# John Hunstman leaving the GOP? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 24, 2012, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830 "2012-04-24T18:47:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/1 "2012-04-24T18:47:48Z")
Proof once again that John Huntsman was the smartest of the GOP candidates for President, [this article](http://news.yahoo.com/why-jon-huntsman-is-leaving-the-gop--not-because-they%E2%80%99re-communists-.html) says that he is considering leaving the Republican party. Look especially at the last quote in the article. At his first debate this season, he thought, “In a nation of 315 million people … is this the best we can do?” I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought that. ---
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/2 "2012-04-24T19:18:56Z")
What?? For an article entitled _Why Jon Huntsman is Leaving the GOP_, I’m amazed at how little the article actually supports that claim. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/3 "2012-04-24T19:21:15Z")
Nice guy and all, but is he trying to marginalize himself even more? But the article is speculative, at best. I’m not seeing anything definitive about him leaving. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/4 "2012-04-24T19:23:00Z")
I agree the articles doesn’t support the actual idea in the headline, but even if it were true, does it matter if Jon Huntsman leaves the GOP? The party doesn’t want him - at least not as a presidential candidate. Any change he made would be in his own self-interest. ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/5 "2012-04-24T20:52:40Z")
Does this exchange not support the claim in the article’s title? > [@](#): > > “Why do I get the feeling,” I asked him, “that if we have this conversation a couple of years from now, you will not be sitting here as a Republican?” > > “Because,” he [John Huntsman] said with a smile, “you’re a good journalist.” ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/6 "2012-04-24T21:01:07Z")
> [@Drum\_God](#): > > Does this exchange not support the claim in the article’s title? No. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/7 "2012-04-24T21:05:15Z")
> [@Drum\_God](#): > > Does this exchange not support the claim in the article’s title? Not if you quote it in full: > [@](#): > > And here’s what he said when a member of the audience posed this question to him: “Given the present direction and positions the party has taken … is there room for people like you?” > > Well, he answered, “I’m sitting here as a Republican.” But after he talked with great enthusiasm about the rise of the unaffiliated voter and the challenge to the political duopoly, I posed one more question. > > “Why do I get the feeling,” I asked him, “that if we have this conversation a couple of years from now, you will not be sitting here as a Republican?” > > “Because,” he said with a smile, “you’re a good journalist.” He’s suggesting he might not be a Republican in a few years if the trends he is complaining about continue. Seeing as how the Republicans just showed zero interest in him becoming president, why wouldn’t he consider leaving in a few years if he sees a bigger opportunity someplace else? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/8 "2012-04-24T21:11:42Z")
Attempted edit: Seeing as how the Republicans just showed zero interest in him becoming president, it costs him nothing to say it - he can consider leaving in a few years if he sees a bigger opportunity someplace else, and if he doesn’t leave, nobody will remember he broached the topic a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/9 "2012-04-24T21:52:14Z")
Don’t blame me; I voted for him. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2012, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/10 "2012-04-24T23:13:36Z")
Leaving the GOP for where/what/whom? The article does not say whether Hunstman wants to be a Libertarian, or a Democrat, or drop out of politics altogether. He does keep talking about the prospects of a “third party” but there are no specifics. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2012, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/11 "2012-04-25T01:10:50Z")
I hope he doesn’t become a democrat, his economic policies were very plutocratic. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2012, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/12 "2012-05-18T20:51:55Z")
Huntsman is a truly weird guy. His RECORD was a very conservative one, and he SHOULD have tried to run on that record. Instead, like John McCain before him, Huntsman spent his entire campaign trying to show liberal journalists how much cooler he was than all his conservative rivals. It was self-evident that his approach was stupid and doomed to failure. Right now, he SHOULD be kicking himself and saying, “I’m such an idiot!” Instead, he’s doubling down, and blaming the party. ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2012, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/13 "2012-05-19T14:15:22Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > Don’t blame me; I voted for him. I would have voted for him if he’d have gotten as far as Indiana. As it was, I went with Romney. Alas, it would not do Romney any good to sign him on as VP, but I hope this is not the last we see of him- AS a Republican or not. Let’s see how welcoming the Democratic Party would be if he came on as still a Pro-Lifer & Tax Reformer. ---
