By now, everyone knows that the early word is that Utah Governor Jon Huntsman has been tapped by the Obama administration to be the ambassador to China.
I know it might seem counter-intuitive for Obama to be picking a Republican from one of the reddest states in the nation to lead anything, but as a Utah resident, I wanted to put everyone at ease. He's a pretty good guy.
Hell, he's the first Republican I've ever voted for. He's level-headed, even-handed, well read, and well respected among everyone in the state, left, right, and center.
The thing that impresses me most about Jon Huntsman as the Governor of Utah, is that even though he's of the majority party, he includes the voices of the minority as though it were an equal and he's not afraid to veto the idiotic bills brought to him by a legislature that by and large has only a tenuous grip on reality. He's even worked hard to liberalize the liquor laws that have strangled tourism (as well as my social life) in the state, against the will of his party and a majority of his supporters, simply because it's the right thing to do. He's vetoed a lot of legislation that's come across his desk and has one of the most progressive records on the environment in the west.
He's even come out in support of civil unions for same sex couples.
Add to that, the fact that he's actually kept Utah's head largely above water through the economic crisis and you'll agree that he's actually a pretty good Governor.
It's no wonder he was tapped by the Obama team for any job and he deserves our support and encouragement.
He really is a stand-up act.
(Bryan Young lives in Utah and is the producer of Killer at Large)