And just imagine, this was before the news of Jon Huntsman's entry into the fray! (Jon Huntsman? Do any U.S. voters outside Utah even recognize the name?)
Jon Huntsman to seek Republican nomination for White House race
Former US ambassador to China served under Obama and had praised the president in the leaked diplomatic cables
Ewen MacAskill in Washington
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 21 June 2011 20.30 BSTJon Huntsman announced his bid for the Republican presidential nomination and intention to take on former boss Barack Obama.
There are only a few positive remarks about Barack Obama dotted about in the embassy cables sent by former American ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman, and subsequently leaked to WikiLeaks.
But they will be enough to cause problems for the latest Republican president candidate in the months ahead.
Huntsman, from a podium in New Jersey, with the Statue of Liberty in the background, announced on Tuesday that he would join the race to take on his old boss for the White House next year.
Confirming his intention to seek the nomination, he criticised the president's record and, in contrast with his time as ambassador when he projected American strength, portrayed the US as vulnerable.
"For the first time in our history, we are passing down to the next generation a country that is less powerful, less compassionate, less competitive and less confident than the one we got. This, ladies and gentlemen, is totally unacceptable and totally un-American," he said.
Huntsman, 51, could be a formidable presidential candidate, given his experience in foreign affairs and as a former governor of Utah. But many Republicans cannot forgive the fact that he served in the Obama administration.
The president approached Huntsman in 2009 and asked him to be the ambassador to Beijing, and Huntsman accepted, serving until this April. In that time, he worked alongside the Obama on issues ranging from climate change to human rights, and stood side by side with him when the president visited China.
It is rare in US politics for someone who worked for one president to turn around and challenge him. Huntsman's work in the Obama administration is almost certain to be raised by Republican rivals. It could also undercut his attacks on the president. . . .
COMMENTERS, PLEASE KEEP YOUR
FINGER OFF THE "CAPS LOCK" KEY
As I indicated in my reply, I had a tough call on a comment that didn't seem to me really on topic -- but that seemed heartfelt and not definitively off topic. I gave the commenter the benefit of the doubt, but with this proviso:
"What will be a deal-breaker next time is the use of all caps. That's an unforgivable imposition on readers, and please don't you or anyone else do that again. I didn't know till now that I have a rule against it. Now I know, and you do too."
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