A Case for the Unknown: A Case for Jon Huntsman

{by Joseph Samelson}

Every single time I’ve told someone that I support Jon Huntsman for the 2012 Presidential election, I get one of two reactions: shocked surprise or laughter. The former is a reaction doubting my answer, while the latter is an outright joking response that leads people to stop taking my political opinion seriously. For some strange reason that is beyond me, people cannot wrap their heads around the idea of a relatively unknown candidate going up for the Presidential election.

But still, Huntsman will get my vote whether or not he wins the Republican nomination, and that is because he is the most qualified, credentialed, and experienced candidate in the field, with a proven track record that any republican would cut off an arm to have. But don’t just believe my opinion, this post will examine his actual record and show why everything I’m saying is not opinion, but fact.

First, let’s look at Huntsman’s experience in the United States on a domestic level. Under George H. W. Bush, Huntsman served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce, where he first gained experience with the federal government. As a governor of Utah, Huntsman lead his state to be the number one state in America for job creation. That statistic surpasses even Rick Perry’s job creation record, which is what he’s staking most of his campaign on. Later on in his term, the Pew Research Center named Utah the best-managed state in the country.

His domestic experience isn’t limited to just accolades and accomplishments, it expands to actual programs and policies he implemented while in office. Huntsman established conservative principles when he cut more than one billion dollars during his term. He later went on to institute the largest tax cut in Utah state history, which effectively instituted a flat tax on his citizens, a policy which is heralded to increase fairness, decrease political corruption, increase individual freedoms, and increase savings.

Later on in his term, he brought about market-based health care reform. No mandates like Obamacare or Romneycare, but putting the focus on giving consumers the CHOICE for healthcare. He also signed ground-breaking pro-life legislation, including bills that required parental consent for a minor. Huntsman set the foundation for a challenge to Roe v. Wade by creating a state fund to defend Utah’s state ban on abortion (effective 2013) to the Supreme Court of the United States.

Mr. Jon Huntsman not only has a great domestic political track record, his private sector track record is significant as well. He served as the CEO of Huntsman Family Holdings, turned the Huntsman corporation around to a positive economic profit during the recession, and became the Vice President of the Huntsman Pacific Chemical Corporation, in addition to being the director of Huntsman International.

His incredible track record doesn’t stop there. He also has the most significant foreign policy experience of any candidate up for office, including more than incumbent President Obama had before he became president. Huntsman first served as the United States Trade Ambassador under George W. Bush. It was under this office, where he negotiated dozens of free trade agreements with other countries for the United States. In addition to being the trade ambassador, Huntsman was also one of two United States Trade Representatives during the George W. Bush Administration.

Under President Obama, Huntsman is currently serving as the U.S. Ambassador to Singapore, which has made him the youngest United States ambassador in one hundred years. He also serves as the U.S. Ambassador to China. It is under this appointment where he has served as the head of America’s most important diplomatic mission. Ambassador Huntsman helped expand Chinese access to the internet, which has furthered democracy and broadened U.S. ties with China.

Adding on to his experience with China and Singapore, Huntsman has also worked to limit the development of the North Korean nuclear program, perhaps the greatest emerging threat to United States security.

That’s his track record: unbelievingly experienced, superb qualifications, and a willingness to work under an opposing administration. It’s those reasons that could give him enough ground with independent and democratic voters to defeat President Obama in the upcoming election, if he was awarded the nomination.

With Huntsman’s experience in mind, let’s compare him to the current Republican frontrunner, who [unfortunately] is businessman Herman Cain, who has gained popularity because of his simple 9-9-9 tax plan.

This plan however, isn’t as advertised. It’s incredibly misleading, being described as a ‘distributional nightmare’, and literally send the U.S. deficit through the roof, while raising taxes if it was implemented. In addition to horrible backup of his 9-9-9 plan, Cain has absolutely zero foreign policy experience, a fact that Huntsman could laugh at.

All in all, when compared to other candidates, Huntsman is the candidate with the best experience needed for the commander-in-chief of the United States of America. If you’re republican or independent, I strongly urge you to reconsider who you end up supporting in the coming election. You can go for the candidate that sounds the best, or one with the best record and experience. Your choice.

 

Joseph Samelson is a senior homeschooler, an avid high-school debater, and a researcher for Ethos Publications, LLC. He has been honored as the southern regional champion in team policy debate and the twenty-second best debater in the country. He enjoys researching, politics, photography, and music. He is finishing up his senior year at home, and is preparing to major in government in college the following year. He authors posts on Ethos Debate, as well as his personal blog, Data Stream: One.

... For more discussion on the 2012 Presidential candidates, read The Case for Rick Perry.