TakeAway: Hacking off fat people just isn’t a good idea !
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Excerpted from Chicago Tribune: Corzine’s Big, Fat Political Mistake, November 1, 2009
The New Jersey governor’s race pits the slim, distance-running, Democratic incumbent Jon Corzine against Republican Chris Christie, who is built for comfort, not for speed.
Corzine ran a TV ad accusing the challenger of “throwing his weight around” to beat traffic tickets, accompanied by footage that did not attempt to conceal Christie’s bulk.
“Mr. Corzine’s campaign is calling attention to his rival’s corpulence in increasingly overt ways,” reported The New York Times a few weeks ago, noting that his “television commercials and Web videos feature unattractive images of Mr. Christie, sometimes shot from the side or backside, highlighting his heft, jowls and double chin.” Meanwhile, Corzine has also made a point of taking part in 5- and 10-kilometer races every chance he gets.
The other day, Christie decided to confront his opponent. No, not by calling him bald, furry-faced and four-eyed, all of which would be understandable retorts. No, he took the high road by daring Corzine to stop the sly digs and say what he’s thinking outright. “If you’re going to do it,” said Christie, “at least man up and say I’m fat.”
By then, though, it had dawned on Corzine that ridiculing excess heft wasn’t good politics — and risked alienating the hordes of voters who are carrying extra pounds.
Nationally, two out of every three adults are overweight or obese — more New Jerseyans look like Christie than look like Corzine, and they probably don’t like being ridiculed by proxy.
Full article:
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/11/01/a_big_fat_political_mistake_98964.html
The Homa Files 
November 2, 2009 at 11:59 am |
Not that it’ll make a difference – this is New Jersey, where the government has accomplished what many in both parties have tried on a national scale – and failed (so far…) to do: make it so enough people make their living off the state government, either directly or indirectly, that – when their votes combine with those of the blind party line voters – those in government ensure incumbency for life. (That is, unless you screw up in the most colossal ways possible, like giving homeland security directorships to secret lovers – and even then, you get to “voluntarily” step down).
This is true of both parties – tho the Dems have, historically, been better at it. And this is why, even though we’re taxed higher than any state in the country – we rank at or near the top in all of property, sales, and income taxes – and even though he’s done slightly more than jockey (unsuccessfully) for federal appointments, the smart money says Corzine will be re-elected. By a wide margin.
November 3, 2009 at 11:26 pm |
Glad I’m not a betting man… Never thought Christie would win. Not that it changes much of what I wrote – we’ll see.
November 4, 2009 at 8:37 am |
For example, the independent candidate Daggett garnered 5% of the vote. As recently as two weeks ago he was polling at 12-13%, and was seen as a strong candidate to play spoiler, in Corzine’s favor. Then the RNC came in a began a massive attack campaign against Daggett, and in the end, Chrsitie successfully did what John Kerry could not – ran an “I’m not the incumbent, so vote for me” campaign.
When choosing “not the incumbent,” I guess voters identify more easily with a “fat guy” than one who “looks too French.” Which is unsurprising, since 23% of NJ adults are obese or overweight, according to the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, while relatively few are of French ancestry…