Can't find it on any news sources. Only story is that he picked up a big endorsement.

I mean he's still on the ballot. Right?

in order to insure that Mitt was it. The Pruning Process by the kingmakers has begun.

Not that he'll have a prayer then, either.

He'll try to take the high road (assuming the tea party is, indeed, dead) and portray himself as mature and seasoned. Then, if he can get the nomination, he'll run ads showing him with Obama, from back when he was an ambassador!

Romney is going to lose, even if he gets the nomination.

I'll bet Huntsman is quitting in EXCHANGE for a great speaking slot at the convention.

As we all know, people who get great speaking slots at conventions sometimes turn out to be the party nominee in four years' time!

I'm really happy about this--he was the one guy I was worried about. He "sounds" reasonable, if you don't dig too deep--and that is what makes him dangerous.

Campaign officials: Jon Huntsman to withdraw from race for Republican presidential nomination

By Associated Press
Sunday, January 15, 2012 - Added 2 minutes ago








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WASHINGTON - Campaign officials: Jon Huntsman to withdraw from race for Republican presidential nomination


© Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Huntsman was actually the more moderate one of the bunch.

Reasonable, rational, an articulate and honest proponent for the opposition. The rest, eh. Mitt's got the bucks and may make a fairly good show in the general. And he will lose.

The Republicans have increasingly edged their way out of the mainstream.

And Main Street is starting to get a clue. Let's welcome them to the party that has their interests in mind.

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Jon M. Huntsman Jr. informed his advisers on Sunday that he intends to drop out of the Republican presidential race, ending his candidacy a week before he had hoped to revive his campaign in the South Carolina primary.

Mr. Huntsman, who had struggled to live up to the soaring expectations of his candidacy, made plans to make an announcement as early as Monday. He had been set to participate in an evening debate in Myrtle Beach.

A third-place finish in the New Hampshire primary last week failed to jump start his flagging candidacy, aides said, and his campaign limped into South Carolina with little money. Mr. Huntsman has spent days pondering his future in the race, but aides said that he concluded he was unlikely to topple Mitt Romney or match the momentum of his Republican rivals in the conservative Southern primary.

Mr. Huntsman will endorse Mr. Romney’s bid for the Republican nomination this week, according to several people who spoke on condition of anonymity.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/huntsman-says-hes-quitting-g-o-p-race/

Huntsman doesn't quite make the grade...

He goes out on a bit of a high note, and puts himself at the front of the pack for 2016.

"Team player", "next in line", and all.

to see ANY Republican debate Elizabeth Warren in 2016.

I'm gonna feel all warm and fuzzy!

I mean, he's been running for POTUS virtually non-stop since, what, 2007? His "coronation" seems all but assured at this point. A conservative alternative (i.e. Santorum) will likely hang around for a while longer to see if they can make a dent in him and put him "on notice" that social conservatives and baggers are watching him closely for any signs of "betrayal" or "moderation" but unless things suddenly and dramatically change, Romney's very likely got it sewn up IMHO.

"Not Romney" is still polling far above "Romney". Currently, the "Not Romney" candidates splitting the vote.

If Newt and Santorum quit soon, Paul wins the nomination. If Newt and Santorum stay in for a long time, Romney wins.
Paul's crazy enough to not quit, so Newt and Santorum can't win.

Paul is taking votes away from "not" Romney's gang.

You're several steps ahead of where we are.

Yes, hardcore R's will fall in line behind whomever the nominee is. But they have to pick that nominee first. Romney is disliked enough that a single "not-Romney" candidate would win the nomination. But with the "not-Romney" split, he can win the nomination.

Then most of the R's will vote for Romney anyway in the general.

Only possible candidate to defeat Obama.

of "out crazing" the crazies...

@fivethirtyeight Nate Silver
32% of Huntsman's voters had Romney as their 2nd choice. Followed by undecided at 24%, Paul at 15%. nyti.ms/AbkpxV
5 minutes ago https://twitter.com/#!/fivethirtyeight/status/158759718549078016
---------------

Now he has to continue the terrible life as a wealthy guy who can speak Chinese.

The horror!!!

Consolidation to Mitt.

Now Mitt won't split the Mormon vote in half.

Too bad.

He was the only decent (R) in the race.

Huntsman not have any self respect? Jeesh, he just criticzed Romney for being 'out of touch' (for his comment that he likes to be able to 'fire people') and now Huntsman's endorsing Romney? Whatevs but what a slimebucket Hunstman turned out to be in the end.

Oh well, now it'll be Obama for four more years, as Huntsman was the only credible challenger Obama faced this year.

5% to 4%, right?

Too bad - the only (R) to admit in 2011 that climate change is real

he was after all the most qualified in the group.

he is the only one that I thought had a chance against President Obama

...oh boo-hoo.

Not!

However, this does mean he is fishing for a #2 slot.

like I said all along, he isn't really as sane as he comes off.

He never had a chance. He was set up by Romney to get some credibility with the few independent voters that were solidly racist, however, also had some education and were not religious lunes. Endorsing Romney, after getting some positive MSM air time, was obviously always the plan.

Huntsman will be used to make Romney palatable, ie.e "we are the compassionmate conservatives, er, we are not reallt THAT bad."

If Huntsman was really looking at 2016 (my guess), an embarrassing loss to Stephen Colbert might be remembered longer than a face-saving exit.

The GOP establishment will likely soon force all the other also-rans (except Ron Paul, who is just grooming son Rand Paul) into rather undignified "oh, we didn't really mean all that stuff" revisionist submission.

and that wouldn't help his 2016 chances....

Better butt out of the race then become nothing but the butt of late night TV jokes!

I've been saying that he is the most dangerous one up there because he was the one who was the most sane... the rest of them are straight up crazy, but he wasn't of that ilk.

the next debate is going to show just how crazy their knot of harebrains are without Huntsman to balance out the severity of the crazy up on stage.

I think Mitt will either pick Thune (R-SD) as his VP or a female.

Either way Romney will lose to President Obama

OBAMA OBAMA OBAMA !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(that might explain why she announced her non-candidacy so early in the process...perhaps they had this set up in advance that he'd give her the second slot again in exchange for her staying the hell out of the primaries.)

I've been keeping my eye on her like a disgruntled daddy of a Miss America contestant, watching her every move, and wanting revenge on The Donald for not skewing the vote tally and giving my little baby girl the crown that she so rightly deserved.

You bet'cha!

You have to get your bones as a total bastard before the 'pugs will vote for you.

Huntsman was always a pawn for Romney. Please explain how Huntsman got into the national debates and Buddy Roemer and Gary Johnson did not. Huntsman had a role to play for Romney, as did the MSM in it's portryal of Huntsman, and Huntsman and the MSM did their jobs. Everybody on Earth, including Huntsman, knew he had no chance. He has always been just another bought and paid for .....

always polled high in New Hampshire, which was used as his basis to enter the debates.

I'm having trouble seeing Huntsman as a pawn for Romney, when the main consequence of his candidacy was that Romney was denied an outright majority of the vote in New Hampshire. It seems to me that Romney needed Huntsman out of the race A.S.A.P.

What role did Huntsman have to play in behalf of Romney? Please elaborate on where you're going with this.

As to why he got into the debates and Roemer and Johnson did not...I'm not sure.

BTW...it's not like I'd have ever voted for Huntsman.

Cain, O'Bachman, Huntsman. Who's next? Any bets on Perry? Like Obama said on late night TV, I'm just waiting to see who gets voted off the island.

Could be a double digit win which would likely mean the end of it as Romney is way up in Florida polls as well.