was chosen to be McCain’s running mate. Glenn often stresses the point that he feels a special admiration for Palin, because both have a special needs child.
I used to say nice things about Huntsman being the best available Mormon. I’ll retract that now.
Looks like the Mormons are following the mainline Protestants into liberalism.
If people want to support global warming, special rights for homos and amnesty, let them join the Democratic Party.
Changing one’s core beliefs to conform to those of the voters...
“We already know what you are; we’re just working on the price.” (Punchline from an old joke)
Do you call out all Catholic pols, or Jewish pols, or any other denominations besides Mormon ones? Just wondering. FYI, any church is made up of people and people are stupid and make bad decisions sometimes. Pelosi is Catholic and every religion has kooks. Hunstman is a freaking kook and Romney is a Rhino, but it has nothing to do with them being LDS.
Do these political hacks honestly forget that people tend to grow more conservative as they age, or do they just feign ignorance when it suits them? Today's group of young liberal Obama supporters won't remain that way forever.
This guy is an idiot and probably a closet queen.
And apparently Huntsman’s price keeps dropping in an effort to hook some ‘takers’.
The RINO contingent would now have their party move to fill what they see as a vacuum created by the Democrats - on the Center-Left. Which would leave us with a political spectrum much like Europe's: ranging from Socialist to Liberal.
Sound like a plan? Yes. A rotten one.
I do take note of faith. I just posted one talking about Catholic politicians and their church as in Bob Casey Jr. and Rick Santorum.
When a Catholic bishop stands up to church members I take note and it makes me think about the pros and cons of Catholicism.
I make similar observations about the LDS Church. I think the history of persecution creates a desire by LDS politicians like Orrin Hatch and Mitt Romney to be conciliatory and moderate. This Huntsman move fits in to that pattern.
I may be wrong in my view, but that’s how I see it.
I’m confused to see all these Catholic politicians from the Kennedy’s to Schwarzenegger to Pelosi contradicting church teaching. Pelosi may be one of the few to get a rebuke.
I’m angry when I see a tax and spend politician going to an evangelical church because there I see someone using a church to get votes.
He looks like a fag to me.
His "special friend" Bruce changed his mind.
Jon Huntsman Sr., the Salt Lake-based billionaire chairman and founder of one of the country's largest chemical makers, said he tells potential contributors that he is asking them for money because of his admiration for Romney. "..... For me, it's about the best person who can lead our country at this pivotal point in time," Huntsman said during a break from touring Huntsman Corp. plants in the Southeast.
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