PRESIDENT OPRAH: AMERICA’S DREAMING
Jan. 12th, 2018 11:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
defrogAs you no doubt know, Oprah Winfrey gave an awesome acceptance speech at the Golden Globes and now some people are demanding she run for president.
I am not one of them.
Not because I don’t like Oprah (I do) and not because I disagree with her speech (I don’t – I thought she nailed it), but because I really don’t like the idea of someone with zero govt/political experience holding the highest office in the land.
You can read this article for a good sum-up of the pros and cons of an Oprah campaign – personally I think the cons outweigh the pros. This Intercept article goes a little overboard, but I agree with the overall point it’s trying to make: America needs a POTUS who has at least some experience running a government who can also maneuver in the political arena in which Presidents must operate, both domestically and internationally.
To be fair, I understand why she’s an appealing option for liberals. After eight years of Obama and just one year of Trump, we could use someone inspirational, as well as someone who isn't yet another Old White Dude. Or at last someone who reads. I get that.
But I think it says a lot that people increasingly look to entertainers as POTUS material. It’s like when some liberals wanted Jon Stewart to run when his sole qualifications were (1) mocking Republicans and Fox News five nights a week and (2) expressing informed opinions they agreed with. But being POTUS entails more than just going on TV and making big speeches or telling jokes about the opposition.
The problem, I reckon – and this is what bothers me more than an Oprah candidacy specifically – is that we’re a nation so obsessed with celebrity culture that most people know more about entertainment programs and pop culture than they do about government policy issues. You’ve probably noticed by now that Presidential candidates pretty much have to do late night talk shows, The Daily Show and SNL guest appearances as part of the campaign trail if they’re ever going to have a shot.
We’re at a point in history where people see the POTUS as just another TV celebrity whose main job is to entertain us (which is arguably one reason Trump got the job, Electoral College flukes notwithstanding). Also, as Vox tells it:
It’s a moot point, of course, since I don't think Oprah will run – she’s said she’s looking into it, but I think she’ll eventually decide it’s not worth the pain and that she can be a more effective agent of change dong what she’s doing now. At least I hope she will.
If she does decide to run, then there are two obvious questions:
1. Would I vote for her?
It would depend on who else was running, although right now I have absolutely no reason to believe that the current trash fire that is the GOP will produce anyone worth considering. If it was a choice of Oprah or re-electing Trump, then sure, I wouldn’t hesitate.
2. Would she win?
Again, it depends on who she’s up against, as well as how she runs her campaign and demonstrates a grasp of the issues. But I think she’d probably at least make it competitive. (Or at least the Russians will make it look that way.*)
It also depends on whether the liberal base will back her or do what many did with Hillary Clinton – voted third-party or voted for Trump because they wanted a REAL liberal candidate like Bernie Sanders, not Ersatz Liberal Hillary. It’s relevant because, as this Twitter thread from Jeremy C Young points out, in terms of her known political views Oprah is generally more Hillary than Bernie. So if Liberals For Oprah are hoping for another Bernie Sanders, they’re in for disappointment. But considering how the last election worked out for the #NeverHillary crowd, I’m hoping they’ll decide that’s not really the best strategy.
I’m a celebrity get me outta here,
This is dF
*Kidding. I think.
I am not one of them.
Not because I don’t like Oprah (I do) and not because I disagree with her speech (I don’t – I thought she nailed it), but because I really don’t like the idea of someone with zero govt/political experience holding the highest office in the land.
You can read this article for a good sum-up of the pros and cons of an Oprah campaign – personally I think the cons outweigh the pros. This Intercept article goes a little overboard, but I agree with the overall point it’s trying to make: America needs a POTUS who has at least some experience running a government who can also maneuver in the political arena in which Presidents must operate, both domestically and internationally.
To be fair, I understand why she’s an appealing option for liberals. After eight years of Obama and just one year of Trump, we could use someone inspirational, as well as someone who isn't yet another Old White Dude. Or at last someone who reads. I get that.
But I think it says a lot that people increasingly look to entertainers as POTUS material. It’s like when some liberals wanted Jon Stewart to run when his sole qualifications were (1) mocking Republicans and Fox News five nights a week and (2) expressing informed opinions they agreed with. But being POTUS entails more than just going on TV and making big speeches or telling jokes about the opposition.
The problem, I reckon – and this is what bothers me more than an Oprah candidacy specifically – is that we’re a nation so obsessed with celebrity culture that most people know more about entertainment programs and pop culture than they do about government policy issues. You’ve probably noticed by now that Presidential candidates pretty much have to do late night talk shows, The Daily Show and SNL guest appearances as part of the campaign trail if they’re ever going to have a shot.
We’re at a point in history where people see the POTUS as just another TV celebrity whose main job is to entertain us (which is arguably one reason Trump got the job, Electoral College flukes notwithstanding). Also, as Vox tells it:
… when we fantasize about electing a celebrity as president, we’re not imagining that Oprah is secretly a brilliant legislator or that the Rock has hidden depths as a policy wonk. We’re imagining that the perfect, untouchable, and morally righteous figure of our dreams can stride straight off the screen into the White House and make everything better.
And I suppose it’s hard to blame them when the status quo is mostly career politicians offering more of the same old crooked shenanigans. The idea of an outsider coming in and shake things up is an appealing one. I’d like that too – but I’d rather it happen at the local, state and Congressional levels, if only because it has to happen there before an outsider POTUS could reasonably affect real change anyway. So if Oprah started by running for senator, say, I’d be okay with that. It’s a moot point, of course, since I don't think Oprah will run – she’s said she’s looking into it, but I think she’ll eventually decide it’s not worth the pain and that she can be a more effective agent of change dong what she’s doing now. At least I hope she will.
If she does decide to run, then there are two obvious questions:
1. Would I vote for her?
It would depend on who else was running, although right now I have absolutely no reason to believe that the current trash fire that is the GOP will produce anyone worth considering. If it was a choice of Oprah or re-electing Trump, then sure, I wouldn’t hesitate.
2. Would she win?
Again, it depends on who she’s up against, as well as how she runs her campaign and demonstrates a grasp of the issues. But I think she’d probably at least make it competitive. (Or at least the Russians will make it look that way.*)
It also depends on whether the liberal base will back her or do what many did with Hillary Clinton – voted third-party or voted for Trump because they wanted a REAL liberal candidate like Bernie Sanders, not Ersatz Liberal Hillary. It’s relevant because, as this Twitter thread from Jeremy C Young points out, in terms of her known political views Oprah is generally more Hillary than Bernie. So if Liberals For Oprah are hoping for another Bernie Sanders, they’re in for disappointment. But considering how the last election worked out for the #NeverHillary crowd, I’m hoping they’ll decide that’s not really the best strategy.
I’m a celebrity get me outta here,
This is dF
*Kidding. I think.
