Huntsman Drama: New Staff Shake Up, Reports Of Infighting

Jon Huntsman
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More bad headlines for Jon Huntsman, the man proudly waving the pro-science banner in the Republican presidential field.

National Journal reports that Team Huntsman is going through another round of changes at the top just a couple months after the campaign manager was replaced.

This time, it’s the finance team on the chopping block, and NJ reports it was an argument about spending at the Hunstman operation that caused the changes:

Jim McCray, the Republican presidential candidate’s national finance consultant, has been sidelined and replaced after a disagreement with senior campaign advisor John Weaver over how much the campaign is spending – a move that has set off a shakeup inside the campaign’s fundraising team, according to a source familiar with the situation.

In a conference call with national donors on Thursday, the campaign announced that Ann Herberger, a former fundraiser for Tim Pawlenty’s now-defunct presidential campaign, had effectively replaced McCray, but said McCray would stay on as a national advisor. Huntsman spokesman Tim Miller emphasized that McCray is still on board, but did not answer questions about the other changes.

Friday morning, Miller sent a statement to reporters announcing some new names at the campaign:

Tom Loeffler, Campaign Chairman
Ann Woods Herberger, Senior Finance Director
Ben Porritt, Senior Adviser for Communications
Sarah Crawford Stewart, New Hampshire Senior Adviser

A source told NJ that the shakeup is a sign Huntsman’s terrible poll numbers are starting to take their toll on Huntsman fundraising:

“The big boys, the bundlers of the world are not writing checks for a guy who’s running at 1.5 percent,” said “a Huntsman supporter on K Street.”

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