Stephen Colbert presidential campaign, 2008
Encyclopedia
On October 16, 2007, satirist Stephen Colbert
(in the guise of his character
) officially announced that he would run
for President of the United States
. This came after weeks of being pressured to do so by the public and stating that he would need a sign
, which came from Aragorn
(Viggo Mortensen
) giving him the sword Anduril. Although the legitimacy of his campaign was questioned, he maintained that he was serious. Colbert had originally planned to run for both the Republican
and the Democratic
nomination in his home state of South Carolina
. After learning that the fee to file for the Republican primary was $35,000, he abandoned plans to run as a Republican (he had previously stated that he could avoid FEC rules
if he stayed under $5,000 in campaign expenditure). Although he paid the $2,500 fee to be included in the South Carolina Democratic ballot, he was denied a place on the ballot by the South Carolina Democratic Party executive council. On November 5, 2007, Colbert officially dropped his Presidential bid.
. "A lot of people see this book as testing the waters for a run for political office," he told King in an October 14, 2007 interview. On the same day Colbert took over The New York Times
opinion columnist Maureen Dowd
's column, which he used to engage in similar speculation: "I know why you want me to run, and I hear your clamor ... Nevertheless, I am not ready to announce yet – even though it's clear that the voters are desperate for a white, male, middle-aged, Jesus-trumpeting alternative."
The campaign began in earnest on October 16, 2007, when Colbert officially announced his candidacy on his own 11:30 pm–12:00 am EST Comedy Central
program, The Colbert Report. Colbert had earlier appeared on The Daily Show
, the program immediately preceding his own on the Comedy Central lineup, but had stated that his final declaration of candidacy would be made on a "more prestigious show". Subsequent to his declaration, Colbert appeared on Meet the Press
on October 21, 2007, where he asserted the reality of his campaign: "I'm far realer than Sam Brownback
, let me put it that way," said Colbert.
Colbert's campaign touted him as South Carolina's native or favorite son
candidate, running exclusively in that state and exclusively for that state's interests. "I am from South Carolina and I am for South Carolina and I defy any other candidate to pander more to the people of South Carolina, those beautiful, beautiful people," he said after his Colbert Report announcement. As such, he challenged Democratic candidate John Edwards
'—himself a native South Carolinian—own prospective role. As Colbert began campaigning in South Carolina in late October, Edwards' spokesperson Teresa Wells teased Colbert about his sponsorship by Doritos
nacho chips: "As the candidate of Doritos, his hands are stained by corporate corruption and nacho cheese. John Edwards has never taken a dime from taco chip lobbyists and America deserves a President who isn't in the pocket of the snack food special interests." The Edwards team also released a press release responding to Colbert directly: "Edwards was born in South Carolina, learned to walk in South Carolina, learned to talk to in South Carolina and will kick Stephen Colbert's New York City butt in South Carolina." One commentator suggested the humorous response might aid Edwards' image by presenting him as a candidate who could "make fun of himself". In addition, Edwards booked American film actor and celebrity
Danny Glover
to stump for him in South Carolina on the same day Colbert was making his appearance in the state; a chance at a "perfect political salvo", in the opinion of one reporter, although one left underexploited.
At various times, Colbert had mentioned Mike Huckabee
, Vladimir Putin
and even himself, as possible running mates. He also agreed to endorse Garry Kasparov
's bid to win the Russian presidency in return for Kasparov's support for his campaign.
Colbert had planned to appear at the College of Charleston
on October 27, but was unable to make the event due to a scheduling conflict. One beauty shop owner in Charleston
turned down a request from one of the Colbert Report' s staffers to use her shop as a staging ground for a Colbert campaign stop, finding the campaign unfunny and insufficiently serious. "I don't even know why he's running in South Carolina," said the Charlestonian. Bob Coble
, mayor of Columbia
, was more welcoming. On Sunday October 28, 2007, Coble presented Colbert a key to the city, "a proclamation that Colbert is truly 'South Carolina's Favorite Son,'" and a "necktie with Palmetto trees". Residents of the city had previously stated that although they knew Colbert would "use the visit as comedic fodder," they hoped the visit would bring humor and press coverage to the city. Colbert met with former Democratic governor Jim Hodges
, who signed Colbert's campaign petition and offered himself as a possible vice presidential
choice. Colbert declared to cheering crowds that "I love South Carolina almost as much as South Carolina loves me!", and that his slogan for improving the state in the 21st century will be "First to secede, first to succeed." Colbert also made an appearance the same day at the University of South Carolina
, where, playing to interstate rivalry, he promised to "crush the state of Georgia
".
