Political Celebrities

Walking around our nation's capital taught me a great deal. All the usual tourist hotspots were bustling--the Capital; the White House; the Lincoln Memorial; the War Memorials; etc. Being the nerd that I am, I visited all of them. Being the extreme nerd I took it one step furter. Despite the fact that Congress was not in session, I went to the offices of the Congressmen from my area, and both of my state's Senators' offices (at least while Talent's office is still Talent's office). The halls were long and mostly empty. The pace was slow.

All of the staffers were still there, fielding phone calls and checking their e-mail (or looking for jobs if their candidate lost). They were generally nice people. Talent's were particuarly friendly. I also stopped by McCain's office--his staffers are quite funny and realistic, noting that their guy is the front-runner "for now".

Walking around the Congressional offices produces an amazing feeling: these are real people. Those we lambast, praise, vote for, vote against, support, curse, and treat as political celebrities are real people. They have to walk down those long halls. They have to obey the "don't walk" sign between their offices and Congress. They have to open those huge office doors. They have to ask their staff who called. It's not some giant TV show, and it's not just stuff that happens in the newspaper.

The Freak Show that is American politics has made it all to easy to pretend that these people aren't real. In the mind of Joe American they are all playing one big reality TV show. If one of them screws up they get voted off.

This is more than a TV show, though. This is the future of our country and, in turn, the future of the world. The people who grace those offices have to be amazing people. They must be the ones who are simultaneously serious enough to handle foreign affairs, domestic policy, economic theory, and the like. Yet at the same time they must be nimble, agile, and creative enough to avoid the "gottcha" media, the mudslinging, the YouTube generation, and the Freakshow itself. Walking around their offices makes it all the more impressive that these officials are not actors--they are real people who have done one heck of a job to inherit that office.

While there are plenty of positive things to be said about these folks, the reality is that ideas matter. Policy matters. Decisions matter. These very real people have the potential to do both very real good and very real harm. The person who will become the 44th president will be the one to walk the fine line between utilizing the Freakshow and having the Freakshow blow up in his/her face.

There are tons of great things to be said about the advancements in technology and media. People can now have access to nearly anything a politician says. You can send him/her an e-mail. You can call his/her office. You can blog about them. You can see that person in real-time debating ideas. All of this is great for democracy. Unfortunately, the negative inevitably comes with the positive.

One of those negatives is that we now treat our politicians like celebrities, rather than as our representatives. It's now more about how Hillary looked or sounded doing something, than what she was actually doing. Press conferences have become about raising one's stature rather than raising the issues. Commercials are meant to tug your heartstrings. It sucks.

Here's how you can tell who will be President in 2008. When a candidate starts to become a front-runner, ask "what image do I have of this person in my head". Then ask "is this the image this person wants me to have". If then answer to question number two is "yes", that person has a real shot at becoming president. If the answer is "no", write that person off.

We'll talk more about this in the coming months as the candidates begin to emerge and shape their images. For now, keep this in mind: these real people live in the world of serious ideas, but must win in the world of serious celebrity. The one who can shape his/her celebrity image to that of a serious, hardworking, idea-driven, likable candidate will win. Guaranteed. The one who loses control of their image will lose.

[Editor's note] If you live in Texas, take note that at least one of Kay Baily Hutchinson's staffers is a real b----. I tried to make conversation with her on the elevator, only to get a look and furrowed brow that implied "sure, Congress is not in session, and I'm running meaningless errands, but I'm too busy doing absolutley nothing to consider your existence". You should probably write your Senator and tell her as much. Coming from a Texan, it might mean something. [End Editor's Note]