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Remember that horrible moment in presidential history when Bill Clinton appeared on the Arsenio Hall Show playing a sax all Rob Loweian from St. Elmo’s Fire? It was like pop culture and celebrity and politics had jumped the proverbial shark all at once in a trifecta of utter deflated failure. Since that saxcapade moment, nearly every politician has tried to show they’re down with the cool kids (read: exploiting their base), either talking about their love for Dylan songs they’ve never heard or Toby Keith tunes they’d rather not.
Which brings us to this moment in presidential history. In this week’s Entertainment Weekly, Barack Obama reveals his love for The Dick Van Dyke Show and Sheryl Crow, while John McCain reveals he wants to be Batman and that he liked the new Indiana Jones movie because "the old guy wins."
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4 Comments »
Comment posted August 17, 2008 @ 10:05 am
Oh please. Clinton going on Arsenio Hall was not what energized the youth vote. “Good politics” is actually focusing on the issues that matter to a younger generation and then following through with the promises. His appearance looked silly then, and it looks silly today. Your anecdotal evidence (you have a t-shirt?) is not evidence that a single appearance delivered a message.
Comment posted August 15, 2008 @ 2:32 pm
That sax filled visit to Arsenio was a very important one to Clinton. It was used to energize the youth vote, and by any measure was successful. I have a t-shirt depicting it with the slogan, “Clinton, the cure for the blues”.
Just because something happened 16 years ago doesn’t mean it should be ridiculed like this. Every generation has their various things, but the central aspect of the politics is important. In this case, the message was “I can relate to the new generation”. By not taking himself so damned seriously, Clinton appeared to be a new generation of leader. He appealed to Gen-Xers at the core of their cynical selves.
Don’t pay attention to the generation-bound substance – that’s very shallow. Pay attention to why this was good politics at the time, which it was. Whatever Obama does now will also look silly in 16 years, which happens all the time in politics. It’s 90% corn no matter what you do. But masters like Clinton at the top of his game know how to do it up. The message was delivered.
Comment posted August 15, 2008 @ 9:32 am
That sax filled visit to Arsenio was a very important one to Clinton. It was used to energize the youth vote, and by any measure was successful. I have a t-shirt depicting it with the slogan, “Clinton, the cure for the blues”.
Just because something happened 16 years ago doesn't mean it should be ridiculed like this. Every generation has their various things, but the central aspect of the politics is important. In this case, the message was “I can relate to the new generation”. By not taking himself so damned seriously, Clinton appeared to be a new generation of leader. He appealed to Gen-Xers at the core of their cynical selves.
Don't pay attention to the generation-bound substance – that's very shallow. Pay attention to why this was good politics at the time, which it was. Whatever Obama does now will also look silly in 16 years, which happens all the time in politics. It's 90% corn no matter what you do. But masters like Clinton at the top of his game know how to do it up. The message was delivered.
Comment posted August 17, 2008 @ 5:05 am
Oh please. Clinton going on Arsenio Hall was not what energized the youth vote. “Good politics” is actually focusing on the issues that matter to a younger generation and then following through with the promises. His appearance looked silly then, and it looks silly today. Your anecdotal evidence (you have a t-shirt?) is not evidence that a single appearance delivered a message.
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