Huntsman

  There are times in the political world, where someone wins the nomination for President of the United States, and there is someone else more qualified.  I have studied politics pretty much my entire adult life, and I have seen many examples of this fact.  One of which was Jon Huntsman who ran for President in 2012. 

 He was a governor in Utah.  He had been the United States Ambassador to Russia and later China.  He had been our government's trade ambassador.  Unfortunately, that year also had Mitt Romney running for President, and he was also from Utah and more well known.  Credentials and experience are not as important in politics as name recognition.  

 I met Ambassador Huntsman at the South Carolina Republican Party Headquarters in 2012.  He had a really big family, and I saw them all pour off of a bus out front.  One of them was his daughter Abby, who later went on to co-host "The View" on ABC.  After he filed for the Republican Primary in SC, he went outside to greet those in the parking lot.  I spent a few moments with him talking about the homeless and the economy.  He seemed truly interested.  You can tell who listens, and who wants to just blow you off.  I have seen many politicians do both.  He listened.  

 After a while of just hanging out with us, he and his family boarded their bus and left for a campaign stop.  I really wished that the voters had listened to what he had to say in the campaign.  He just never gained any traction.  If a candidate is covered non-stop by the media, others are left begging for airtime.  You see this time and time again.  One could make the case that media exposure is more important than the issues.  In some cases, the media has had a role in who gets elected, whether they are qualified or not, by ignoring others in the race.  That was the problem with Jon Huntsman.  Not enough people took a look at him and his experience.  He would have made a very good President.