Jon Huntsman: The new JFK, Reagan, or McCain?
The list of comparisons goes on, as politicos struggle to classify the moderate Republican presidential hopeful who worked for Obama
Jon Huntsman's bid for the Republican presidential nomination is a hot topic among reporters and commentators, in part because it's so unusual. Huntsman is a moderate, civil-sounding Republican in uncivil, polarized times. Moreover, he would be running for president against his former boss, Barack Obama, who made the former Utah governor his ambassador to China. And yet, despite the uniqueness of Huntsman's run, the chattering class cannot resist equating Huntsman with a number of other politicians. Here's a rundown of supposed Huntsman precedents:
1. John McCain
Huntsman wants you to think he's a motorcycle-riding road demon, says Michelle Malkin at National Review. But "underneath the Steve McQueen costumery, this made-for-cable-TV Moderate Speed Racer is a creaky old John McCain on Wheels." Like McCain 1.0, "McHuntsman" is a pro-cap-and-trade, amnesty-loving, entitlement-expanding, "big-spending accommodationist" whose main constituency is "swooning reporters" and "the Democratic elite." So far, his "media paramours" outnumber actual Republicans at his events.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
2. Gen. Wesley Clark
The most "obvious parallel" is Clark, the former NATO allied commander who "pole-vaulted into the 2004 Democratic race based on elite dissatisfaction with the other contenders," says Walter Shapiro at The New Republic. Both of them look good on paper — Clark a decorated general, Huntsman "the only Republican in the race with serious foreign-policy experience" — but the comparison shouldn't cheer Obama's former China ambassador: Clark, after all, "never found a way to offer voters more than his star-spangled resume."
3. Ronald Reagan
The comparison Huntsman is clearly hoping to elicit is with the Gipper, says Paul Bentley at the Daily Mail. He was a staffer in the Reagan White House, has a picture of himself and the former president on his Facebook page, and "made his announcement at Liberty State Park in New Jersey, the same historic location used by Reagan to launch his 1980 bid."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
4. John F. Kennedy
Huntsman is "at pains to follow in Ronald Reagan's footsteps," but he seems more like one of the American Left's icons, says Darrell Delamaide at MarketWatch. Let's see: "Glamourous wife," the "easy self-confidence — insouciance, even — that comes with inherited wealth and privilege," and a great head of hair... The only thing keeping Hunstman from being the "Republican version of John F. Kennedy" is "the humor and the vigor" that made JFK — and Reagan, for that matter — such popular candidates.
5. Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.
There's really only one politician who truly matches Huntsman's trajectory, says Steve Kornacki at Salon. Lodge, another moderate Republican, was JFK's ambassador to South Vietnam, but then launched "a write-in campaign that produced a surprise victory in the '64 New Hampshire primary" for the Republican nomination. Of course, Lodge's "sort-of campaign fizzled" pretty quickly. In 2012, the "taint of Obama-ism" will probably end Huntsman's campaign just as fast — or faster.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Chicken with Steph's spice
The Week Recommends This Caribbean-inspired recipe is mouthwateringly delicious
By The Week UK Published
-
A peaceful seaside village in Turkey
The Week Recommends Çıralı has been spared the 'scourge' of all-inclusive resort development
By The Week UK Published
-
Tax plans spell trouble in the North Sea
Talking Point Labour’s tax plans are whipping up a storm. Are the worries of opponents justified?
By The Week UK Published
-
A brief history of third parties in the US
In Depth Though none of America's third parties have won a presidential election, they have nonetheless had a large impact on the country's politics
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Supreme Court rejects challenge to CFPB
Speed Read The court rejected a conservative-backed challenge to the way the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is funded
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Arizona court reinstates 1864 abortion ban
Speed Read The law makes all abortions illegal in the state except to save the mother's life
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published