Huntsman's Campaign Manager Quits

Associated Press
Elspeth Reeve 1,020 Views Jul 21, 2011

Jon Huntsman's campaign manager is resigning one month into his official campaign, The Washington Post's Aaron Blake reports. Susie Wiles is being replaced by Matt David, who has been serving as Huntsman's communications director. The campaign did not explain to Blake why Wiles was leaving, but "[h]igh-level staff departures early in a presidential campaign are generally not seen as a good thing," he writes.

Huntsman failed to move an inch in the polls after he announced his campaign for the presidency exactly one month ago. His staff tried to build suspense for the speech by releasing maybe-ironic-but-no-one--really-gets-it videos of a lone motocross biker with blurbs about Huntsman's bio. Many have wondered what constituency Huntsman is really trying to reach--for example, he'll be the special guest at a breakfast with Tina Brown and Barry Diller, media icons not known for their conservative politics, Jennifer Rubin notes.
 
In fact, many suspect Huntsman is just trying to set himself up for a run in 2016. But perhaps to win then, he has to do a little bit better than 2 percent in 2012.
 
 

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