"Ya gotta be a football hero"
Wes Clark is a patriot. I doubt even his Democratic opponents would dispute that claim. Yet not since the laughable 1992 Bob Kerrey (of Nebraska, not John of Massachusetts) ice-rink ad, has there been such an obvious effort by a presidential candidate to pander to voters with sports metaphors and local iconography.
If you missed it (and I have reason to think many folks outside New England did), during the New England Patriots' Saturday night match against the "J-E-T-S Jets, Jets, Jets" we were treated to presidential candidate Wesley Clark discussing the need for a strong "defense" (with the accent on the "de") and appealing to our eternal longing for "a heck of a quarterback." True, there was Wes Clark dressed in a New England Patriots sweatshirt, telling us that "deep down, we're all Patriots" (which should come as a shock to Oakland Raiders and Miami Dolphins fans, among others).
What was the point of this ad? Was Clark trying to be cute? You could almost see in his face that he had trouble taking himself seriously as he stood there holding a football, and hoping that only the New England affiliates would broadcast the ad. But the message, ultimately, was as vague as any I've seen, the kind of strategic ambiguity that tells us nothing about Clark at all, except that he implicitly embodies the All-American characteristics of: "leadership, teamwork, spirit, sacrifice, commitment." We are left to fill in on our own precisely where he will lead us, whose team we're playing for, and what we'll be asked to "sacrifice."
As if borrowing from the book of worn-out sports cliches, Clark tells us "when your down, you have to be able to turn things around." (Was the General telling us about his campaign)? And, although he said we must "never give up," he thankfully didn't promise to "give 110%."
I find this kind of ad demeaning to voters and politics alike. It is so obviously an attempt to pander, that it may lead to a negative reaction. And, it goes a long way toward encouraging the tired old sports imagery that has done so much to corrupt the marriage of television and politics. Is this the best we can do?
There's been other new television ads. John Kerry was cured of prostate cancer, Howard Dean reminds us we have the power, and Joe Lieberman pulls out all the stops with the risky strategy of calling himself "a consistent opponent of discrimination."
The best of the new ads, I think, are those by John Edwards, which show the candidate in meetings with voters, discussing corporate corruption and legal favoritism. From my view, the ad will have some traction in NH. Edwards uses the Enron example, but NH people will easily translate to the allegations against our own Tyco executives, or even to the corruption of the local Catholic bishop. The ad is fundamentally about justice and fairness, a principle that resonates deeply for voters of almost every ideological stripe. It articulates a theme the Democrats will have to employ nationally to win the general election. In the Edwards ad, that theme is expressed effectively in clear, simple, and sharp terms.
You have no sense of humor.
You have no sense of humor.
Whether you like Clark or
Whether you like Clark or not, it was a funny ad. You take yourself too seriously.
I personally thought Clark's
I personally thought Clark's "Patriots" ad was charming, and certainly a nice break from the run-of-the-mill campaign stuff clogging the airwaves in New Hampshire.
Contrast it with the Dean ad that aired several times during the Pats vs Jets game, in which Dean seems to lecture viewers. I'd rather watch the incessant beer commercials and truck ads that dominate the football-game airwaves, than have Dean tell me I have the power.
I'm glad to hear that
I'm glad to hear that Senator Edwards' new ad hit the mark for you. As a big supporter of Senator Edwards' campaign, I thought the ad did a good job conveying what we supporters already know: John Edwards is in this fight on behalf of regular Americans against the big corporate interests that now have control of the White House, and indeed Washington as a whole.
Get over your bad
Get over your bad self.
Gee... the ad was funny and cute.
And, when you couple the fact that Clark got the Republicans back over the weekend for their smears on their own veterans, such as John McCain, the whole Patriots ad thing played out beautifully.
In case you haven't read, Clark told a supporter in New Hampshire this weekend that he will defend himself by "beating the sh*t out of" the GOP if they try to besmerch him and his patriotism.
The following day, he kept his promise and, when that "super-Patriot" from Texas, Tom DeLay, opened his mouth to smear Clark, the Clark campaign shut him up: "Wes Clark has seen real combat, given his blood for our country, and commanded troops in battle, which is why he believes we need to win the war on terrorism instead of declaring victory when we all know that the terrorists directly responsible for 9/11 are still out there at large," said Reid Cherlin, a Clark campaign strategist. "The closest to real combat that Tom 'Chicken-Hawk' DeLay has ever come was when he got himself a student deferment from Vietnam and instead suited up in his exterminator outfit and defended the people of Texas against invading cockroaches, marauding red ants and hostile moths," Cherlin continued, referring to DeLay's former pest-control business.
In 1999, DeLay tried to blame minorities for his lack of military experience. According to the Houston Press, DeLay described himself and former Vice-President Dan Quayle as "victims of an unusual phenomenon back in the days of the undeclared Southeast Asian war. 'So many minority youths had volunteered for the well-paying military positions to escape poverty and the ghetto that there was literally no room for patriotic folks like himself.' Satisfied with the pronouncement, which dumbfounded more than a few of his listeners who had lived the sixties, DeLay marched off to the convention."
http://www.clark04.com/story/52/
I am so loving this! Wes just gave me my Christmas present! Way to go, General!
Glad Edwards ads meet with
Glad Edwards ads meet with your approval--they're doing him a fat lot of good otherwise.
Keripes! You sound like
Keripes! You sound like Susan Sontag reviewing the Hardy Boys. Lighten up.
Well since I liked the ad, I
Well since I liked the ad, I guess that means I'm too dumb to listen to public radio. I'll remember that the next time they are having a fund drive.
You can watch "Patriot" and
You can watch "Patriot" and all of Clark's other TV ads via the Web. http://clark04.com/ads/
Better yet, watch American
Better yet, watch American Son:
http://www.clark04.com/americanson/
(QuickTime Required)
How can I trust the opinion
How can I trust the opinion of someone who doesn't know the difference between "your" and "you're"?
And if we are really, really good--and really, really lucky--Wes Clark will be our quarterback for eight wonderful years.
"You could almost see in his
"You could almost see in his face that he had trouble taking himself seriously as he stood there holding a football, and hoping that only the New England affiliates would broadcast the ad."
He looked like he wasn't taking himself seriously because the ad was intended to be humorous. Worked for me.
Wes Clark is the Real Deal.
Wes Clark is the Real Deal.
UPDATE on the "Patriot" ad
UPDATE on the "Patriot" ad for Wes Clark (Jan. 11). I've seen two New England Patriots games since the original, and one-time, airing of the "Patriot" ad I mentioned in the original post above. The latest was the playoff game last night against Tennessee. Now, I didn't see every ad that ran in between halves and quarters, or before and after the games, but I saw a lot of them, and didn't notice the Wes Clark "everyone's a Patriot" ad. You know, that ad so many of his supporters thought so funny and effective . . .
HMMMM, maybe the Clark campaign realized that most voters took the ad the same way I did? Maybe they were ashamed to have their candidate reduced to such obvious pandering? Otherwise, where's that vaunted Clark campaign sense of humor I heard so much about from the true believers? I'll be looking for the Patriots ad during next week's game, but won't hold my breath.