Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Governor Huntsman: Congressional Leadership is 'Inconsequential'

Thoughts from one Utah political figure who's not part of the usual Utah GOP Wingnut Clown Coalition

Thanks to a helpful tip from another of our sharp-eyed, attentive and gentle readers, we're delighted to link some material which appeared in yesterday's Washington Times. As the National Republican Party lurches into seeming political irrelevance, Utah's own Jon Huntsman strongly speaks out:

The Republican governor of Utah on Monday said his party is blighted by leaders in Congress whose lack of new ideas renders them so "inconsequential" that he doesn't even bother to talk to them.
"I don't even know the congressional leadership," Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. told editors and reporters at The Washington Times, shrugging off questions about top congressional Republicans, including House Minority Leader John A. Boehner of Ohio and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. "I have not met them. I don't listen or read whatever it is they say because it is inconsequential - completely." [...].
Mr. Huntsman, who was in Washington for a meeting of governors, said the failure of Republican leaders in Congress to move beyond "gratuitous partisanship" has left it to the party's governors and other state officials to come up with "big, bold solutions and ideas" that will win over voters and revive the party.
"Until we get to that point, we are going to be sort of out there gasping for air, and that's were we are right now," he said.
Check out the video of Governor Huntsman's bold Washington Times interview here:

Read yesterday's full Washington Times story below:
GOP governor: Congressional leadership 'inconsequential'
We don't know about the rest of our readers; but for own part we think it's great to read about at least one Utah political figure whose views are reality based, and who is not part of the usual Utah GOP Wingnut Clown Coalition.

Don't let the cat get your tongues, O Ye Gentle Ones.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well.

From the WT Article, even more:

"That's why no one is paying any attention," he [Huntsman] said. "Our moral soapbox was completely taken away from us because of our behavior in the last few years. For us to now criticize analogous behavior is hypocrisy. We've got to come at it a different way. We've got to prove the point. It can't be as the Chinese would say, 'fei hua,' [or] empty words."

While I've come to think of McConnel and Boehner as empty hypocritical gasbags who oppose anything President Obama supports because President Obama supports it, as kind of Rush Limpaw "I hope Obama fails" conservatives, I'm surprised to learn that Huntsman thinks they are too.

Of course, he goes on in the article to talk about how he consults Newt Gingrich for real ideas and bold new visions. Uh huh. Mr. Gingrich's latest suggestion about how to stimulate the economy is to eliminate entirely capital gains taxes. This bold new idea he first proposed in 1996. It is simply variation 1.34987 on the recurring old [and now painfully disproven] Republican mantra that tax cuts are the solution to all economic problems, everywhere and all the time.

But having Huntsman state, unequivocally, the hypocracy of so much of the Congressional Republican Party suddenly discovering they are fiscal conservatives after eight years of voting for massive deficits and massive spending and massive debt, only after a Democrat becomes president is... well, surprising and refreshing.

Jaysus, he may actually be a viable national candidate. He speaks plainly. He doesn't hedge [or at least didn't this time]. He does not, so far as we know, personally conduct exorcisms to cast demons out of his friends. He seems in so many ways a superior candidate to the man who Rush Limpaw has anointed "the next Ronald Reagan" --- Bobby Jindal, governor of Louisiana [who delivered a disastrous reply to President Obama's STOTU address last night. Even the comedians on Fox News were appalled.]

Damn. As a Yellow Dog Democrat I'd much prefer Jindal as national spokesman for the Republican Party, and a national candidate, than Huntsman. Time for my guys to get the op research team going on Huntsman I think. [Are we really sure... I mean really really sure he has only one wife?] After all, God's Party --- the Democratic Party of course --- can't continue to rely on Republicans being led by raging wingnuts and incompetents, much as we'd like to. And Huntsman has all but announced his intention to run, seems to me.

Anonymous said...

Most excellent Momba comment promoted to the front page.

Anonymous said...

I like that huntsman is starting to think like a democrat

Anonymous said...

Oh ya:

Come to think of it, you're right. Except for thinking Newt Gingrich is a good source for new ideas, of course....

Anonymous said...

Jon Huntsman is a common man alright. "Hey daddy, my car is a year old already. It's old and I need a new Corvette (or whatever else the little rich kid had to say).

So why wouldn't he think like a democrat? Why wouldn't he want to raise taxes and spend for bigger government?

Sure the raving liberals like Curm on this blog will be slobbering all over "Young Jon" from now until election time. They know that the Mormon factor is real and just as it denied 'savior Mitt' a shot at the brass ring, junior league Jon will also be a non factor in the next national election.

By then either Obama will be anointed or castrated by these same liberal nut jobs posing as educated persons.

The only problem is whether or not we will be able to afford the device on which to watch the show.

Anonymous said...

YDMA:

You wrote: Sure the raving liberals like Curm on this blog will be slobbering all over "Young Jon" from now until election time.

Hardly. But I have to admit, when a Republican elected official in the state of Eagle Forum [aka Utah] speaks plainly, honestly [however briefly], and makes a certain amount of sense, it's an event of such rarity that folks just naturally have to look to Democratic speech to find something in-state to liken it to.

And I'm pretty sure I've never called Huntsman a "common man." You just made that one up.

Anonymous said...

Huntsman doesn't like the word "pro-active" because he is not pro-active.

When was the last time he did a press release or visited Ogden?

Anonymous said...

Dem:

Why should he visit Ogden when he knows that matters here are in the safe and capable hands of his fellow Republican Matthew Godfrey?

Anonymous said...

"When was the last time Huntsman visited Ogden?" Democrat asked...

I think it was the ground breaking for the Veteran's care facility at the entrance to the Weber County Fairgrounds.

You're right Curm, I did just make that up. But it is his sensitive spot as he Huntsman wants to be considered just a common everyday Utahn versus a little rich kid with a silver spoon up his......



mouth.

Anonymous said...

Governor Huntsman's father was not rich when the Governor was young. He made his big money after Jon was mostly grown. He did not grow up with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth. Even though his father was doing well as a minor official in the Nixon White House, the Governor held the normal kind of jobs through high school and college. He even played in a rock and roll band in bars. All the Huntsman kids had to work and still do. Rich? Yes, Worthless rich? No.

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