Former Governor of Utah Jon Huntsman Jr. has served in the administrations of four U.S. presidents and is now being considered by the fifth. On Tuesday, the White House announced that President Donald Trump will nominate Huntsman as U.S. Ambassador to Russia. Born in March 1960, Huntsman is the motorcycle-driving son of billionaire Jon Huntsman Sr, who founded a large chemical manufacturer. He dropped out of high school to play keyboard in a rock band, later finishing school and graduating from the University of Pennsylvania. He also served as a Mormon missionary in Taiwan, and speaks fluent Mandarin. After university, Huntsman worked as an aide in President Ronald Reagan's White House, and, while still in his early 30s, President George H. W. Bush appointed him ambassador to Singapore. Later he served as a trade official under President George W. Bush, and ran the Huntsman family's holding company. In 2004, he ran for governor of Utah promising to simplify the state's tax code, develop industry and reform the state's Mormon-inspired alcohol restrictions. He was elected governor with 58% of the vote. After his re-election in 2008 with 78% of the vote, he began meeting national political consultants and his name began to surface in discussions about the Republican party's prospects for the 2017 race. In May 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Huntsman to be ambassador to China. |