Huntsman may well have a fine period as ambassador during 3 years and come back to run in the GOP primaries, with an interesting international experience, maybe with a speech on defending poor American workers against Chinese industries.
As a governor with a high approval rating, he'll quit at the right moment and will be remembered as a good executive.
Can you have a better profile in 2012 ?
More relevant in 2016, though. The 2012 Presidential election looks like a longshot for any Republican unless something goes wrong with a ticker or someone does a John Wilkes Booth.
Sure, I agree with you on the quite likely result of 2012 elections,
but, being one Huntsman, you may well try to become the GOP candidate, to be beaten by Obama but not too much, to reach a better result
than expected and so, becoming the GOP's saviour, you have no problem at all in being chosen in 2016 against too much conservative Jindal and Thune.
Some candidates in the past tried one or more times before succeeding in !
Not much, granted... Very few, in fact...
But I've been just trying to show that Huntsman is not out for 2012...