Colbert had originally planned to run for both the Republican
and Democratic
nominations in his home state of South Carolina
. Upon obtaining the forms to put himself on the ballot, however, he discovered to do so requires a non-refundable fee of $25,000 plus a $10,000 late fee for the Republican primary and $2,500 or three thousand signatures on a petition for the Democratic primary. On the October 31, 2007 episode of The Colbert Report, Colbert announced that he would no longer be seeking a spot on the Republican Party ballot, primarily because he was unwilling to write a $35,000 check to the Republican Party, but also because spending more than $5,000 on his campaign would make him subject to greater levels of scrutiny under federal election law. However, Colbert reaffirmed his bid for a Democratic ballot spot by displaying a photograph of himself holding a $2,500 personal check made out to the Democratic Party, as well as a notarized application form for the Democratic ballot.
The following day, November 1, 2007, the South Carolina Democratic Party executive council voted 13–3 to refuse Colbert's application onto the ballot. “The general sense of the council was that he wasn’t a serious candidate and that was why he wasn’t selected to be on the ballot," stated John Werner, the party's director. Colbert has announced that he will not continue his campaign.
On the April 28, 2008 episode of The Colbert Report, guest Feist said that she had been planning to offer her song "1234
" as the official campaign theme.
At the 2008 Libertarian National Convention
, Colbert received one write-in vote for the Libertarian
nomination in the second round of voting.
On the June 11, 2009 show Colbert stated that if he were to run for President again, he would claim his time spent in Iraq
as part of the USO
as "military service." Colbert was in Iraq as a part of Operation Iraqi Stephen, a tour aimed at supporting and boosting the morale of the United States Military in Iraq
.
, and Mike Gravel
) and less than 1% in the Republican field. A second poll, taken by Rasmussen Reports
October 19–21 (before Colbert's Meet The Press appearance), had Colbert receiving 13% as an independent
running against Rudy Giuliani
and Hillary Clinton, and 12% as an independent running against Fred Thompson and Clinton. Results were particularly high among respondents aged 18–29, where Colbert received 28% of the vote among likely voters in a Giuliani–Clinton contest, and 31% in a Thompson–Clinton contest. Drawing a connection between the two polls, one reporter commented that if Colbert continues "gaining over 10% a week", Colbert "should be leading the field before November is out."
Colbert's official sponsor was Doritos
brand tortilla chips. In an October 26, 2007 appearance at Cornell University
, Colbert declared that, if elected, he would be "as good for the country as Doritos are for your body". Colbert's campaign was initially called the "Hail To The Cheese Stephen Colbert's Nacho Cheese Doritos 2008 Presidential Campaign", until he was advised that the finances obtained from Doritos could legally be used to fund only his television show's coverage of the campaign, rather than the campaign itself. Colbert responded by adding the word "Coverage" to the title. Some commentators argued that such distinctions could have had serious legal ramifications for Colbert irrespective of how serious his campaign effort was. In order to avoid breaking election laws and maintain the distinction between coverage and activism, Colbert had to move a petition for South Carolina Democrats to sign from his show's website to an independent website that is not affiliated with his show. A spokesperson for Comedy Central
, the network hosting The Colbert Report, stated that, based on "the law, prior rulings made by the Federal Election Commission
and advice of expert outside counsel", there was nothing in the run that ran contrary to federal campaign election laws.
Prior to Colbert's announcement, Colbert Report staff had consulted representatives of both parties. Joe Werner, executive director of the State Democratic Party
, had been called by a Colbert representative three weeks before the announcement, for queries regarding filing dates and other requirements. Katon Dawson, chairman of the State GOP
, had been called on October 15, a handful of hours before the show declaring Colbert's candidacy was taped. Estimations of Colbert's chances were mixed, but neither party disputed his ability to place himself on their respective ballots. The dual Republican–Democrat nature of the run, however, elicited opposing responses from the party representatives. Dawson found nothing in his party's regulations preventing Colbert from running on both ballots, but Werner was more leery at the suggestion. Said Werner: "I don’t believe you can do that." "It's in our rules somewhere that you can't be on two ballots."
