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Jon Huntsman 1, Mitt Romney 0: The unelectable former governor of Utah has a better economic plan than the electable former governor of Massachusetts

Ryan Streeter
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Mitt Romney’s plan for the economy reads like a boardroom presentation at a weekend-long board retreat in Aspen. There are 59 aspects to the plan, it’s comprehensive, it leaves no corner of the economy behind. It’s got Glenn Hubbard behind it. It’s 160 pages with 5 pages of footnotes.

Jon Huntsman laid out his plan in 12 pages. No renowned economists, no footnotes.

Romney and Huntsman each hawked their plans on the op-ed pages of national dailies yesterday: Romney in USA Today, Huntsman in the Wall Street Journal.

So Romney’s op-ed was sitting at the door of most mid-range hotels around the country, while Huntsman’s was on the credenza with the potted flowers near the concierge in the nicer hotels.

The irony is that most of the entrepreneurs and medium-sized business owners who scooped up the USA Today copy outside their doors in the Hampton Inn yesterday morning would do better under Huntsman’s plan. The corporate executives who picked up their Wall Street Journals on the way out of the Four Seasons could be forgiven for having missed Romey’s plan, which was written for them.

Here are the main differences between Huntsman and Romney:

• Huntsman leads his plan with a cut in the individual tax rate to 8%, 14%, and 23%, which helps entrepreneurs and young firm owners who don’t pay the corporate tax rate.
• Romney keeps individual marginal rates the same. He says the tax rates President Bush fought for are “just as important today as they were a decade ago.” Romney prefers instead to cut the corporate rate to 25% (so does Huntsman).
• Huntsman says kill all the loopholes and exemptions in the tax code. All of them. Every single one. They generally benefit the affluent and have nothing to do with fairness.
• Romney’s plan says “In the long run, Mitt Romney will pursue a conservative overhaul of the tax system that includes lower and flatter rates on a broader tax base.” That’s political-class-speak for “I believe broadly in these principles and have absolutely no intention of acting on them.”
• Huntsman makes a priority of patent reform.
• Romney ignores patent reform.
• Huntsman abolishes capital gains taxes once and for all, under the principle that such taxes are double taxation.
• Romney keeps capital gains where they are, but promises as President to get rid of them with an adjusted gross income of under $200,000. Many entrepreneurs will fall above this threshold but not be anywhere close to “rich.”

One thing neither plan had, however, was more stimulus spending or class warfare-based tax policy that one can expect to see in President Obama’s job speech tomorrow. The likelihood of Obama putting forward a pro-growth jobs agenda is about as likely as the Blue Dog Democrats doubling their numbers in Congress in next year’s election. The Huntsman and Romney plans would both be better than whatever our President will propose.

Since Huntsman's electability isn't looking too good, let's hope someone more electable picks up his jobs plan

Ryan Streeter
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First it was praised by the WSJ editors, then Erick Erickson - no Jon Huntsman fan - also sang its praises. Huntsman's jobs plan reflects a principled, sober approach to the future of the economy.

It's a good plan. Let's hope others who stand a better chance of getting elected learn from it.

His plan picks up some pieces that are the House-passed GOP plan, such as lowering the corporate tax rate to 25%, increasing free trade, reforming the patent system, and increasing domestic energy supplies.

But he also goes beyond the House plan by proposing the repeal of Dodd-Frank and Obamacare, which he calls "a $1 trillion bomb." He points out that Obamacare alone contains 40 provisions authorizing rulemaking by federal agencies. Throwing that out the window is the solution, and he clearly supports it.

He goes with lower income tax rates of 8%, 14%, and 23%, in exchange for cutting out the loopholes and exemptions. He would also eliminate the AMT and do away with capital gains taxes, which amount to double taxation that hurts investment.

And, he goes all-out on Fannie and Freddie and proposes doing what we should have done years ago: privatize them so they compete in a real marketplace for a change.

This is all good stuff.

The only missing item I wish he would have included was health care reform, and not just repeal, as a way to show how a market-based set of health reforms will also create jobs and promote an overall healthy economy.

What is Jon Huntsman running for?

