The 2012 Speculatron Weekly Roundup For June 24, 2011

[THP]

The big news this week is that the long-awaited and art-film teased Jon Huntsman campaign finally got off the ground, with the newly-declared candidate making an appearance in New Jersey, with the Statue of Liberty in the background, because, well... because Reagan once did it? Most of the reviews features descriptors that ranged from tepid to anti-climactic (perhaps motorcycle stunts were anticipated?) to confused. Here's Walter Shapiro at The New Republic:

While the pyrotechnics accompanying the presidential rollout were impressive (two dozen TV cameras chronicled a GOP candidate hovering at 1 percent in the national polls), Huntsman's words themselves were flickering sparklers rather than skyrocketing Roman candles. The former two-term Utah governor repeatedly resorted to the well-crafted banalities that speechwriters use in place of original thought. Calling for "leadership that knows we need answers," Huntsman boldly declared, "We can and will own the future." In an era of persistent 9-percent unemployment, Huntsman confided a revelation that came to him only because he held elective office: "I learned something very important as governor. For most American families, there is nothing more important than a job."More...