Pat Garofolo parses Jon Huntsman's argument:
Huntsman is absolutely right that a fee would help limit the growth of the biggest banks, assuming that the fee grew heftier as a bank accumulated more assets. Such a fee would also help level the playing field between large and small institutions, negating some of the advantages in access to funding that a large bank has. The Congressional Budget Office has said that a bank tax would “improve the competitive position of small- and medium-size banks, probably leading to some increase in their share of the loan market.”
Jim Pethokoukis adds:
To some degree this is the Obama WH approach with its now-moribund "Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee." But that was sold as a way to repay TARP, while Huntsman seems to want an escalating tax that would a) create a self-financed bailout fund and b) make it too costly for banks to get too big.
Tim Carney sees this as part of a larger shift to free-market populism in the GOP. I think it's a terrific idea – perhaps the first one to emerge from the Republican race.
The Dish 