Ryan Streeter
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The question can be taken in either sense of its two meanings: first, as in which office is he seeking, and second, WHY is he running?

Jon Huntsman is a talented statesman, and by all accounts, a good man. He just seems to have picked the wrong time in history to be running for President. It’s very hard to answer the question in either of its two senses.

On the first question, he is running in a heated Republican primary with voters that are 10 percentage points more conservative than in 2008. He expressed his support for civil unions in the last debate, which was politically courageous if not a bit suicidal. He stood on his principles. But then, his climate-change-evolution-tweet stunt seemed an intentional effort to alienate voters: you don't have to agree with a large cross section of voters, but you don't need to unnecessarily step out of your way to disagree with them either. His antics have won him the praise of people like MSNBC’s Ed Schultz, who took joy in upholding Huntsman as the one adult Republican in the room – and gave Huntsman coverage sure to alienate even more voters.

It’s simply not clear why anyone in their right mind would be giving Huntsman money right now when there is, with each passing day, no path to the nomination. He doesn’t seem to be running for President. What he’s running for is unclear. The vice presidency doesn’t even seem in the cards.

On the second question, what is the objective of his campaign? Why did he get in? What is it that he offers that the others don’t? Perry’s got the job growth, Romney’s got the private sector experience, Pawlenty had a conservative record in a blue state and a short-lived, gusty attempt to deliver tough truths in unfriendly places, Paul has the gold standard and monetary policy, Michele Bachmann has embodied Tea Party values. Huntsman hasn’t done a good job of explaining what he’s about. He was actually a good governor, but no one knows what he did. Why he's running - what he's running for - is largely unknown.

Which makes this article in The Hill today interesting: “Huntsman says if elected he would call on the wealthy to sacrifice.” The headline was obviously written to get the right all a-twitter with more “you see? He’s just like Obama!” charges on the right.

But the report of his PBS appearance has his saying he would call on all people to sacrifice. And with regard to the rich, he was saying they should be prepared to see their entitlements reduced or eliminated (through means-testing) and their taxes to change – even go up – if we get tax reform that ends loopholes that currently give wealthy people a disproportionate advantage.

If Jon Huntsman were running for these reasons – to be the Tom Coburn-esque candidate in the 2012 field – then he would have something interesting. Maybe he should think about that.

A 'conservative problem-solver': Henninger profiles Huntsman

Natalie Gonnella
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In today's Wall Street Journal 'Weekend Interview,' columnist Daniel Henninger profiles with the latest Republican to join the 2012 presidential race, former Ambassador Jon Huntsman.

From economic growth to defense cuts, here's a look at what Utah's 16th governor had to say about a number of important issues:

On the role of the federal government:

I think the appropriate role of the federal government is to carefully measure out the nation's competitiveness. When are taxes too high and making us less competitive than our major trading partners? When do we reach the point of onerous regulation and have to throttle back so we can maintain a competitive posture?

On the role of the states:

As a country we should maintain a level playing field for the states. Equip them with what they need to survive and be competitive and then be attentive enough to learn from them when it comes to possible national models.

On the defense budget:

I'm consulting with some of the experts on exactly what a reconfigured asymmetric posture would mean to overall defense spending...If you're willing to look with a critical eye at every aspect of government, whether we're talking about entitlements or were talking about the defense department, we can't take one off the table and say you can't touch this. It's intellectually indefensible.

On his plans for economic growth:

Gather together stakeholders who have something invested in our economic well-being, whether small business people, bankers, traditional investors. I want to gather them together as I did in the election of 2004 when I ran for governor. Our economy was OK, but it was tired, and our entrepreneurs weren't deploying their capital in our market. We went through a very rigorous exercise in 2004 before the election and did a very specific 10-point plan, and after the campaign I said, 'This is our bible. Don't try to sidetrack me; it's the most important thing for the state.' We went through all 10 points....[I want to move that approach] to the national stage, with businesses West Coast to East Coast. I want to know in specific terms what needs to be done on day one, so there is no misgiving about how we revive this economy and get it moving forward in a sustainable direction.

