(Host) Is there a personality defect that makes a politician more effective on the campaign trail? Commentator Jeff Wennberg thinks there is.
(Wennberg) There are two kinds of politicians: Those who love to campaign and those who hate it. When I decided to run for Mayor back in the ’80’s, I dreaded the whole handshaking, car-waving, baby-kissing routine, but wanted the job enough to slog through it for a shot at governing. I mean, every time I had seen a politician standing on a street corner waving at traffic, I thought, “what a dork.” But I also thought, “he must really want the job.”
So when I pulled my sign out of the trunk for my first “stand out,” as they are called, I sucked it up, forced a smile onto my face and walked boldly to the curb. Five minutes later I realized I was having fun – a lot of fun. For me, waving at cars wasn’t a chore, it was a game.
And as I moved from one event to the next I learned something surprising about myself. I actually enjoyed campaigning, though I drew the line at kissing babies. And once in office I discovered that presenting proclamations, cutting ribbons and performing the ceremonial aspects of the job weren’t a necessary evil; they were the icing on the cake.
This curious discovery caused me to think about why it is that some people enjoy campaigning and others detest it. I concluded that those of us who love to campaign must have a personality defect. We are, to put it bluntly, abnormal.
Now this is not necessarily a bad thing. Pedro Martinez has abnormally long fingers, but Red Sox fans rightly consider this a blessing.
Yup, you normal folks should be thankful that God has provided a sufficient supply of personality-defective individuals to seek, fill and serve in thousands of local, state and federal elected positions across the nation.
I believe that the vast majority of our politicians possess this personality defect, since it gives them a natural advantage. But still, there are some who understandably loathe campaigning. And you can tell who they are simply by observing which candidate isn’t having fun.
Which brings me to the presidential candidacy of Howard Dean. Governor Dean may or may not have a realistic shot at the presidency, but at least so far it doesn’t look like he’s having much fun.
Few missed the media reports of the governor’s recent verbal assault on Washington County Senator Bill Doyle. Doyle is anything but a fire-breathing Republican partisan, but there was the governor, scolding the dean of the senate at the point of his animated index finger.
To be sure, the end of the session was contentious and frustrating, but that’s not unusual. And it doesn’t diminish the fact that the legislature worked hard and accomplished quite a bit. Like it or not, politics sometimes requires taking the stage solely for the purpose of drawing attention to the contributions of others; or offering kind words about colleagues, including the opposition; or summoning the grace to appreciate moments of humor even if the joke is on you.
The road from Vermont to the White House is a particularly long one. If Governor Dean really hopes to go the distance, he’ll need to lighten up and have a little fun.
This is Jeff Wennberg in Rutland.
Jeff Wennberg is a former mayor of Rutland.