Poseur Politics: Guns, Gardening, and French Fries
Positioning a candidate to appeal to the everyman isn’t a new concept in political campaigns. To gain the attention and support of voters, politicians (and their handlers) will do many things that the candidate wouldn’t ordinarily do.
When Lincoln was running for president in 1860, the new Republican Party positioned him as the “Woodchopper of the West.” In 1952, Eisenhower was portrayed as a man you couldn’t help but like with “I like Ike.” In 1978, Tennessee gubernatorial candidate Lamar Alexander walked across the entire state wearing a flannel shirt to show that he connected with average flannel-shirt-wearing Tennesseans. He won handily.
Some efforts feel more contrived than others. Think Vladimir Putin shirtless on horseback — maybe he does things differently, but I just can’t buy that it’s an everyday practice for the Russian tyrant. Ronald Reagan on horseback was a little more believable — after all, he owned a ranch and at least acted in cowboy films.
The more recent campaign 2024 is no exception when it comes to candidates downplaying their elite sensibilities to show solidarity with the common American. President Donald Trump’s shift at a McDonald’s restaurant is easily the most visible example of this. While his opposition had a veritable meltdown over the stunt, most Americans didn’t have to suspend much disbelief. No one thinks that Trump is a minimum-wage fast food employee at heart. The whole event did its job, drawing attention to the candidate, and bringing French fries to the people.
Trump’s opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, has had her own efforts to appeal to average middle-class Americans. For one, she’s made herself out to be a gardener who grows her own food. Never mind how she seemed to struggle with using a shovel when dumping dirt on a tree with her husband — Harris has set herself out to be the green thumb of America.
Faced with an image that wasn’t connecting with gun owners, Harris’s running mate Governor Tim Walz (D) decided to go on a hunting trip, complete with media retinue (be vewy, vewy quiet…). While Walz had all the talking points down about his Beretta shotgun (nice gun, but not exactly a gun of the everyman), he didn’t appear quite as comfortable with the firearm as would a seasoned hunter.
For a party that places so much emphasis on gun control measures (just read their platform), Democrats lately seem to be having a hard time controlling their own guns. This week, Democratic Missouri U.S. Senate candidate Lucas Kunce held a campaign event with former Illinois Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger at a shooting range where a reporter covering the event was hit with shrapnel deflected from Kunce’s gun. From the photos of the event, the men appeared to be shooting at steel targets from 10 yards or less with rifles outfitted with optics for much further distances.
If indeed they were shooting steel from that close range, it would be no surprise to any experienced shooter that ricochet could very well occur. I’ve shot steel targets many times, but usually with lower-velocity handguns, not high-velocity, and it’s always at much further distances than 10 yards, because anything that close is unsafe. Safety didn’t seem to be the primary order of the day, as Kinzinger was shown in one photo shooting with his eye protection not on his eyes, but on top of his head, as he shot the AR-platform rifle at 10-yard targets over what appeared to be cans of explosive Tannerite. Apparently, posing beats protection every time.
For all its faults, most political posing is harmless. It gives us all insight that you’re not a complete creation of a political machine. It’s harmless, that is, until it’s not. In Kunce’s case, somebody did get hurt. Not to worry, though, you can’t let a good shooting go to waste. In a good day’s posing, all is good after all. Kunce himself tweeted:
“Great day at the range today with my friend @AdamKinzinger. We got to hang out with some union workers while exercising our freedom. Always have your first aid kit handy. Shrapnel can always fly when you hit a target like today, and you’ve got to be ready to go. We had four first aid kits, so we were able to take care of the situation, and I’m glad Ryan is okay and was able to continue reporting.”
For the poseur, it’s all in how you posture yourself. It may indeed have been a great day at the range, for Kunce and Kinzinger. For me, however, I’d be posturing myself at a gun range the next county over. Just because someone is smoking at the gas pump next to you doesn’t mean you have to stay at your pump until your tank is full. And that’s the problem with political poseurs — it’s all fun and games until the shooting starts.
AUTHOR
Jared Bridges
Jared Bridges is editor-in-chief of The Washington Stand.
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