Posted by student JAMES MITCHELL- Celebrity endorsements are a perennial component of political campaigns. This year’s race to the presidency has seen Oprah Winfrey enter the political arena for the first time by endorsing Democratic candidate Barack Obama. Former Governor of Arkansas and Iowa front-runner Mike Huckabee has been touring the Hawkeye state with action star Chuck Norris in tow.
Not to be outdone, John Edwards has recruited some star power of his own. Edwards has been traveling across Iowa touting himself as the champion of the working class and the enemy of big corporations and special interests. To help hammer his message home, Edwards has tapped former actor and Georgia Representative Ben “Cooter” Jones to join him on his speaking tour.
You may remember Ben Jones from the show The Dukes of Hazzard. In the show, Jones played Cooter, the local mechanic for Hazzard County. Drawing on analogies comparing The Dukes of Hazzard to Washington D.C., Jones explained that John Edwards is the only candidate that can take on the “Boss Hogism” that is polluting our government.
As bluegrass music played in the background, Jones told the crowd that “John Edwards is the kind of man that ain’t got above his raising.”
“Cooter” closed by asking the crowd of Iowans to support Edwards because he is the only candidate that speaks to the values of the Heartland.
James Mitchell is a Clinton School student covering the Iowa Caucuses for the Clinton School Blog.
