Whenever Ted Cruz is asked why he’s unlikable…
…he should just answer “Oh, I’m likable enough.”
It would be a very sly reference to these two, and a way to make fun of the whole question.
How do you think that would play?
The New Neo
A blog about political change, among other things
Good recommendation. You should pass this along to the Cruz campaign.
Sharon W:
If you have a way to do it, please do! Or if you know anyone who has a way.
Dude, that was like, eight years ago.
Oh, I like it. Delivery and timing would however, be critical. Done properly, exactly the right way to handle ‘gotcha’ questions.
I actually don’t think it would play well. It’s clever, but Cruz is already “disliked” in some part due to the perception that he is “too clever by half” and I think such a line would feed that perception. Also, it would create an unwanted tie to Hillary (i.e. we are alike in being un-liked). Better to be drawing a contrast to Hillary (I am not like her).
There is a new ad out touting Senator DeMint saying (from a radio interview) that anyone who thinks Ted Cruz is unlikeable doesn’t know him. I think that is a better strategy – less memorable, but less risky as well.
Ted was nice when he poured my coffee!
I will pass this idea along to the campaign coordinator I worked under.
He could say “I’m not running to be your ‘pal.’ I’m running to be your President. “
parker:
Thanks! It occurs to me that people have such short memories they might not get the reference. He might have to make it explicit.
And of course, if you have to explain a joke, it loses a lot of its effectiveness.
I shouldn’t overthink this, which is one of the many reasons I’m neither a campaign manager of a candidate 🙂 .
I agree with LJB on this one. I think he should go with the response… “You mean as opposed to how much Hillary is unliked?”
How about, “the establishment doesn’t like me because I’m going to upset their apple cart. The American people will like me because I will be fighting for them.”
This fetish of likeability is inane (though it perfectly reflects the current zeitgeist).
If the MSM and those they represent find they don’t like Cruz, then that’s a tremendous sign, at least in my view, that the man is worthy.
If they go out of their way to sabotage his candidacy, then it means (to me) that they fear him.
Parents who place a priority on being “liked” by their kids rather than making the difficult choices that parents must make are not doing their kids any favors.
With the exception of people like Hillary Clinton who just cannot seem to relate to people at all, “likeability” is just some made-up talking point. We don’t know any of these candidates personally so we have to rely on the media, who at least get within spitting distance of them, and the media’s totally in the tank for Dems. So what a surprise that the Dem candidates are always “likeable” even when, in retrospect, they’re clearly not. Obama’s not likeable but he’s always portrayed that way in the media. If they didn’t like him/if he were a Rep, we’d have photos of him furtively smoking or otherwise looking weaselly, frowning, bloated.
I don’t give a crap about likeability. I recall liking Cheny because he was always portrayed as so UNlikeable. That’s a plus when you’re dealing with the wicked charlatans that run the rest of the world. I don’t need to pretend that my candidate “feels my pain” or would be a cool guy to chat with about child rearing or work or whatever, which I suspect is a fantasy of many Obama Fans (and possibly Trump Fans).
I agree on the stupidity of the question. But pundits often ask it.
What’s more, it’s a factor that seems to matter to a lot of voters. So in that sense it’s not a stupid question.
I admit that I don’t get the likeability thing. I’m much more interested in a qualified person with views that generally match my own than projecting personality impressions of someone that I will never meet in real life.
That said, how is likeability even a thing during an election cycle that includes Trump and Bernie? Bernie seems like the kind of rabid next-door neighbor who, generations ago, would shoot you with rock salt if he caught you taking mulberries off his tree, while Trump comes off like a hair-trigger nutcase who would come barging up to you if he thought that you looked at him funny.
Lets face the fact that personality counts. We read much into the public personna of candidates. I see Cruz as highly intelligent, sincere, and steadfast. We can know much about a person by his/her enemies. Cruz’s enemies are legion… msm, the hard left, and the gope. He is likable enough.
I have met Sen. Cruz, and talked to him briefly. I thought he was a sweetheart. Seriously, he was very affable.
And so, so, so much nicer than many of his opponents.
It’s tough to fight a Lefty meme, though. This, and the “liar” slander are their weapons of choice against Ted. Neither one has merit, but if they’re yelled enough times, for long enough, the masses will start to believe it.
We seriously need an educated citizenry.
/sigh
There’s a story in Hollywood about a screenwriter who couldn’t sell a script because producers kept saying the lead character was “unlikable.” So he went back through the script and added “likable” every time the character was named or described. The script sold overnight.
So, every time you mention Ted Cruz, just say “the likable Ted Cruz,” and the problem will be solved in a jiffy.
We seriously need an educated citizenry.
That’s what Stringfellow Barr and Scott Buchanan said.
From the movie “Splash”:
Walter Kornbluth: I’m really a nice guy. If I had friends you could ask them.