There are a lot of reasons, and a lot of commentary<\/a>, for why Jon Huntsman isn\u2019t a front-runner in the Republican presidential nominee race;\u00a0he\u2019s seen as too liberal<\/a>, or he\u2019s too nice<\/a>, he\u2019s a Mormon not named Romney<\/a>, or maybe it was that bizarre first campaign ad<\/a>. What hasn\u2019t been alleged, until now, is that he isn\u2019t sufficiently Christian, and might be a Chinese \u201cManchurian candidate.\u201d<\/a> However, thanks to a racist attack ad that\u2019s so extreme it almost plays as a parody<\/a>, those allegations are now removed from conspiratorial\u00a0toxic message boards and white\u00a0supremacist\u00a0conventions and given their fifteen minutes in the 2012 presidential race<\/a>.<\/p>\n httpv:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=tZeVqj-t1U0<\/a><\/p>\n The ad begins asking of Huntsman, \u201cThe Manchurian Candidate,\u201d \u201cWhat\u2019s he hiding?\u201d It features \u201ctraditional\u201d Chinese music and clips of Huntsman doing things in China: speaking Mandarin, taking interviews from Chinese press, walking around in China\u2013 you get the idea. It then asks a series of questions during the montage like, \u201cAmerican values, or Chinese?\u201d and \u201cWeak on China? Wonder why?\u201d It also takes a detour to slam him for being Mormon (\u201cA man of faith?\u201d) before the coup de grace, a doctored photo of Huntsman in what appears to be\u00a0Maoist military garb<\/a>. Essentially, it makes \u201cWillie Horton<\/a>\u201d look like Will.I.Am\u2019s \u201cYes We Can<\/a>\u201d ad.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The ad was placed by an independent group calling itself \u201cNew Hampshire Liberty 4 Paul,\u201d and was quickly disavowed by the Ron Paul campaign, who said it should be taken down<\/a> (Paul supporters have also traveled down the rabbit hole of trying to prove the ad was a \u201cfalse flag\u201d designed by Huntsman to discredit their candidate<\/a>). Naturally, the ad was condemned by a variety of critics<\/a>, including the Hindu American Foundation<\/a>, who took exception to the implication that Huntsman raising his adopted Indian daughter Asha within a Hindu context was something that should be attacked.<\/p>\n \u201dThis deplorable ad is blatantly racist and religiously intolerant, and crosses all lines of acceptable political discourse,\u201d said Suhag Shukla, Esq., HAF\u2019s Managing Director and Legal Counsel. \u201cInstead of vilifying Governor Hunstman, he should be applauded for being open minded enough to raise his adopted daughter as a Hindu.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n This ugly ad, however, does highlight qualities about Jon Huntsman that I think are admirable, and speak to the best qualities of our nation. The willingness to put duty above party affiliation by accepting the position of Chinese ambassador from President Obama, the willingness to learn a second language in order to better communicate our values, and understand another culture\u2019s values, the\u00a0recognition\u00a0that\u00a0diplomacy\u00a0can be a strength, and a commitment to religious pluralism that includes raising an adopted daughter \u201cto learn about and appreciate her native culture and the faiths associated with it.\u201d<\/em> I may not agree with Jon Huntsman on a number of issues, but if he were elected president I wouldn\u2019t constantly worry that he would try to imprint his beliefs on the many religious minorities that call this country home, something that can\u2019t be said for several other candidates.<\/p>\n Indeed, from all accounts Huntsman\u2019s personal religious life is a mirror of America\u2019s unique mix of faiths and philosophies, far from the political will of the Republican Party\u2019s Christian conservative base, who see any non-adherence\u00a0to a certain religio-political\u00a0rigorousness\u00a0as a heresy that must be punished at the ballot box<\/a>. Just read this excerpt from a National Review article on Huntsman\u2019s religious outlook.<\/a><\/p>\n Last year, Huntsman told\u00a0Fortune that he receives \u201csatisfaction from many different types of religions and philosophies\u201d and doesn\u2019t consider himself to be \u201coverly religious.\u201d (ANew York Times article last week noted that Huntsman\u2019s comments to\u00a0Fortune made a splash in his home state; \u201cmany Utahans can recite from memory\u201d Huntsman\u2019s quote, according to the\u00a0Times.) In March, the\u00a0Washington Post reported that \u201cHuntsman\u2019s relatives and friends describe him frequently as an independent thinker, unbeholden to any church or party doctrine,\u201d and that \u201cmany Republicans faithful to the church in Utah dismissed Huntsman as a \u2018Jack Mormon,\u2019 a derogatory term referring to a non-practicing Mormon.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n As the Pew Forum has pointed out, \u201cthe religious beliefs and practices of Americans do not fit neatly into conventional categories.\u201d<\/a><\/em> 35% of Americans attend more the one place of worship, and\u00a0sizable\u00a0minorities mix Western and Eastern forms of religion into their daily lives. Huntsman and his \u201csatisfaction from many different types of religion\u201d<\/em> is mainstream, yet every election cycle the Christian character, and only the Christian character, of each candidate is scrutinized. Any hint that a candidate might enjoy, or even tolerate, the practices the other faiths instantly make him suspect, and a target for attack. If you need an example, just look at what happened when\u00a0Kentucky\u00a0Governor Steve Beshear, who is an ardent Christian, attended a traditional Hindu blessing<\/a>.<\/p>\n