I’ve always loved the sound of that word. “Cute”. The pleasantly crunchy consonant at the beginning. The “oooo” in the middle. The resolving percussive at the end.
“Cute.”
The very sound… makes me think of babies.
Apparently, it also makes my computer think of babies, because when I went online, searching for images of “Cute Republicans”, my browser delivered a whole page of cute baby t-shirts and bibs, emblazoned with this cute little Republican Elephant with an “I Voted” sticker adhered to her cute little rear end. (I’m making the assumption she’s a girl elephant, based on her girl-sized tusks.)
Which surprised me, of course. When I did the online search, I expected to be shown a collection of humans, who were Republicans, and also, who were cute.
Sarah Palin, for example? Ann Coulter? Lauren Boebert?
But no. Just cute baby apparel from Walmart.
Of course, once you scroll past all the baby stuff… way down the page… you can actually find some cute Republicans.
Not everyone would classify Mitch McConnell as “cute”, but I think the photo above shows how sweet he can look, when he’s not scowling.
I got interested in ‘cute Republicans’ because an article in the Los Angeles Times had featured a picture of a couple of anti-vaxxers holding a protest sign, and they were definitely cute. The photo caption didn’t specifically identify them as Republicans, but from what I’ve been reading, the majority of the people opposing vaccine mandates and vaccine passports are Republicans concerned about personal responsibility and personal freedom.
But are Republicans also concerned about “personal cuteness”? I mean, are candidates more likely to get our votes, if they’re cute?
I think that might be the case.
Many years ago, I came across a quote from some semi-famous person. I clearly remember reading the quote, but I don’t remember who said it, and I can’t seem to find the quote online. (Probably because it was erased by the online ‘fact police’.) Whoever this semi-famous person was, he was opposed to giving women the right to vote, so the quote must have dated from prior to 1920, when the 19th Amendment was passed.
The quote went something like this:
“If women get the vote, we’re going to have movie stars elected President.”
Not a very nice thing to say, even prior to 1920. Downright chauvinist. But for some reason, the quote has lingered in the back of my mind.
Like, when movie actor Ronald Reagan was elected Governor of California, and then later elected President.
And then, when Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected Governor of California.
And again, when Donald Trump was elected President.
And now we have movie actor Matthew McConaughey considering a run for political office in Texas. Maybe governor? But in spite of being very cute, he hasn’t yet told us if he’s a Republican, a Democrat, or an Independent. But maybe a Second Amendment advocate?
From an article by James Hibberd in The Hollywood Reporter, on October 8:
Independents are the fastest-growing political affiliation in America, and McConaughey polls highest among independents in a hypothetical matchup against [Republican Greg] Abbott and [Democrat Beto] O’Rourke. The actor also seemed to lean toward the idea in his recent Times interview with Swisher, noting, “Texas is about independence. I think people want a third party. We’ve got one. It doesn’t have a name right now. And it is the majority. It is 60 percent of the population in America.”
I consider myself part of that 60 percent — those of us who don’t care which party a candidate belongs to. But we prefer that he (or she) be reasonably cute.
And if they’re an actor, that’s just an added plus.