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/14 "2012-05-19T14:55:53Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > I would have voted for him if he’d have gotten as far as Indiana. As it was, I went with Romney. Alas, it would not do Romney any good to sign him on as VP, but I hope this is not the last we see of him- AS a Republican or not. > > Let’s see how welcoming the Democratic Party would be if he came on as still a Pro-Lifer & Tax Reformer. Nothing the Democrats hate like reforming taxes or life. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2012, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/15 "2012-05-20T00:15:11Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > I would have voted for him if he’d have gotten as far as Indiana. As it was, I went with Romney. Alas, it would not do Romney any good to sign him on as VP, but I hope this is not the last we see of him- AS a Republican or not. > > Let’s see how welcoming the Democratic Party would be if he came on as still a Pro-Lifer & Tax Reformer. Tax reform isn’t a problem: Bill Bradley was one of the early architects of the 1986 effort. The problem for the Democrats would be that Huntsman is very conservative across the board. Pro-life is ok, tax cuts for the rich can be ok, but consistent hard-but-not-far right stuff causes problems. I don’t think the man has anywhere to go. > [@astorian](#): > > Instead, like John McCain before him, Huntsman spent his entire campaign trying to show liberal journalists how much cooler he was than all his conservative rivals. Cite? He got maybe 2 weeks of coverage. After that he tweeted items that were not so much liberal as _sane_. And that’s what did him in: he was far too neurotypical for the Republican electorate. It has nothing to do with the media and everything to do with the base. Here are his tweets: To be clear. I believe in evolution and trust scientists on global warming. Call me crazy. [http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2011/08/19/gop-candidate-jon-huntsman-makes-waves-with-tweet-on-evolution-and-climate-change/](http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2011/08/19/gop-candidate-jon-huntsman-makes-waves-with-tweet-on-evolution-and-climate-change/) And over in South Carolina, he wouldn’t pander to the loons: One of the state’s Tea Party leaders, Chris Lawton, asks what he knows about China’s setting up “secret free-trade zones” in the American West. Huntsman politely says he hasn’t heard anything about that and moves along. There’s nothing moderate about Huntsman. It’s just that he is neither a lunatic, nor does he try to act like one. And that is electoral poison in a Republican primary. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2012, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/16 "2012-05-21T01:04:23Z")
> [@Measure\_for\_Measure](#): > > Here are his tweets: To be clear. I believe in evolution and trust scientists on global warming. Call me crazy. [http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2011/08/19/gop-candidate-jon-huntsman-makes-waves-with-tweet-on-evolution-and-climate-change/](http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2011/08/19/gop-candidate-jon-huntsman-makes-waves-with-tweet-on-evolution-and-climate-change/) And over in South Carolina, he wouldn’t pander to the loons: One of the state’s Tea Party leaders, Chris Lawton, asks what he knows about China’s setting up “secret free-trade zones” in the American West. Huntsman politely says he hasn’t heard anything about that and moves along. There’s nothing moderate about Huntsman. It’s just that he is neither a lunatic, nor does he try to act like one. And that is electoral poison in a Republican primary. Nonsense, despite Romney being overall more liberal in his record, he ended up winning the primary without advocating young earth creationism, flat taxes, birtherism, or appeals to conspiracy theories. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2012, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/17 "2012-05-21T02:19:52Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Nonsense, despite Romney being overall more liberal in his record, he ended up winning the primary without advocating young earth creationism, flat taxes, birtherism, or appeals to conspiracy theories. But it was a near thing. If Gingrich hadn’t been in the race, Santorum might’ve taken it. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2012, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/18 "2012-05-21T04:40:54Z")
