Former Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman said Tuesday that individual states should take the lead on responding to the coronavirus outbreak rather than the federal government.
“In a country that believes in federalism, states are the laboratories for problem solving and solutions,” said Huntsman during a Tuesday appearance on Fox News. “We will find out how best to deliver test kits, how best to deal with things like quarantine through state leadership.”
Huntsman, who served as the Trump administration’s ambassador to Russia said that country is working hard to divide Americans and sow chaos ahead of the 2020 election, and the panic surrounding the coronavirus is a perfect vector for accomplishing that.
“They want to see us divided. They want to drive a wedge into politics,” he said.
“The American people do not understand the expertise at their disposal to divide us, to prey on our divisions. They take both sides of an issue to deepen the political divide. They are active during mass shootings. They are active during racial tension. They take advantage of us. We think it’s fellow Americans who are taking extreme positions sometimes. It’s not,” he added.
Huntsman is seeking to return to the Utah governor’s mansion after more than a decade away from the job. He resigned in 2009 to become ambassador to China under President Barack Obama.
“I’m not very good on the sidelines, and I’m a believer that major issues are going to be solved at the state level,” he said, explaining why he’s running for governor again. “If we are really going to solve things like health care and education, it’s going to be figured out on the state level, and Utah is the most exciting place to serve anywhere.
Watch the clip below via Fox News:
