Paul campaign: Anti-Huntsman "Manchurian Candidate" video "disgusting"

By: Brian Montopoli
Topics: Campaign 2012

Updated 5:21 p.m. Eastern Time

Ron Paul's campaign is calling on the person who put up a video deeming Jon Huntsman a "Manchurian candidate" to take the spot down, calling it "disgusting."

The video, posted to YouTube by someone identifying him- or herself as a Paul supporter (the username is "NHLiberty4Paul"), is at left. It shows Huntsman, the former U.S. ambassador to China, talking to his adopted daughter in Mandarin, deems him "The Manchurian Candidate" and asks "what's he hiding?" Over generic Chinese-themed music, it asks if "China Job's daughters" are "even adopted" and caricatures him as former Chinese leader Mao Zedong. The video ends with a call to vote for Paul.

"The video is disgusting," Paul campaign chairman Jesse Benton told Hotsheet, adding that whoever "put that up should remove it immediately."

Paul's New Hampshire communications director Kate Schackai told RealClearPolitics and CBS News' Scott Conroy the Paul campaign had nothing to do with the spot.

Huntsman criticized the spot when asked about it Friday in New Hampshire.

"If somebody wants to poke fun at me for speaking Chinese, that's OK," said Huntsman, who has seven daughters, two of whom are adopted, one from China and one from India. "What I object to is bringing forward pictures and videos of my adopted daughters and suggesting there is some sinister motive there."

On Thursday night, the Huntsman campaign called on the Paul campaign to condemn the spot.

Huntsman, the former Utah governor, has spent months campaigning almost exclusively in New Hampshire in hopes of a stronger-than-expected showing in next Tuesday's primary. Polls show him with support hovering around 8-10 percent, far below Mitt Romney (who takes about 40 percent support) and Paul, who is polling around 17 percent.

Update: Though there is no evidence the Paul campaign is involved with the ad, Cindy McCain is criticizing Paul for it. On Twitter, she wrote: "I deeply resent the video made using the adopted daughters of@johnhuntsman. @ronpaul shame on you. This has shades of 2000 all over it."

McCain is married to 2008 GOP presidential nominee John McCain, who has endorsed Mitt Romney. The "shades of 2000" claim appears to be a reference to the whisper campaign against the McCain's in South Carolina in 2000, when then-presidential candidate John McCain was hampered by claims he had fathered an "illegitimate black child."

Full CBS News coverage: Ron Paul
Full CBS News coverage: Jon Huntsman

Brian Montopoli
Brian Montopoli is the senior political reporter at CBSNews.com.
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by truthspeakslouder January 9, 2012 11:36 AM EST: Huntsmen daughters talking about how they released the video on a public thread, which they thought was private:
http://orinje.com/threads/430416-The-paulbots-are-going-crazy-with-our-video

Actual screen shot of the original conversation:
http://imgur.com/a/Jw679; Reply to this comment


by CBS_Fritz_Johnson January 8, 2012 4:17 PM EST: Brian Montopoli--the video was produced by Huntsman's daughters. Why aren't out breaking that story? It's as easy as the Anthony Weiner tweets which he initially denied but later had to fess up to because there is an IP address associated with the person posting and it was his own. I understand youtube tags and statistics. Evidence leads straight to Jon2012girls. So they made the spoof video, one the one hand "so what". Most importantly Huntsman himself and his kids and his campaign staff know where it came from. It's a bald faced liar for speaking about it as if they don't. The entire Huntsman team should be shamed, and called onto the carpet by real journalists. The daughters should prove they didn't make it (they did) by allowing Youtube to make public the IP address of the person posting that video, and if that same IP address is connected to the Jon2012girls account. It's a sad day when you realize just how pathetic the media in this country is when they won't investigate an obvious fraud, because they don't like Ron Paul. This is going to backfire.; Reply to this comment


