Huntsman Lashes Out at Romney and Gingrich

Jon Huntsman is going after Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney and President Obama as examples of what's wrong with Washington.

In a speech at the National Press Club, the GOP presidential candidate unveiled a seven-point plan to end what he calls two deficits: one in the economy and the other afflicting politics.

"America suffers from a deficit of dollars and jobs. We also suffer from a deficit of trust -- trust in our institutions of power, from Washington to Wall Street," Huntsman said.

The GOP presidential candidate, also a former Utah governor and U.S. ambassador to China, told The New York Times that Gingrich and Romney are part of a political culture that is destroying trust with the American people and blocking solutions to the nation’s biggest problems.

“We don’t need a lobbyist in chief. And we don’t need a panderer in chief. We need a commander in chief,” Mr. Huntsman said. Huntsman also lashed out at Romney and Gingrich as “no better” than President Obama when it comes to breaking faith with the American people.

“If you are in the hip pocket of Wall Street, you are not going to talk about ‘too big to fail.’ You’re not going to be able to talk about ‘no more bailouts,’” he said. “If you are in the hip pocket of K Street, you’re not going to be inclined to take on Congress to call for term limits.”

Proposals that Mr. Huntsman makes in the speech include:

* To completely rewrite the tax code, eliminating “every last loophole, subsidy and carve-out.”

* To cut spending in “every corner of government.

* To break up Wall Street banks so that taxpayer are never “held hostage” by a Sophie’s Choice between “massive bailouts, or economic calamity.”

* Term limits in Congress. He proposes six two-year terms for House members and two six-year terms for senators.

* To adopt a comprehensive energy strategy making the country less dependent on foreign oil.

* “Systematically streamline” regulations, i.e. reduce big government, and eliminate bureaucracy and red tape.

* Bring home troops from Afghanistan.

In the speech, Mr. Huntsman casts the proposals as the solutions to the broader issue of a breakdown of trust.

“Rather than a limited, efficient government that serves the public’s interest, Washington has grown bloated and bureaucratic, captured and corrupted by swarms of lobbyists, influence peddlers and crony capitalists,” Mr. Huntsman says.

He added that “the American people have been let down, time and again. They have lost confidence in how our nation is run. As a result, anxiety and worry have filled our nation’s psyche.”

Huntsman is bringing up the rear in national polls on the GOP nomination, but his numbers are much better in New Hampshire where he's in the middle of the pack.

Sources:

USA Today,
NY Times

My Note: This article and what Huntsman says about our 'real' problems is spot on. Washington and Wall Street ARE 'f'ed up and need to be fixed. Major changes are needed, not just little band-aid laws. But it goes beyond that. It's not just Washington that lives and spends above it's means, it's our whole society. Every room has cable and a big screen TV. Every 3rd grader has a cell phone. Every 6th grader a lap top. Every 12th grader a car. We spend our money as fast as we earn it on things we can't afford. Then we borrow more and hit the repeat button. It's nuts! Everything is overpriced because everyone is overpaid, and everyone is overpaid because everything is overpriced. Does a guy pushing a broom really need to be paid $12 or $13 per hour? Does a family physician who does nothing more than write out prescriptions and referrals really need to make $200,000 to $500,000 per year? We need to slow down. Save instead of spend. Build rather than buy. When I was a kid, a middle class family of four could survive on one income. Granted, we only had one car, one TV, and one phone, but we managed just fine.