People are so desperate to run #45 and his successor Pence out of office that the 2020 campaign speculation is starting to sound like a fantasy football league. Between people declaring Dwayne Johnson’s candidacy before he’s committed and whatever delusional trip makes Kid Rock think he’s #45’s heir apparent, it’s a bizarre political landscape right now. And since we now know that anyone famous can win the office, the sky’s the limit. One name that keeps getting thrown around is Oprah. Now mind you, Oprah herself has said she will “never run for public office“ but that didn’t stop John Podhoretz from writing an op-ed about how she was the Democrats best hope for 2020. Last Sunday, Podhoretz watched Oprah on 60 Minutes as she moderated a panel of Michigan voters when he realized she was the answer to get Dems back in the White House. You can read his argument here. However, after he published his piece, Oprah sent out this tweet:
@jpodhoretz Thanks for your VOTE of confidence!Democrats’ best hope for 2020: Oprah | New York Post https://t.co/tvt82v8cMH
— Oprah Winfrey (@Oprah) September 28, 2017
So, of course, people thought this is her declaration of intent. And lost their damn minds:
I say @Oprah & @MichelleObama on 2020 ticket!
— Nannette Day (@NannetteDay3) September 29, 2017
EVERYONE GETS A CAR!!! pic.twitter.com/2oYvBW6pUK
— Waltzing Matilda (@EnslavedByCats) September 29, 2017
— Mrs. Steven James (@4rgrls) September 29, 2017
You have my vote, and every moment of my time to help. Run @Oprah
— Carol Davidsen (@cld276) September 29, 2017
I've been saying this @Oprah – we neeeeeed you!
— Wittyiot (@wittyiot) September 29, 2017
Yes please. We need you @Oprah. I always knew you would save us all and make everything better.
— Mary Kate Killilea (@1mkk) September 29, 2017
To be fair, most people on the thread said that although they loved the Magical Ms. O, another inexperienced celebrity is not what we need to run the country.
In the article, Podhoretz lists the way that Oprah is the “mirror image of Trump, but more so,” in that she is a billionaire as well but her fortune was built without controversy. He points out that she is a master of reading shifts in cultural preferences and adjusting her focus accordingly. He also makes a good argument about how Oprah’s influence can help get a candidate into office. Personally, I wish he’d focused more on that than her actually running.
As for Oprah, I don’t think she’d want the job or the pay cut. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t love the discussion. Her tweet literally just thanks Podhoretz for the compliment that she could be president. But by retweeting the article with the wording she chose, she’s just stirring the pot. Personally, I’m fine with the discussion. Not that I want Oprah to be president any more than she wants to be. Even though the current administration is an abomination to the office, it is not a foregone conclusion that he will be voted out. We live in the Upside Down and the worst-case scenario is rapidly becoming our reality. Honestly, at this point, I might consider a Fantasy Football draft to fill the whole of government.
Photo credit: WENN Photos, Twitter and Getty Images
I LOVE O….but I don’t need another celebrity president. Sorry but its time that this country got fixed (Also just to clarify I am not American but I am so invested in your safety and Sanity that I want you to be rise up and stop the hell hole that you find yourselves in). #HeIsNotWorthyToCallHimselfPresident
DTAB + 100,000,000,000,000,000
Completely agree. No more celebrity lawmakers.
I love Oprah , but I really don’t want another celebrity President or someone from the entertainment field. Reagan was bad enough and Trump is Horrible, a Nightmare, which I want to wake up from in four years.
Another celebrity is the last thing the US will need after Trump’s Nightmarish years of ugliness, hate, racism.
I hope for Kamila Harris, Joe Kennedy III, Corey Booker, Guillibrand, people who hold office now and already understand how to govern or run some aspects of government.
No Clooney either, can’t stand him. He talks like he knows everything and has never even run for dog catcher.
I do love Oprah, but it’s kind of sad that I got excited by this. Not because she’s Oprah, but because I know that people would be more likely to get up off their asses and vote for her just because she’s famous.
I’ve gone to the point where I would endorse this NOW as compared to the past.
Ditto
Ugh, please no. Does no one remember her show beyond the celebrity interviews and ‘everyone gets a car’ stunts? She launched the careers of so many frauds and snake oil salesmen and she herself promoted all sorts of dangerous quackery and deeply misguided ‘self-help’ ideas that do the exact opposite of help anyone.
