It’s time to bring humor back into politics
Politics has become a never-ending cycle of television and radio ads. And “We the People” have bought into it.
Over the past decade, the American people have bought into the concept of negative campaigning. Like lambs to the slaughter, we sing the praises of our chosen candidate as we walk unknowingly to our own demise.
So, it has been in the current campaign for president of the United States. For months politicians from Florida to California (from the left and right) have been licking their collective chops at the chance to be the leader of the free world. From a foundation of principles set forth by some poll aimed at likely voters in early primary election states, politicians are tossing money at voters in amounts never seen before.
One great element of the human spirit has gone missing from politics—humor. Listening to and reading essays from now deceased political humorists was what got me interested in politics in the first place.
That is why, when I go into the voting booth in 2024, I am writing in to place Pat Paulsen in the White House.
For post-Baby Boomers, Pat Paulsen was an American comedian whose one-liners from his weekly appearance on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour became household slang. His dead-pan mockery of the issues of the day became the watercooler talk of the week.
In 1968, Pat Paulsen was at the peak of his popularity. Following a run in with CBS brass over political advertising on the show, Paulsen announced he was running for president—demanding equal time from CBS for his views.
On television, Paulsen played his entry into the presidential race perfectly. Parodying the speech Lyndon B. Johnson gave to the nation when he decided to not seek reelection, Paulsen says, “If nominated I will not run. And once elected, I will not serve.”
Paulsen announced he was a candidate for the presidency under the Straight-Talking American Government Party (STAG Party). He declared he was neither left-wing, nor right-wing, but more “middle of the bird.” His campaign slogan was: “I’ve Upped Our Standards. Now, Up Yours.” And he defined himself as “… just a simple, common, ordinary, savior of America’s destiny.”
When asked questions about his stances on positions, Paulsen was prone to talk in delightfully brilliant double-speak. “To get to the meat of the matter, I will come right to the point, and take note of the fact that the heart of the issue in the final analysis escapes me,” was his standard reply.
In speeches on the campaign trail, he would calm audiences by telling them they had nothing to fear but fear itself. “And, of course, the boogeyman.”
Paulsen proposed to end the war in Vietnam by taking the money America was spending overseas and just buy out the North Vietnamese. He believed marijuana should be kept out of the hands of college students because it was too good for them. On gun control, he thought the government should give everyone a gun but lock up all the bullets. And he blamed most of the country’s problems on the unenlightened immigration policy established by Native Americans.
I had the opportunity to meet Pat Paulsen shortly before cancer took his life. I explained to him how his humor inspired me to become involved in politics. “Well, you can fool some the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time,” he said, patting me on the shoulder. “But son, politics is the only place where you can make a monkey out of the voters every four years.”
The fact that Paulsen died probably disqualifies him from serving as president. Nevertheless, when I do go to vote in 2024, I’ll remember his words: “Only the future lies ahead. And behind us lies, lies, lies.”
Rick Robinson is the author of the award-winning series of Richard Thompson political thrillers available on Amazon and at bookstores.
