Posted on 06/10/2007 7:00:01 PM PDT by blam
US in thrall to southern drawl
By Alex Spillius in Washington
Last Updated: 2:21am BST 11/06/2007
To British ears, an American southern accent carries connotations of cowboys and country singers, but in the US it signals something quite different: political success.
Ronald Reagan was not southern but possessed home-baked charm
Four of the last five US presidents have been southerners, and the only exception, Ronald Reagan, possessed the demonstrably southern virtues of straight talking and home-baked charm.
But in the early stages of the competition to succeed George W Bush neither the Republican nor Democrat parties boast a bona fide southerner among their candidates.
However, that is likely to change this week as Fred Thompson, sometime lawyer, lobbyist, star of Law and Order and senator, is expected to announce his bid for the Republican nomination.
Thompson has a lot going for him. Like Reagan, he is an actor. Unlike his rivals he is a reliable social conservative on issues such as abortion, gay marriage and gun control.
But the former senator from Tennessee is also the proud owner of an impressive southern brogue.
"No accent telegraphs more information faster than a southern one," wrote Elizabeth Wilner in The Politco newspaper. "It exudes approachability, an absence of pretence and a penchant for plain talk."
Thompson's mellifluous, authoritative tones are music to the ears of Republicans. "He sounds like a man in command," said Whit Ayres, a Republican psephologist. "He communicates very effectively to ordinary people and has definitely got the potential to win."
Things were all very different in the 1960s when southerners were unelectable, and more uptight, flat-voiced north-easterners and Washingtonians dominated.
The attraction of a southern candidate reflects the growing importance of the region. Its population is expanding thanks partly to migration from the north and mid-west by people in search of warmer weather and less crime.
I heard directly from one of Fred’s former speechwriters that it’s a load of garbage, that Fred often was in his office long after everyone went home. I also heard an interview with the author of the new Thompson biography and he described his conversation with one of Fred’s Tennessee aides, who laughed at the charge and said she QUIT because it was killing her trying to keep up with Fred’s pace.
From John Fund:
Indeed, it is his need to wake up at 5 a.m. the next morning, so he can tape three Harvey segments before returning to the “Law and Order” set for a long day of shooting, that prompts Mr. Thompson to close out our chat. “With my current schedule I might have more time to myself if I gave all this up and did start a campaign,” he says as he dons a sports coat and heads for his car.
PolMom, please ping me if JCEccles says anything new. Thanks!
It’s kind of hard listening to people like the Kennedys and Kerry to catch their breath after each word.
Reminds me of the Massholes I went to college with. Would say “Wicked Pissah” everytime they thought something was great.
Adapted from Gettysburg.
I don’t know why, unless its listening to too many speeches by excellent politicians with southern accents, but occasionally a pronounced drawl enters my speech completely unexpectedly, despite the fact the farthest south ive ever been was over the niagara border to NY.
That ping will never be necessary.
Carter? Nope. Just confused.
Clinton? Nope. A true sociopath.
Bush? At one time but not anymore
If only those people weren't allowed to vote! Damn that Nineteenth Amendment! Curse you, California and New York, for controlling 30% of the electoral college votes required to win!
Well, come on down here to the Gulf Coast of Alabama and we'll get you 'polished-up' for your next campaign.
First lesson: In every word where there is an 'i', change it to an 'a' as often as possible. so that fire becomes far, tire becomes tar, hair becomes haar and so on.
Johnny could only sing one note
And the note he sings was this
Ah!
Poor Johnny one-note
sang out with "gusto"
And just overlorded the place
Poor Johnny one-note
yelled willy nilly
Until he was bleu in the face
For holding one note was his ace
Couldn’t hear the brass
Couldn’t hear the drum
He was in a class
By himself, by gum!
Sing Johnny One-Note,
Sing out with "gusto" and
Just overwhelm all the crowd
Ah!
So sing Johnny One-Note, out loud!!
Sing Johnny One-Note
Sing Johnny One-Note out loud!
Well....it was nice knowing you.
:p
Well may as well. 9 of the 10 candidates standing on stage have had nothing of substance to say except nationalisation of moral issues and Wilsonian adventurism and yet the actual conservative is ridiculed by his own party. Federalism? What's that? We can't let a silly ideal like federalism get in the way when we've got 'murrige' and needed ID cards for everyone!!
Why not throw in an actor who hasn't done anything for the past 4 years except bit parts on an already established TV show? He'll just give more of the same nonsense. At least you'll get the geriatric vote as that's the only people that religiously watch Law & Order..
Ugh, sounds ugly.
Ah do trah to polish it when possahble. Annoys the bejeezus out of mah parents too :P
Snort, John Edwards is not considered a bona fide southerner or are they counting him out already.
I am waiting for Senator Thompson to join the race.
Nay, the very apex of human achievement. Just look at the engineers and scientists we have produced. The only folks in our league are those of the Hebrew faith.
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