Romney’s pandering during the primaries was legion, starting with his calling himself a severe conservative. I understand there are ointments for that. The most blatant example was his contortions with regards to health care reform. This was repeated so much that it just became background noise, but honestly his position was silly. America has some long run budgetary problems connected with spiralling health care costs: the former is insolvable without health care reform. Period. And yet Romney runs away from his own plan, designed by [Jonathan Gruber](http://www.amazon.com/Health-Care-Reform-Necessary-Works/dp/0809053977/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337574159&sr=8-1), also one of the key architects of Obamacare. We didn’t get Obamacare: that had a public option. Instead we got Romneycare. Which Romney promises to dismantle. And he will: otherwise the unanimity of his base will destroy his Presidency. Romney makes his major speech on foreign policy. Doesn’t mention Al Qaeda. His approach seems to be based upon not going on an “[Apology tour](http://delong.typepad.com/sdj/2011/12/the-intellectual-collapse-of-the-republican-party-continues.html)” that never happened. The guy just hallucinates stuff out of whole cloth. It’s loony. America has serious problems and the Republican Party has shown absolutely no hint of trying to grapple with them. [Ezra Klein](http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/wonkbook-gingrich-and-romney-have-the-same-problem/2011/12/14/gIQA9uyctO_blog.html): At the end of the day, the GOP will nominate somebody for president. And that individual is likely to have supported some policies that are now associated with President Obama. There will be some groveling, but eventually, Republicans will forgive such youthful indiscretions. The bigger problem will be if that individual wins. At that point, they’ll need actual solutions for the problems facing the nation. But the Republican Party has ruled out an individual mandate to help with health-care reform, a cap-and-trade program to mitigate global warming and speed the development of renewable energy options, tax increases to help reduce the deficit, and stimulus to help boost the economy. That leaves a potential GOP president with a lot of problems to solve, but few workable policies with which to solve them. Young earth creationism, birtherism and appeals to conspiracy theories are ways of reassuring morons: they have little policy impact. The problem is that the Republicans have undergone an entire primary season with not even a nod towards sanity. The fact-based wing of the GOP has essentially disappeared. Back during the election of George Bush Jr., the hope was that with Paul O’Neill in Treasury and Alan Greenspan at the Fed, a deal could be struck whereby some of the tax cuts could be “Postponed” if the budget deficit hit a certain benchmark. That could have turned an unsustainable and irresponsible policy into a conservative but manageable one. Now that didn’t happen: GWBush declared that he wasn’t going to negotiate with himself. But there was reason to hope that it could in 2000. But now? Nothing. ---
**Author:** ![SeldomSeen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@SeldomSeen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeldomSeen)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2012, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/19 "2012-05-21T16:09:19Z")
So…a speculative scenario here (and I do mean _speculative_); Huntsman certainly merits high marks for sanity - that rarest of commodities among Republicans. Politically, he is pretty much in line with a number of our Western “blue dog” democrats. So in our speculative world, let’s say he crosses the aisle and joins the Democratic party. Now let’s suppose that for reasons of age, health or an attack of foot-in-mouth disease Joe Biden withdraws from the 2012 ticket and Huntsman (who already has some amount of cred with the Obama administration _a la_ his ambassadorship) is chosen to replace him. I can hardly imagine a more devastating (for the R’s) political coup. It would draw a large portion of the Mormon vote away from Romney (Mormons are generally conservative, but far less monolithic in their Republicanism than most people think). No doubt it would draw most of the independent fence-straddlers to the Democratic side. And it would set Huntsman up perfectly for a 2016 run at the presidency…as a Democrat. Ok, so I’m dreaming. Heck, anything can happen in the **SeldomSeen** alternative universe. But it makes for some interesting conjecture, no? ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2012, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830/20 "2012-05-21T21:47:29Z")
Ok, so Huntsman is sane. So is Dick Cheney. AFIAK, Tommy Thompson is sane as well. Paul Wolfowitz was sane as well as naive. Sanity isn’t exactly a high bar. None of those individuals would make an appropriate Democratic VP. Appointing Huntsman to the role would accomplish nothing: it certainly wouldn’t make it easier to work with Republicans in Congress. Republicans suffer from the soft bigotry of low expectations. George W Bush was acclaimed because in 2000 he was no longer an obnoxious drunk. Huntsman is the Great Hope of the Moderate Republican Base because he acknowledges the importance of science in economic growth and human progress. The tribalism and yearnings to make nice that underpin these views are ridiculous. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/john-hunstman-leaving-the-gop/619830.md?page=2)