{"id":121855,"date":"2011-06-19T22:43:03","date_gmt":"2011-06-20T05:43:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/?p=121855"},"modified":"2011-06-19T23:03:54","modified_gmt":"2011-06-20T06:03:54","slug":"for-2012-hopeful-envoy-job-in-china-was-a-useful-detour","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/2011\/06\/for-2012-hopeful-envoy-job-in-china-was-a-useful-detour\/","title":{"rendered":"For 2012 Hopeful, Envoy Job in China Was a Useful Detour"},"content":{"rendered":"
Jon Huntsman is expected to announce his official candidacy for the U.S. 2012 Presidential Election on Tuesday, and the media is focusing on his recently-completed tour as Ambassador to China when introducing him to the American public<\/strong><\/a>. From the New York Times:<\/p>\n \nMr. Obama\u2019s decision to name Mr. Huntsman his ambassador to China in 2009 was hailed by members of both parties as another act of political wizardry, a chance to show that the president was trying to infuse his administration with a bipartisan spirit.<\/p>\n The president\u2019s aides had by then identified Mr. Huntsman, a rising star of the Republican Party, as a potentially strong opponent in 2012. And Mr. Obama\u2019s team basked in accolades among political strategists for taking Mr. Huntsman out of the mix and packing him off some 7,000 miles away.<\/p>\n Mr. Huntsman\u2019s time in China has indeed created a potential roadblock for his campaign; Mr. Obama has teased him publicly about how his service in the administration will play among the Republican faithful.<\/p>\n But in some ways it has proved to be a help. It has bolstered his position as the only candidate in a field dominated by former governors to have direct foreign policy experience. And it put him in proximity to some of the nation\u2019s leading chief executives \u2014 and potential campaign donors and fund-raisers \u2014 as they sought assistance in doing business with China. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n See also: “Huntsman’s path to White House starts in China<\/a>” from MSNBC.<\/p>\n