Pres. Obama jokingly downplays the possibility that his ambassador to Beijing, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, may seek to challenge him as the GOP presidential nominee in 2012. Reports The Hill:

Obama said that [Huntsman] ... would no doubt run into problems in a GOP primary for having worked for a Democratic president.

"I'm sure the fact that him having worked so well with me will be a great asset in any Republican primary," Obama said at a [Wednesday] press conference at the White House with visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Obama praised Huntsman for having done an "outstanding job" in almost two years as ambassador to China. "The fact that he comes from a different party, I think, is a strength, not a weakness, because it indicates the degree to which both he and I believe the partisanship ends at the water's edge, and that we work together to advocate on behalf of our country," the president said.

He said that he expected Huntsman would be successful in whatever future endeavors he chooses after leaving the administration.

(See also related New York Times and MSNBC stories.)