How will Huntsman, Utah fare without each other?

Jon Huntsman Jr. has ridden his Harley into the sunset. Gary Herbert is Utah's new chief executive. Questions remain about both men.

Will Huntsman ever return to Utah and be a factor in politics?

Pignanelli: "Voters are weird." — Tucker Carlson, MSNBC senior correspondent. Last month, the Deseret News reviewed the polling results of LDS voters by the prestigious Pew Center for Religion and Politics. The extensive survey confirmed "most Latter-day Saints are conservative and most are Republicans." The overall conclusion is that Mormons are "considerably more Republican and conservative than any other major religious tradition, including members of the evangelical Protestant churches."

Last week, this paper released a Dan Jones survey documenting 88 percent of Republicans approve of Jon Huntsman's performance as governor, and 70 percent of these "conservative Republicans" will vote for Huntsman again. (Needless to say, Huntsman is wildly popular with local Democrats.)

Apparently, Utah LDS voters are proud of a political ideology hard right from the center. Yet these "conservative Mormon Republicans" adore candidates that openly support gay rights, aggressive environmental policies, flexible liquor laws and immigrants concerns and who publicly attack their national GOP leaders in the media. Notwithstanding his positions on controversial issues, Huntsman will be popular with Utahns for a long time. However, once his stint in China is over, many expect him to move onto other positions of diplomacy in the federal government or with global organizations.

Webb: A more important question than whether Huntsman will return is whether he will take his Harley to China. As the Chinese people see him roaring around Beijing, it will be a nice conversation ice breaker with Chinese President Hu Jintao.

I doubt Huntsman will ever seek another Utah political office. Certainly some ambassadors and Cabinet members return to their home states and run for the U.S. Senate. But I think it's more likely that Huntsman will return from China and begin laying the groundwork for a presidential bid.

He has the money, connections and ambition to play at that level. And even if he's not a realistic presidential candidate, he could be a good prospect for vice president, and running for president is the best way to be picked up as a running mate.