Well, this humble blog has gotten a lot of attention as the "Huntsman/Reid" rumor made the rounds. (See below.) However, Greg Sargent of the Washington Post has managed to do something I could never do: He spoke to Jon Huntsman Sr. on the phone.

Jon Huntsman the elder has denied being Reid's source for the claim that Mitt paid no taxes. I'll take him at his word. So that's that.

In our previous post, we showed evidence that the source could not be the younger Huntsman, the one who ran for president.

That said, the door remains ever-so-slightly cracked open. 

“That’s absolutely false,” Huntsman said of the speculation. “I have absolutely no knowledge of Bain or Mitt Romney’s tax returns.”

Abby Huntsman (daughter of Jon Jr. and granddaughter of Jon Sr.) co-wrote an article about Bain execs who said that Mitt would never have run for president if he (Mitt) knew that his taxes would be released. I don't think that Abby's co-author, Ryan Grim, is the one who got through to those Bain guys. So someone in the Huntsman clan knows someone at Bain who, in turn, knows about Mitt Romney's tax returns.

I take some umbrage at this...

Chuck Warren, a Salt Lake Republican strategist who endorsed Romney in the primary and has fundraised for the younger Huntsman's gubernatorial bid, dismissed the speculation as "ridiculous."

"I mean, people who believe this are the same people who espouse a theory that Big Foot is making crop circles with his space ship," said Warren, whose firm is Silver Bullet. "Besides the obvious fact that Mr. Huntsman is not Gov. Romney's accountant... he is simply a more honorable man than that.

Well, Chuck, how do you account for Abby's article, referenced above? Nobody claimed that anyone in the Huntsman family is Romney's accountant. I just said they have sources at Bain. Abby's piece indicates as much. Maybe you should talk to her.

I have no opinion on the Bigfoot issue. But I find it easier to believe in Sasquatch than in that wild tale about Joe Smith and his golden plates.

And now if you'll excuse me, Chuck, I'm off to grab some burgers with the Three Nephites. You know how those guys are: Lots of great stories, but they never pick up the check.