WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman, whose presidential campaign gained no traction with Republicans, has joined a group to build bipartisan consensus.
Huntsman participated in a conference call for No Labels, The Salt Lake Tribune reported Tuesday. He is believed likely to become one of the group's leaders.
"Too many people in Washington believe that leading consists of imposing their will on the opposition. It is true of both parties," Huntsman told the 700 No Labels supporters who participated in the call. "This all or nothing leadership is an attitude that may work on military battlefields or in competitive business markets ... but it's a recipe for dysfunction in democratic politics."
No Labels was founded by former U.S. Comptroller David Walker and two political operatives, Republican Mark McKinnon and Democrat Nancy Jacobsen.
Mark Burbank, a political scientist at the University of Utah, said bipartisan efforts do not have a record of success.
"It kind of fits his take on politics well," Burbank said. "The problem is, it's unlikely to go anywhere. ... It's easy to say, 'Let's compromise.' It's hard to argue against that. The problem is always what are we compromising."
