After a four-year hiatus from the limelight following his 2005 indictment for violating campaign-finance laws, Tom DeLay will boldly attempt to resurrect his tarnished public image by appearing on…Dancing With the Stars. That’s right, the man notorious in the political realm as the enforcer of the party line, who operated under the moniker, “The Hammer,” would rather ‘float like a butterfly’ than ‘sting like a bee.’
It seems DeLay has been an avid follower of the hit ABC series for quite some time now. In the past, he has utilized the show’s publicity as a tool for promoting conservative values. In 2006 he endorsed country-singing contestant, Sara Evans, stating, “Sara Evans has been a strong supporter of the Republican Party and represents good American values in the media… Let’s show Sara that same support by watching and voting for her each week to help her win this competition.”
It’s now his turn to act as the party’s latest ambassador in the reality dance competition, although we hope he does better than other conservatives who have made appearances like former MSNBC host Tucker Carlson.
In fairness, it’s wrong to criticize only Republicans for flagrant displays of media-seeking idiocy. Obama is infamous for his dancing appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show which proved he had no rhythm:
And aside from antagonizing insurance providers nationwide, Obama created controversy this summer when he took the mound at the MLB All Star game and fired a pitch that (generously) trickled across home plate. We understand that the President is a basketball man but if you’re going to throw out the first pitch, at least practice. It’s a bit emasculating for the rest of the country when our leader is drawing comparisons to an anonymous beauty queen sporting a Detroit windbreaker.
His mom jeans didn’t help things.
Arguably, the most disturbing of all the political entertainment gambits remains ‘MC Rove’s’ performance at the Radio and Television Correspondent’s dinner in March 2007. The video is barely watchable as Karl Rove enthusiastically hops around the stage grunting in his best rapper voice every time he is handed the microphone, which, thankfully, is few and far between. We have no doubt this video provided sustenance to liberal bloggers for weeks, if they could stomach it. It’s bad enough we’re not going to post it. You’ll have to follow the link.
Yet, there’s so much more: We’ve got Sen. Ted Kennedy singing in Spanish, Sen. Tom Coburn singing Rocket Man, and Bill Clinton being roped into a rendition of Imagine. And, of course, there used to be a barbershop quartet of Republican senators named the “Singing Senators” who weren’t half bad (compared to the rest of them). They have since been scattered to due scandal and electoral defeat.
For our sanity, how about leaving the dancing and singing to the entertainers, and the politics (unfortunately) to the politicians? That is, unless, becoming the nightly punch line on the Daily Show is their ultimate goal. In which case, carry on!
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