by Clydetexas January 8, 2012 1:41 PM EST: This video is so obviously done by "The System" the same system that keeps calling Ron Paul unelectable.. the reality is the Endorse Liberty videos are awesome, the RevolutionPac videos are awesome. and this crappy video with Huntsman speaking chinese and some old home movie clips.. is getting all the press.. how about the Fake Politics videos? Newt Gingrich(parody) hilarious stuff..; Reply to this comment


by TJphoto January 8, 2012 3:12 AM EST: OK Cindy, where were you when a group supporting Mitt Romney slashed its way across the screen criticizing Newt Grinrich?? It's a two way street Babe!; Reply to this comment


by scotttx January 7, 2012 11:40 PM EST: These social web site should have some sort of service where if something is put up in another names it can be deleted. YouTube should pull this and pass all information onto the FBI for possible criminal intent, That not freedom of speech that pure hate crime in my book. Dr. Paul did the right thing and called for it removal when he found out about it.; Reply to this comment


by Justin-Rogers January 7, 2012 6:54 PM EST: RE: "Update: Though there is no evidence the Paul campaign is involved with the ad..."

Mr. Montopoli - Okay so I appreciate that this was largely a pretty balanced piece. But why not go the distance? If you're going to go to the length of including a disclaimer (thank you), could you not have just shot straight completely? It should read "Though there is no evidence that either the Paul campaign OR EVEN A PAUL SUPPORTER is involved . . . "

For that matter, there is every reason to believe it was NOT a Paul supporter, and there are some suggesting that there is ample evidence to suggest it was actually Huntsman's team that was behind this (something about the statistics behind the YouTube posting). Not being an investigative journalist myself, I really don't know.

How about you? Are there any investigative journalists left? Not saying this is even true, but if it is, it is certainly a much bigger story than the video itself. Just sayin'.; Reply to this comment

by flexsf January 7, 2012 5:11 PM EST

Only a Republican would interpret a video showing international interaction as a negative.

Reply to this comment


by Axidswitch January 7, 2012 6:06 PM EST: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuVhadbMvQo


by ThinkAboutWhoLie January 7, 2012 4:28 PM EST: They all are just disgusting with no moral or ethical backbone. Lie every time they open their mouth! We don't need that! No desirable Republican candidate for President. It's time to Vote with your brain and not with your skin color. Vote Smart! The best man for the Job is in the White House! He need honest partners who are willing to work hard for America! We need independents and hardworking Democrats! It's alright to vote for President Obama! It's alright to let Mitt Romney spend his money to try and buy the White House!It's alright to let Newt Gingrich vent his anger. It's alright to listen to dull, I like sex Taliban acting Santorum. It's alright to listen to the fruit cake Ron Paul and the stem cell research back operated on Perry, who is still on his get high meds., but at the end of the day,,,,they are empty wagons with joke like phrases that are trying to trick you in buying the new suit and flashy watch for a man of substance! It's sad, Huntsman is better than all of them, but not as good as The President!; Reply to this comment

by Mauibrad January 7, 2012 1:23 PM EST

Tell him they're damaged goods: http://******/xkhcVt RT @globeglen Just ran into @Jon2012girls, my son asked if they're married. #StyrofoamPrincesses #jon2012witches

Reply to this comment


by Mauibrad January 7, 2012 1:24 PM EST: Damaged goods: bit . ly / xkhcVt RT @globeglen Just ran into @Jon2012girls, son asked if married. #StyrofoamPrincesses #jon2012witches


by MrSnrub21 January 7, 2012 10:51 AM EST: Everyone should know by now that the Huntsman camp made this ad to discredit Ron Paul. The youtube video has the same tag "jon2012girls" that the Huntsman daughters used to make their Herman Cain "Smokin'" video. Also the webcitation here: http://webcitation {dot} org/64UwUcknd

The Huntsman camp should do the right thing and come clean about what they did instead of blaming Ron Paul.; Reply to this comment