On the US role in Afghanistan:

Now we have one out of every six defense department dollars going to Afghanistan. We've achieved much of what we set out to do. We've been able to rout the Taliban from power. We've been able to disrupt to a large extent al Qaeda. We've had free elections going back to 2004. And we still have 100,000 troops on the ground. The future well-being of the United States is likely not going to be fought on the prairies of Afghanistan. It's likely to be the result of our ability or inability to compete competitively across the Pacific against the rising giants.

On domestic energy production:

Everybody wants more sun, everybody wants to use more wind...But it's going to take years and years to perfect those technologies and distribution systems. We're going to need a transitional product to get us from here to the decades of the future when these things will be more viable. I can't think of a better product than natural gas.

On his campaign plan:

I'm not trying to make things up as we go. I'm drawing from my own experiences, where I've seen it work. I want to make sure that what we advocate and say we believe in can be tied back to real-world experience. So when people say, 'What do you stand for, what do you want to do?' I can say, 'Here, 1,2,3, here's what I did as governor of a state.' I think that's going to help people to connect the dots.

The full interview is available to view here.

It's official! Jon Huntsman is running for president in 2012

Natalie Gonnella
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In a speech today at Liberty State Park in New Jersey, the same place President Reagan launched his campaign in 1980, Jon Huntsman officially kicked off his 2012 presidential bid:

I'm Jon Huntsman, I've been a governor, a businessman, and a diplomat...I'm the husband of the love of my life and the father of seven terrific kids. A son of great parents. I'm from the American west, where the view of America is limitless with lots of blue sky. ... And today, I'm a candidate for the office of president of the United States of America.

Pegged as the only moderate Republican expected to run in 2012, over the weekend the former Utah governor secured a surprise second place finish in the RLC's 2012 straw poll, even after cancelling his scheduled appearance at the event.

A rebroadcast of Huntsman's announcement speech to available to view via his campaign website.

Five questions for Jon Huntsman as he launches his campagin

Ryan Streeter
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As Jon Huntsman launches his 2012 White House bid today, he also begins the official process of introducing himself to the nation. Here are five questions for him as he gets going.

Will you be tough enough? Huntsman has indicated he will run a campaign of civility and stay away from name-calling while sticking to the issues. All fine and good. But if anyone needs to be calling Obama by name, and taking clean hard shots at the President’s failed policies, it would be the candidate who worked for him. Tim Pawlenty’s perceived lack of toughness has not served him well. Huntsman should learn from that, especially since he already labors under suspicions that he's too much of a polite establishment type. Riding around on motorcycles isn't enough.

Will you have distinctive ideas, things you are for, that will make you stand out from the others? Huntsman has made clear in statements about Afghanistan that we should bring troops home, that we shouldn’t stay and play “traffic cop.” He opposes Pawlenty-ish growth targets, telling Ramesh Ponnuru he prefers instead for government to “create the environment for growth” (a rather standard Republican line), and he favors a hands-off approach on pressuring China on its currency, believing the issue will take care of itself. So far, Huntsman seems to have characterized himself through an avoidance of strong stances on issues. Where he has been clear, such as on entitlements, it’s been to back someone else’s idea (the Ryan plan). The question now becomes, what will be the thing that sets Huntsman apart, that makes him worth paying attention to? Can he paint a picture of a future people want to live in?

What do you know about job creation? Apparently, Huntsman knows quite a bit, given the impressive 6% job creation rate Utah enjoyed while he was Governor, spurred as it was by definitive actions involving tax cuts and other measures. The question now becomes how this translates into a national strategy. Voters are hungry for a compelling jobs agenda, yet Republicans on the trail and in Congress have done little to persuade the public that they know what to do. Huntsman has an opportunity to explain what he understands about growth. Will he capitalize on that?

How will you be the un-Romney? Let’s face it, the two guys have a lot in common in ways that don’t exactly recommend them to an energized, grassroots conservative electorate: they are rich, they share a faith that makes people uncomfortable, and they look more like characters you’d cast as President in a movie than the raw, unvarnished candidate that moves voters these days. It seems that Huntsman’s biggest opportunity out of the gates is on health care. He should differentiate himself based on the consumer-oriented reforms he pursued in Utah, which the Heritage Foundation has called a model for the other 49 states. Of course, to be effective, he would have to call out Romney by name...

How will you kill the RINO? How Huntsman does on the foregoing points will have a lot to do with how he persuades an already skeptical group of conservative activists that he hears them, that he shares their passion, and embodies their animus. But it won’t be enough. Even though the base of conservative voters is energized by economic and fiscal matters, his softness on social issues is part of an overall caricature that is already forming that he needs to kill starting today if he hopes to succeed: that he’s soft in general. He won’t go after Obama forcefully, he won’t finish the job in Afghanistan, he won't be a staunch defender of the family because of his moderate views on civil unions, and so on. A non-confrontational establishment Republican won’t get far in a Republican primary these days.

Ron Paul wins RLC straw poll, Jon Huntsman takes second

Natalie Gonnella
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CBS News reports:

Ron Paul won the presidential straw poll at the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans Saturday, easily beating out his rivals for the GOP nomination. Second place went to Jon Huntsman, the little-known former Utah governor who missed the conference with a cold....Paul finished with 612 votes, followed by Huntsman with 382. Michele Bachmann took third with 191 votes, followed by Herman Cain with 104 votes. No other candidate got more than 100.

Mitt Romney took 74 votes, Newt Gingrich 69, Sarah Palin 41, Rick Santorum 30 and Tim Palwenty 18.

Attendees at the gathering for conservative and Republican activists were asked, "If the primary election for president were held today, for whom would you vote?"

Huntsman channels Reagan: Will announcing at Liberty State Park backfire?

Ryan Streeter
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With Huntsman set to announce his candidacy next Tuesday, the choice of his site is an eyebrow-raiser.

There's no way you can announce that you will announce in Liberty State Park without telegraphing to the world that you aim to be the Reaganesque candidate. It was on the same spot on September 1, 1980, that Reagan launched his general campaign against Jimmy Carter.

And so it's worth remembering Reagan by watching the video below. And then it's worth asking, does Huntsman run the risk of disappointing? Trying to live up to the Gipper is always a tall order.

Huntsman to officially enter the 2012 race June 21

Natalie Gonnella
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Less than 24 hours after the New Hampshire GOP debate, Jon Huntsman has confirmed that he will officially enter the 2012 presidential race next week, launching his campaign "kick off" event in New Jersey.

According to the LA Times:

Speaking in New York at a forum on China with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, Huntsman said he'll announce his candidacy "a week from today." Sources close to the Republican say the kickoff event will take place at Liberty State Park, followed by a campaign swing through key early-voting states...The choice of Liberty State Park, just across the New York harbor from lower Manhattan, is a nod to Ronald Reagan, the last Republican to defeat a sitting Democratic president, who kicked off his general election campaign there in 1980...Following the announcement in New Jersey, Huntsman will travel directly to New Hampshire, the first primary state. The following day he'll campaign in South Carolina, home of the first Southern primary. On June 23 he'll stop in Florida, where he'll base his campaign.

Huntsman weighs in on Pakistan, Iran and China

Natalie Gonnella
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In an interview yesterday via NRO, Ramesh Ponnuru offered an interesting look at likely 2012 contender Jon Huntsman.

From the budget deficit to national security, the former Ambassador weighed in on a wide array of topics, including his own political career and his outlook for the 2012 race.

Noting that he feels his diplomatic experience will be a “a real asset" should he be elected President, here's a quick look at what Huntsman had to say about US concerns in Pakistan, Iran and China:

On aid to Pakistan:

We have to be very, very careful about aid money going into Pakistan...it’s a very, very difficult problem, and one where you could imagine someone like a Musharraf-type leader emerging once again.

On Iran's nuclear ambitions:

You can either choose to support Israel, because I suspect they will want to deal directly with it, or you let the region become a proliferation challenge.

On revaluing Chinese currency:

The currency is going to move because they’re motivated by their own economic interests...They will move to something closer to a market evaluation . . . over the next year and a half or two years. And the question will be are we ready as a country to take advantage of the new opportunities this situation will present.

The full overview of Ponnuru's interview with Huntsman is available to view here.