It’s official- Stephen Colbert’s run for the Democratic ticket has been denied- as he just wasn’t viewed as a “legitimate candidate“. And while it’s true that by and large- the entire run was a bizarre comical stunt, at the same time- the entire race for the Presidency has this far been wrought with primarily unintentional comedy and has been chalk full of characters who can hardly be taken seriously. So what are some of the reasons for Colbert’s denial?
While the campaign shtick made for good TV, some Democrats might have gotten uncomfortable flashbacks to the 2000 election, when Green Party candidate Ralph Nader was blamed for siphoning off enough of the vote in Florida that it may have helped George W. Bush defeat Vice President Al Gore. Politico.com chief political columnist Roger Simon said Colbert could have become a legitimate concern.
“If he had gotten on the ballot on the Republican side, where things are really tight, people would have said, ‘This guy can really screw things up,’ ” Simon said. “He would have had three tiers of voters: an admittedly small tier of people who think he should be president, those who want to cast a vote for ‘none of the above’ and try to blow the process up. … They think it’s a joke, so they vote for the guy who is consciously joking — that’s a bigger tier. And then there are the people who don’t think it’s a joke.”
Wait… Bush did win that election? Hmm… ah well… no matter.
So what comes next? Run as an independent? Find another state to try to appeal to? Drop the entire thing altogether?
One thing could be certain in the coming days- with the writer’s strike drawing nearer, Colbert might have considerably more time on his hands.
Popular comedy shows “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and “The Colbert Report” are vulnerable to a Hollywood writers’ strike since they require fresh writing about current events, Viacom Inc said on Friday.
“If there should be a strike, we will evaluate what we do in those time slots,” he said. “As we have done before … we will have reruns for a little while and then we will see what we do with the format.”
Somehow, even if Colbert is out- I still imagine there will be plenty of fodder for comedy in the continuing elections.
Popularity: 3% [?]
November 3rd, 2007 at 12:41 pm
Unfortunately, Colbert would’ve been the most honest politician running! I would’ve loved to see the debates with him included. I thought the office of president was open for any American citizen over the age of 35 to seek. Perhaps voting none of the above is the more acceptable choice than to vote for the elitists of the politico-machine that has turned it into a members-only club. Vote none of the above!!!
November 3rd, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Well, he could still run- the only thing is- he can’t run in either of the major parties at the moment. And as we all know- 3rd party candidates are a tough bunch to sell.
November 3rd, 2007 at 2:09 pm
After I threw away my vote for Ralph Nader back during Bush’s first term, I’ve become very wary of 3rd party independant candidates.
Unfortunately, our system just isn’t designed properly for a 3rd party candidate. They’re essentially just sucking away a small amount of votes that could potential have been the deciding factor between the two major parties.
November 3rd, 2007 at 2:31 pm
Once upon a time Republicans used to stand on democratic platforms and vice versa. There also used to be more than 2 major political parties as well. Unfortunately, very few people actually know that, so no one wants to push a 3rd strong party or more.
I can’t think that Colbert’s intention was to win, but to throw a monkey wrench into the “mockery” of the political system that Democratic Chairman Howe is accusing him of trying to do.
November 3rd, 2007 at 2:33 pm
I guess I could’ve just said devil’s advocate, lol.
November 3rd, 2007 at 6:26 pm
Personally, I think Stewart would have been a much better monkey wrench.