So I finally caught up on the Tivo'd SNL season finale, where John McCain was a special guest along with Steve Carell. I was really impressed with his comedic timing and just how funny he was. Hillary has done SNL, she didn't do that great but at least she gave it a go. I've seen a few sparks of humor out of her tho.
And then I thought about Obama. Not funny. Just not funny at all. Maybe his handlers don't let him try, or maybe he just can't pull it off. I guess if he ever makes a SNL appearance we'll find out.
But this seems to be pretty true in my lifetime, that the Funnier Candidate wins. Either funny, or at least a little folksy. Let's review:
2004: GWBush (folksy) vs Kerry (totally not funny) - GWBush wins
2000: GWBush (folksy) vs Gore (stone cold unfunny) - GWBush wins
1996: Clinton (folksy) vs Dole (kinda funny but quirky) - Clinton wins
1992: Clinton (folksy) vs GHWBush (not funny) vs Perot (folksly yet flakey) - Clinton wins
1988: GHWBush (not funny) vs Dukakis (depressingly unfunny) - GHWBush wins
1984: Ron Reagan (funny, sunny) vs Mondale (gloom and doom) - Reagan wins huge
1980: Ron Reagan (funny, sunny) vs Carter (mr. malaise) - Reagan wins big
In 1976, I think Carter was the folksy guy (before depressing the heck out of people) and I don't really have a read on Ford. I don't think the rule I'm seeing really applied earlier than that. Before the era of 3+ TVs in every house, personality didn't really factor into the voters decision as much.
Just my 2 cents. If it's McCain vs Obama this Fall, the smart (funny) money is on McCain.
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