The American Spectator : The Spectacle Blog : Celebration in Utah

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A politically active friend in the Beehive State reports a gleeful mood among colleagues over the apparent pending departure of Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. -- a Schwarzeneggar/Crist clone on global warming -- because of his selection by President Obama as ambassador to China.

A great day for Utah - how can we ever thank the people of China?!

topics:
Global Warming

View all comments (7) | Leave a comment

Lady Logician| 5.16.09 @ 11:28AM

When I heard about his pending appointment last night this didn't even register! This is even better than I thought!

El Zarcho| 5.16.09 @ 7:01PM

Yeah, this is good news, but the Lt. Gov. lacks imagination. Herbert doesn't seem to even have an understanding of some of the issues the state faces.

Cliff| 5.17.09 @ 3:49PM

You know, this single issue stuff needs to stop. I don't agree with his position on GW either, but Huntsman was a very good Governor overall. He even signed a really great vouchers bill. Granted, the f*$king education establishment got it repealed by lying to people through the initiative process, but still...

Sheath| 5.18.09 @ 3:09AM

this is good news

William R. Hawkins| 5.18.09 @ 7:20AM

The appointment of Gov. Huntsman as ambassador to China is about far, more than personality or Utah politics. It is about the Obama Administration’s policy towards Beijing. Huntsman will be quite comfortable with Obama’s mix of appeasement and contrived cooperation with the Communist regime.
A great deal of attention has been devoted to environmental issues with China, as if the U.S. is trying to create a common enemy in “global warming” so as to form an alliance with Beijing that would overshadow all the traditional geopolitical conflicts that divide the two nations. This seemed to be the message Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took to Beijing in February.
The United States and China sit on opposite sides of every arena of conflict across the globe, as well as represent contrary principles of government and human rights. Yet, none of these issues played a major role in the discussions between Secretary Clinton and Chinese leaders, and many were not even mentioned. Huntsman is not being sent to Beijing to bring up any of these issues.
President Obama wants to wind up the wars he inherited in Iraq and Afghanistan, but does not want any new confrontations. His defense spending cuts in major weapons programs (the F-22, warship construction, missile defense) indicates that he does not want to respond to China’s rise with a military buildup. By picking a Republican with the outlook of Big Business towards open trade with China, he strengthens his hand against conservative national security experts in the GOP. Obama did the same by keeping Defense Secretary Gates onboard, a man who shares Obama’s view that the current small counter-insurgency wars are all we need to worry about.
The United States has transferred over $1.5 trillion to Beijing since 2000 via the trade deficit, money China has used to expand its economic capabilities and global political influence. The Huntsman appointment indicates that nothing will be done to counter China’s rise as a peer competitor or prepare America to meet future challenges in Asia or elsewhere.