Using the China Appointment for Political Purposes

First Read notes that appointing Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) as ambassador to China “isn’t the first time the Obama White House has used the China ambassadorship for political reasons.”

“Remember, Obama’s first ambassador there was then-Utah Gov. John Huntsman (R), whom the president’s political team back in 2009 viewed as a potential threat in a 2012 general election. (Huntsman ran for president anyway, but having worked for Obama wasn’t seen as a positive by GOP primary voters.) And after Huntsman (who spoke Mandarin) and Gary Locke (a Chinese American), Baucus might seem like a curious choice for U.S. ambassador to China, arguably one of the most crucial relationships to the U.S. economy in particular. But don’t forget he’s been a powerful U.S. senator for years who has some experience when the issue of Most Favored Nation status for China was being shepherded through the Senate.”