If she actually believes in half the crap she peddled she obviously lacks any critical thinking skills. If she knew it was nonsense, then she was just actively targeting vulnerable people for profit for decades. Either way, terrible, terrible idea.
Shows that she’s clever and knows how to play the system. If her savvy could be applied to running a country and turned towards doing good rather than conning people out of their money, I’d see her as a particularly vicious but effective president that can cut a swathe through the corrupt system that is the entirety of the US government without having to sample any bowls of shit that will be served to her.
Not likely, though. So yeah, that’s a no from me too unless she presents a good platform -and follows through-. There has to be merit, and I’m particularly twitchy about celebrity prezzes.
You sound like people talk about Trump. “The outsider draining the swamp”
And what no country needs any longer is business people running it. I dont even know how people thought that would be a good idea. Capitalists can make a country very profitbable, for a select few. For the rest it gets more awful. COuntries and companies are too very different things and even companies shouldnt be run on the premise of profit above all.
I work in healthcare and in her day she created quite a few goop-Esque misconceptions that was NOT COOL.
YES! like dr oz h’es sleazy and unethical as they come. shes ok but we do not need another unqualified celeb to run our government this is insane to even discuss. have we learned NOTHING????
I was rolling my eyes too when I read that there was “no controversy”. Yeah because you are willingly ignoring it.
And YOU get a free car! AND YOU get a free car! WVERYONE gets a free car!!
While I think she’s amazing and I’d LOVE to see a black woman president, I’d have to see her campaign to know of I’d be behind her politically.
Kamila Harris. 2020. is who I hope for.
So who are our legitimate options? Seriously, who?
Kamala Harris
Corey Booker
Elizabeth Warren
Kristen Gillibrand
That’s only a few. I’m sure there will be more when the time comes.
Shambles – are any of the above realistically electable? Don’t get me wrong, I’d vote for each of them – but they don’t strike me as stand out stars like BO did at the convention, y’know?
Shambles – yes to your picks
I really like Kamala Harris
Clare,
I’m rooting for Kamala and Kristen the most. I’ve heard them both speak on various podcasts, and imo they do have that superstar-potential. Level-headed, matter of fact, logical, witty, compassionate.
At the same time, I think it’s wise that we get away from this “we must have a superstar” mindset, you know? The politics of personality are partially responsible for our Dear Leader. I think, going forward, we should be asking “who’s policy aligns best with my beliefs?” and encouraging our fellow citizens to ask the same.
Chris Murphy?! Sharrod Brown?
@Shambles: ITA with everything you wrote.
People do now have the mindset that they need to be “excited” or “energized” by a candidate, but that is unrealistic. It happened in 2008 but is not something that can be replicated in every election — and that’s fine! We just need someone competent for the job. I don’t need to “want to have a beer with” the POTUS. S/He only needs to know wtf to do, and hopefully do it with some compassion, unlike the Dotard.
Charisma is certainly a bonus, but it cannot become a requirement. People need to get out and vote even if they’re not super-inspired by a candidate.
@Shambles, re: Cory Booker. I adore him and would love to see him run, but do you think his status as a single man would hurt (or derail completely) his chances? I personally couldn’t care less if a candidate is single, married, divorced, whatever — and think it is ridiculous that many Americans believe the President needs to be a Christian, married and with children — but many still do.
I would hope that by 2020 that wouldn’t be an issue, but I’ve also learned not to hope too much anymore. We’ve been burned too many times by expecting more of our fellow Americans.
I have a bad feeling the nominee will be Joe Biden.
Cory is ok. I prefer gillibrand , Murphy and Kamala over him though.
The most electable ticket would probably be someone like sherrod Brown or al franken with Kamala or a Latino. You get the rust Midwest white male with the poc vote.
I have a small ember of hope for Pete Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend Indiana, but probably not for several more election cycles. He was on Charlie Rose and I was super-impressed.
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/12/opinion/sunday/the-first-gay-president.html?mcubz=1
I think if Oprah was serious about running for president she would have run for public office(mayor of Chicago, senate seat, etc) by now. She would want to get her feet wet and learn about being in politics before running for the highest office in the country. This is the same woman who runs a successful media empire and has been quoted saying she personally signs every cheque that comes across her desk. She did not get where she is by being reckless
True. I don’t know where people get the idea that the presidency is an entry-level political position.
Hopefully after the current disaster we won’t have that again.
@Alix: I laughed at your comment. Not because our situation is funny, but it is dead-on accurate and preposterous that so many people now have that idea.
