Reid: Huntsman over Romney in GOP field

Even though he won't be able to cast a vote, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) picked his favorite Mormon candidate in the GOP presidential field on Tuesday: Jon Huntsman.

Reid, a Mormon, was asked if the country is ready for a president of his faith because there are two in the Republican primary race. Huntsman, the former U.S. ambassador to China faces Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor.

"Certainly they're not ready for the former governor of Massachusetts. Which says in that race if I had a choice I would favor Huntsman over Romney," he told reporters at the Capitol.

Reid's comments came on the same day that Huntsman made his bid for president official at Liberty State Park in New Jersey. A recent Gallup poll showed that 22 percent of the public would not vote for a Mormon candidate for president.

Reid did not directly address the issue of religion, but criticized Romney, the front-runner, for changing his position on issues such as gay marriage, saying "he doesn't know who he is."

"Here's a man who doesn't know who he is. He was for gay marriage when he was governor. Now he's against it. He was for abortion when he was governor. Now he's against it," he said.

The Nevada senator also said that Democrats modeled their healthcare law after the measure Romney signed in Massachusetts.

"Now he's trying to run from that. If someone doesn't know who they are, they shouldn't be president of the United States," he added.

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