Celebrities in Politics is a Recipe for Disaster
Movie stars. Reality TV personalities. Professional Wrestlers. Some of the finest and most beloved entertainers of our time.
And they’re running for political offices.
Celebrities are injecting themselves into politics in unprecedented numbers. Kanye West running for president, Cynthia Nixon running for Governor of New York, Matthew McConaughey flirting with running for Governor of Texas, just to name a few.
None of them are qualified to lead. That’s not a statement about their intelligence or education. It’s simply the fact that they don’t have the experience necessary to govern a state, much less the entire country.
Though I question some of these people’s ability to even lead a book club.
And yet, these are well-known people with large fan-bases who stand a legitimate chance of getting elected simply because of their popularity and face/name recognition.
That they may actually get elected scares the shit out of me. It would be like finding out your surgeon didn’t go to med school, but they played a doctor on TV, so they’re going to cut you open and tinker with you innards. Now breathe this gas and count backwards from ten…
How close are we to this becoming a reality?
Too close if you ask me.
According to The Guardian, as well as several other sources, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is seriously considering running for president, claiming he would run if enough Americans supported him, and “If this is what the people want, then I’ll do that[1].”
I have to admit, I’m a fan of The Rock. He was my favorite wrestler when I was a kid. He’s still the most electrifying man in sports entertainment. And he’s fun to watch on the big screen.
Also known as “The People’s Champion,” The Rock knows how to captivate an audience.
He’s handsome, charming, funny, and extremely charismatic. And based on interviews and accounts from people who’ve interacted with him, Dwayne Johnson seems like a genuinely good guy. We tend to gravitate toward people with those qualities.
However, nothing on that aforementioned list are qualifications for political office, especially the presidency.
…but they will get him votes.
An online poll conducted in mid-April showed 46% of Americans surveyed would vote for The Rock if he ran for president [1].
That could be enough to get him elected.
It’s not that far-fetched. Keep in mind, because The Rock has such a public presence, he has both name and face recognition with a large portion of voters, many of whom won’t know or care about his policies on various national issues. The Rock could get elected by people who simply think it would be cool if he was our president.
He could get elected by people who envision speeches and State of the Union addresses being delivered like a WWE promo.
People who see him managing international conflicts by Rock Bottom-ing foreign leaders through tables and dropping The People’s Elbow in the General Assembly Hall of the United Nations.
As much as I like The Rock, we the people need a more qualified leader than The People’s Champion.
Don’t think it can happen?
I’ll point out that our last president was known to most people because he was on reality TV show. Just sayin’.
Speaking of reality TV, Caitlyn Jenner has announced her intention to run for Governor of California.
According to the New York Times, Jenner has filed the initial paperwork required to run for office. She would run as a republican candidate should the state hold an election recalling current Governor Gavin Newsome[2].
Look…Governor Newsome is no prize. Many of those calling for a recall election site his mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a California resident, I agree with those criticisms. Many of the policies he put in place during the pandemic seemed like half-measures meant to placate the masses. Meanwhile, people lost their jobs, and thousands of small businesses closed, and Los Angeles County became the world leader in frequency of new COVID cases.
Moreover, California has one of the worst homeless problems in the country. During Newsome’s tenure as Governor, California has become the state with the highest percentage of homeless people. Numbers widely vary from source to source, but according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, “California saw a 6.8% increase in homelessness between 2019 and 2020, and a 16.2% increase between 2007 and 2020. This increase from 2019–2020 is the largest increase in a state in that time frame[3].”
Moreover, “the 2020 Annual Homeless Assessment Report found that California accounted for more than half of all unsheltered people in the country. This is nearly nine times the number of unsheltered people in the state with the next highest number [3].”
Newsome was elected for his second term in 2007. These numbers are inexcusable. They happened on his watch.
Can you imagine how much worse things would be if someone with zero experience as a leader had been at the helm?
Don’t get me wrong, I admire what Caitlyn Jenner has done in terms of fighting for transgender rights and equality. As someone with a couple of trans friends and having seen the struggles they deal with on a daily basis, the work she’s doing is necessary.
But that doesn’t make her qualified to run the State of California.
And yet, because of her connection to the Kardashians and appearances on reality TV, she is well-known enough to likely garner a substantial number of votes if she runs for the governorship.
And if you’re asking, “How bad can it be?”
Remember the last time we elected a celebrity as Governor of the Golden State? In 2003, Arnold Schwarzenegger became “The Governator.” It was fun…at first.
Then he immediately ran the state into the ground. We still haven’t recovered from some of the fiscal missteps made almost 20 years ago.
California is in bad enough shape. Let’s not compound mistakes by electing someone dangerously unqualified to lead.
One possible exception to celebrities running for office might be Dr. Drew Pinsky. Currently, he doesn’t want to run for Governor of California. However, many people are asking him to.
Yes, the obvious draw is Dr. Drew’s celebrity. People know him and like him from the many TV, radio, and podcast shows he has been or is currently on.
While he wouldn’t be the best candidate for Governor, he wouldn’t be the worst either. He’s well-educated. He frequently discusses the problems with public health policy in this country and specifically in the State of California. His thoughts and ideas of how to aid the homelessness problem in California are sound inasmuch as he recognizes how much of a factor things like mental illness and addiction contribute to homelessness. He frequently posits that, if we could get these people the treatment they need, it would substantially decrease the number of people living on the streets.
I would also wager that he’s smart enough that, were he to run and get elected, he would surround himself with people who could fill in the gaps in areas in which he lacks expertise.
Still, I’m not sure that would be enough to make him a good leader.
I’d like to give these celebrities the benefit of the doubt. I’d like to think that they run for office because they genuinely want to affect positive change in their community, state, or country.
I’d like to think ego, narcissism, and attention-whoring aren’t factors in their decision to run for office.
I’d like to think they give careful consideration and forethought to seeking office before they run, that they fully understand the gravitas and responsibility that comes with being an elected official.
I’d like to think these things…but I’d likely be wrong.
That means it’s our responsibility as voters to think — I mean really sit down and give it some honest-to-God thought before we elect these people to office.
It’s a responsibility we can’t take lightly. And yes, it is OUR responsibility.
Remember, it’s a celebrity’s choice to run for office. It OUR choice to actually put them in office.
Choose wisely.
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References:
[1]“The Rock for President? I’ll Run if the People Want It, says Dwayne Johnson” The Guardian (theguardian.com). April 12, 2021. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/apr/12/the-rock-dwayne-johnson-white-house-president May 7, 2021.
[2] Medina, Jennifer and Maggie Haberman. “Caitlyn Jenner Announces Run for California Governor.” The New York Times (nytimes.com). Apr. 23, 2021 https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/23/us/politics/caitlyn-jenner-california-governor.html May 8, 2021.
[3] Kurle, Sydney. “Homelessness Increased 6.8% in California from 2019–2020” State of Reform (stateofreform.com). Mar. 23, 2021 https://stateofreform.com/featured/2021/03/homelessness-increased-6-8-in-california-from-2019-to-2020/ May 8, 2021
