Mike Huckabee plays guitar and jokes about his weight on The Tonight Show.
Last night on Jay Leno, Mike Huckabee put in the best late night performance in presidential history, potentially catapulting himself to a win in Iowa tonight and gaining enough momentum to march on to victory in South Carolina. As I explained when Fred Thompson launched his campaign on late night television, these types of appearances are a powerful new strategic tool in campaigns.
On late night shows, candidates are usually able to offer their best personal narrative, and hopefully in the process, prime memories of likability and strong character. The appearance on a late night show can also generate positive news coverage and positive buzz at the office, on blogs, or among friends. Most importantly, when candidates go on late night comedy, they reach the limited number of "persuadables" left in the electorate, non-news audiences who have few other sources of information about the candidate, winning their support and most importantly in Iowa tonight, giving that added motivation to actually turn out and caucus. [This ability to bring latent supporters into the electoral process by way of entertainment and celebrity venues is on greatest display with the Obama campaign and their Oprah strategy, which I first wrote about back in September.]
Huckabee's brilliance as a communicator shouldn't be underestimated. In fact, Kathleen Hall Jamieson, the leading historian of presidential communications, calls Huckabee the best she has seen since Reagan. Here's what she said in a must read interview on the Bill Moyers program (transcript):
....I haven't seen a politician who has his talent to connect with voters since Ronald Reagan. If you just listen to him on radio, there is a communication sense, a sense of him as a communicator that telegraphs an immediate identification that's really very powerful. And the question is: Does that telegraphy distract you from asking questions about who he is and what he stands for? And if so it's a net political advantage. It may not be a net advantage ultimately in the translation of governance.
Politics
Comments
I am sad to agree with you. He was great on Leno last night. Watching him, I realized that he would not go down as easily as everyone seems to believe (myself included). He really is pretty charming and he doesn't give off a crazy nut vibe at all. If the media gets behind him, and refusing to spotlight his insane comments and beliefs then he could be the next president.
Posted by: Jim RL | January 3, 2008 9:49 AM
Perhaps things would be different if the media were capable of asking useful questions rather than pandering to the interviewee.
Posted by: apy | January 3, 2008 10:00 AM
I was following his bass line. Then he put the bass down, and I could still hear the bass line. That's good bass playing, inspiring the guitar to keep going when you are done...
Posted by: Greg Laden | January 3, 2008 10:06 AM
Best since Reagan?? Erhm...except for that Clinton fellow...
Posted by: Marie | January 3, 2008 12:18 PM
I'm sure the Tonight Show Bassist 8 feet from Huckabee with his Tobias 5 String in hand had nothing to do with the bass line of that impromptu jam session... that was such a desperate attempt to appeal to the 20 somethings... give me a break. His views on, well pretty much everything are redonkulously terrible.
Posted by: zer0 | January 3, 2008 5:16 PM
Your post has me very frightened.
Posted by: Erik | January 3, 2008 9:15 PM
I think better word would be manipulator.
Posted by: T_U_T | January 4, 2008 5:47 AM
The best communicator since Reagan? Oh, like he's a vacuous talking head with a whistling hole where his mind should be, but a really great demeanour and an actor's highly-trained ability to recite preprogrammed lines on cue? (Aside from little "jokes" like the one about launching missiles in fifteen minutes, that is?)
I'm a communications professional. If Reagan epitomises communications, I'd better damn well find a new job description.
Posted by: Interrobang | January 4, 2008 2:41 PM
Greg Laden's right. First, most viewers don't know the difference between a bass guitar and the usual variety, and probably thought it was Hucky wailing that lead (nope-Kevin Eubanks). Also, note the guy sitting behind Eubanks--that's a 6-string bass he's playing. The whole time.
Posted by: Sven DiMilo | January 7, 2008 2:14 PM