We’re so screwed.
Trump, after a few months of nothing but failures, admitted he thought being president would be easier than it really is. I don’t know where some people get the idea that having the most important, powerful job in the world would be entry -level and easy
No more celebs who have never held public office. No exceptions. If it applies to Trump it applies to everyone. And as another poster mentioned, she has endorsed some seriously questionable people. Isn’t she responsible for “Dr” Phil?
Give me a wise, even-tempered and compassionate senator, like that chill guy we had before. I miss him. #Harris2020
I like Kamala Harris as well. But it almost seems that the “guns are blazing “ against her already as a preemptive strike. The reality of a male black President fried their racists brains. A female black President would be unimaginable to them. I shudder at the thought of the treatment she’d receive.
Exactly! She was great as a talk show host, but people forget that she has said and endorsed some pretty kooky things over the years. Which is fine for a talk show host, but I want want someone more level-headed for a president.
Seriously. Would her campaign slogan be “Live your best life”? Would we be governed by the wisdom of “The Secret”? Egads.
Yes. Omg, people. Get a grip. You need actual government experience to run the government.
Couldn’t agree more. Just because they allegedly align with your political views doesn’t mean it will turn out well.
She’s a good person and has done lots of good things for people, but she shouldn’t be president. Too many voted for Trump because he was a rich and famous host of a hit game show /reality show, and look what happened. No more celebrities as president
Oprah as President would be magical.
I think after Trump, a sane, intelligent person who’s conscientious and empathetic toward human kind is more favourable than having experience.
🙌
Well, I guess that means that a lot of us should run for pres if that’s all it takes.
Super skilled, experienced Advisors are there for a reason.
Watch Michelle Obama—-she’s the one who’s planning to run, imo.
She’s repeatedly said no, as much as I would love her and would vote for her in a heartbeat, I don’t think she has any interest in running.
Please, let’s leave Michelle alone to enjoy her life. She deserves it.
@JC: What makes you say that?
I would love nothing more than for Michelle to run, but she’s never given even the slightest indication of interest and she seemed thoroughly relieved and happy to leave it all behind in January.
For one thing, she’s mobilizing the women’s vote. Her quote about women not embracing their voice when they didn’t vote for Hillary was kind of a tell. She certainly wasn’t singing that tune when her husband was running against Hillary—-an actual woman.
1. don’t believe the rumor
2. wouldn’t vote for her just bc she’s Oprah. what is this? 2002?
Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
Has anyone ever heard O give a opinion about Trump?
I personally have never heard her say anything. ??
Another celebrity? Really? What’s next Kanye or Taylor swift? You don’t even know what kind of platform Oprah would have. Haven’t we learned anything by electing someone who has no idea what he’s doing. He doesn’t know anything about foreign policy, the constitution or the laws.
If you want a black woman then get behind someone like Kamala Harris. At least she knows the law. Smh.
John Adams said something like, “We are a nation of laws, not of men.” So as much as I adore Oprah, she’s not qualified for the job. Someone who studied law and the Constitution, and previously served in elected office, is more in line with what we need. I am always amazed that people will vote for a celebrity for President, but they would never let a celebrity conduct surgery on them. It’s like they have zero understanding of the concept of expertise, unless they are in mortal peril. I think it’s because anything abstract like “the rule of law” or “government” is lost on them.
2nd hand info………guy that worked for me had a friend in Chicago married to a woman that worked on her show back in the day, Feedback was that she was a royal biotch who turned on the personality in front of the camera, but once there was no camera or audience , she was cold as ice, One of those “don’t look at me, don’t talk to me, don’t approach me” types. Ditto Gayle when she was around which was often.
Or maybe she was just busy and had other things on her mind. I worked with a CEO that was like that. Most everyone in the company, whose only interaction with him was at company-wide presentations, thought he was a rock-star who just oozed charisma and charm. In those meetings he made you feel like he was your best friend. Except that was the only time he was like that – the rest of the time he was just a dude with a lot on his plate. He’d look right through people when he walked the halls, but it wasn’t malicious. He wouldn’t have gotten anything done if he had stopped to schmooze with every person he ran into on the way to the loo. I didn’t think he was a d*ck because of it, even though I worked thirty feet from his office door and I doubt he knew my name for the first year I was there.
Did he actually issue memos and directives telling people “no contact, no look at me, “ etc.? Because supposedly that’s exactly what this was.
God, Oprah, take his place right now!!! Now.