Do stand-ins bring in votes?
BY EMMERT DOSE
For Lifestyles | Posted: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 12:00 am
Isn't it hard to believe that Chelsea Clinton, a 12-year-old girl when her father was first elected president, is now an attractive, articulate 27-year-old woman? Chelsea was pushed into service for Mom's presidential campaign in an attempt to gain support from young people. Racine County residents were in the audiences for Chelsea's Wisconsin appearances.
I was impressed with the way she handled herself, and at least one magazine writer believes Chelsea gained votes for Mom in California. (The deadline for this column was before the Wisconsin primary so I can't draw any conclusions - as if I could anyway.)
Having family members appear in behalf of candidates is normal today. Michelle Obama appears here and there for her spouse, as does William Jefferson Clinton for his mate. John Edwards' wife and daughter campaigned in his behalf before he dropped out. In past elections spouses have hit the campaign trail, among them Tipper Gore, Elizabeth Dole and Laura Bush, to name a few.
Chelsea and Michelle are easy on the eyes as they appear before audiences. So are Cindy McCain and Ann Romney, although I don't remember seeing them much except next to their husbands during victory speeches. Hillary - whose ambition is to be the Pantsuit President - has a pretty smile. And, I understand, Janet Huckabee has a nice personality.
Looking good is important in national politics. I don't think Abraham Lincoln, John Adams or William Howard Taft would get very far in today's television-covered campaigns. Barack Obama and Wilbur Mitt Romney are handsome. John McCain is distinguished looking. Rudy Giuliani is neither. Mike Huckabee looks like the guy next door. John Edwards' hair is envied by Donald Trump. Many women think Bill Clinton is cute (that's their word, not mine).
But good looking or not, I've often wondered how much good, if any, sending spouses, children and other kinfolk to campaign does for the candidates.
I remember the campaign of '76 (Note to young readers, if there are any: That's 1976, not 1876) when I interviewed Chip Carter in the Journal Times newsroom. He was here in his father's behalf. Does anyone actually believe Chip's appearances in Wisconsin or anywhere else made one bit of difference in James Earl Carter's campaign?
Then there was Barbara Bush making kringle in Racine. The burning question here is whether the gain in kringle votes was enough to offset the loss of broccoli votes for George I.
I guess sending kinfolk on the campaign trail dates back to 1960 when the 834-member Kennedy clan stumped in John's behalf. Brothers, sisters and in-laws crisscrossed the nation.
Although I don't remember if JFK's brother-in-law Peter Lawford did much campaigning. I don't think he was well-accepted by the Kennedys except for Pat Kennedy Lawford, who later made it unanimous by ditching the Rat Pack member.
Nor do I know if Eleanor Roosevelt stumped for FDR. I know Bessie Truman didn't help Harry give 'em hell, and while Mamie Eisenhower liked Ike as much as the Huckabee supporters like Mike, she just soberly sat by while the general made his appeal to the voters.
Let me digress for a moment to comment on things that have absolutely nothing to do with the subject at hand.
Digression No. 1: During the 1964 presidential campaign, my friends wondered for whom I would vote because: 1) Lyndon Johnson's running mate, Hubert Humphrey, hailed from my home state of Minnesota, and 2) My favorite person in the campaign was Mrs. Barry Goldwater.
Digression No. 2: A couple of years later I was talking to someone who said, "People warned me that if I voted for Goldwater, the war in Vietnam would get worse. But I voted for Goldwater anyway and, sure enough, the war in Vietnam got worse."
Digression No. 3: If you want to shake the hand that shook the hand of president wannabe Estes Kefauver in 1956 in St. Cloud (a city in Minnesota 60 miles north of Lester Prairie), I'll be at the Racine Public Library Thursday from 1 to 1:05 p.m.
Here's one other thing about not only this election but also the election of 2016 that someone on television mentioned. It's food for thought. If Hillary Clinton is elected president and wins a second term, at the end of those eight years, Chelsea will be 35, old enough to run for president.
But would she be able to attract the mature adult vote the way John McCain would?
Emmert Dose is a retired Journal Times reporter. Write to him c/o The Journal Times, 212 Fourth St., Racine, WI 53403.