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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsJon Huntsman is most likely writer of the anonymous op-ed (based on themes, prose, tone & non-denial
Who wrote the anonymous op-ed against President Trump in Wednesdays New York Times? All we know for certain is what the Times disclosed: that its a senior official in the Trump administration. But the most likely author, based on the op-eds content and style, is the U.S. ambassador to Russia, Jon Huntsman.
Huntsman is an obvious suspect for several reasons. The articles themes are classic Huntsman: effusive about conservative policies, blunt about low character. In 2016, he made the same points for and against Trump. The topic that gets the most space and detail in the piece is Huntsmans current area, Russia. (As Slates Fred Kaplan points out, Trump has been circumventing and undermining Huntsman.) The prose, as in Huntsmans speeches and interviews, is flamboyantly erudite. The tone, like Huntsmans, is pious. And the articles stated motiveAmericans should know that there are adults in the roommatches a letter that Huntsman wrote to the Salt Lake Tribune in July. In the letter, Huntsman, responding to a columnist who thought the ambassador should resign rather than keep working for Trump, explained that public servants such as himself were dutifully attending to the nations business.
Like other suspects, Huntsman has issued a statement to deflect accusations that he wrote the Times op-ed. But the statementactually just a tweetdoesnt come from Huntsman. It comes from the spokesperson at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. The full text reads, Amb Huntsman: Come to find, when youre serving as the U.S. envoy in Moscow, youre an easy target on all sides. Anything sent out by me would have carried my name. An early political lesson I learned: never send an anonymous op-ed.
Thats a non-denial denial. The Times has already said that the authors identity is known to us. So the piece cant have been sent anonymously. It must have carried the authors name. Which means the statement from Huntsmans spokesperson is technically accurate, even if he wrote the piece. And no matter what he says, hes still the most likely suspectat least until somebody else steps forward to claim responsibilitybecause the piece is full of telltale words and phrases. Here are some of them.
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2018/09/new-york-times-op-ed-anonymous-writer-trump.html
JI7
(89,262 posts)Arkansas Granny
(31,525 posts)eventually be known, but I'm quite sure that the NYT would not have published that letter without being certain they were a credible source.
What I find interesting and frightening is the fact that most of the noise I'm hearing from Republicans is concentrated on finding the leaker, not on addressing the claims made in the letter.
I can hardly wait to read Woodward's book.
Cicada
(4,533 posts)I dont think the NYT thinks he has personal knowledge of White House activities. He is in Moscow. I dont think NYT considers him a knowledgeable source for matters described.
genxlib
(5,530 posts)When that person is thousands of miles away from said room.
I dont think an ambassador qualifies as being close enough to have the knowledge or control that this person claims to have.
Nevertheless, I am hoping that he is monitoring what is going on wrt Russia.
Vinca
(50,302 posts)It's not important who wrote it. It is important we have a person installed in the Oval Office who is totally out of his depth, probably mentally ill and, according to a story on HuffPo today about the Woodward book, nearly sent a tweet that might have started a war. It scared the Pentagon! We'll be lucky to get out of this alive.