Any candidate wishing to run in the South Carolina Democratic Primary requires the approval of the State Democratic Party's Executive Committee, which must declare a candidate viable before adding him to the ballot. The determination of what constitutes viability is up to the Executive Committee alone. The S.C. Democratic Party Executive Committee asserted that a candidate must have actively campaigned in the state before he is listed on the ballot. Several members of the committee expressed dismay over Colbert's apparent lack of serious intention, citing his failure to campaign nationally as a reason to doubt his viability; one member stated that Colbert would only get on the ballot "over my dead body."
Colbert also stated on the aforementioned Meet The Press episode that he did not expect to win the presidency: "I don't want to be president. I want to run for president. There's a difference," he said. Colbert made no attempt to appear on the ballots in any other state primaries, and so it is unlikely that he would have been able to gather enough delegates to secure either party nomination unless he were to win other states by a write-in vote.
Write-in candidates must generally submit forms with intention to run prior to being written-in by the populace; however, some internet campaigns started to garner interest in writing-in Colbert as a purely satirical exercise.
Colbert's campaign has been likened to the plot of the film Man of the Year
, in which Robin Williams
plays a comedian
who runs for president, but more to comedian Pat Paulsen
, who received over 200,000 votes when he ran in 1968
as a result of dissatisfaction with the current candidates at that time. While Colbert's motivation remains unclear, his campaign to "bring truthiness
to the '08 race" remained popular.
Colbert's candidacy had met mixed reviews, and the growing realization that Colbert may be serious about his candidacy raised the ire of the American political and media establishment. When the Public Opinion Strategies poll put Colbert ahead of Bill Richardson, Richardson's spokesman responded: "This is a serious election with serious consequences and we are not going to comment on this ridiculous exercise". Katon Dawson, South Carolina's Republican party chairman believed Colbert would be better off using the $35,000 entrance fee to "buy a sports car and get a girlfriend". The high polling gave way to what New York
called a "Stephen Colbert Backlash", as bloggers criticized Colbert for verging into legitimate political territory, asserting that he had "crossed the line from lampooning the process to actively messing it up." Republican candidate John McCain
gave a more positive view, stating that he hoped Colbert would join the Republican party's debates. "He can make them livelier and he can reach a wider audience than that narrow little sliver that watches his show." In conversation with ABC News
, Fox News
commentator and template for Stephen Colbert's The Colbert Report persona Bill O'Reilly
dismissed Colbert's run as a publicity stunt for his book, I Am America. O'Reilly also called Colbert out for not going on the O'Reilly Factor
to discuss the book: "He knows the book is dumb, so he's not going to come in. Instead, he runs for president." Sam Brownback
's October 19, 2007 withdrawal from the race was humorously attributed by some to competition from the comedian, but others took Colbert's challenge to Brownback's run more seriously. As one reporter for The Atlantic
wrote, "Sam Brownback may cite other reasons for dropping out today, but Colbert’s plan to run in South Carolina wouldn’t have made his job there any easier."
Democratic candidate Barack Obama
jokingly questioned the authenticity of Colbert's "native son" posturing: "I don't get much of an accent. If he's from South Carolina, he wasn't really down-home South Carolina — that's my impression. I can't picture Stephen eating grits
, but who knows?" Colbert promptly ate several bowls of grits on the next night's show. Carol Fowler, the S.C. Democratic Party chairwoman, stated that Colbert's long absence from the state following his leave for college might backfire on him. The scheme might not work against the other candidates anyways. "By primary day, they’ll all be claiming to be from here," she said.
In the 2009 animated film Monsters vs. Aliens
, Colbert was chosen to provide the voice of the President of the United States.
Comedy Central's Indecision 2008 coverage during election night, a program which featured both Jon Stewart and Colbert reporting on election results, referenced his failed South Carolina campaign. Upon announcing the results of the election in South Carolina, a state won by John McCain, Colbert's portrait was featured next to the two candidates, framed by Doritos chips.
Despite having withdrawn from the race, Colbert continued to be referred to as a major candidate for the presidency in the comic books of Marvel Comics
, polling high among superhuman
s and mutants
. In the Marvel Universe
, Colbert's campaign successfully continued as a third party candidate running against both McCain and Obama, on a "Populist" platform. "Colbert '08" paraphernalia appeared in the artwork of various Marvel
comics and Colbert himself teamed up with Spider-Man
in the October 2008 comic Amazing Spider-Man #573. His policies in the campaign included contacting T'Challa
and Doctor Doom
for help in fighting the Skrull
s. On November 5, 2008, Marvel announced that its fictional newspaper The Daily Bugle was reporting Colbert's victory over both John McCain and Barack Obama. However, several hours later Marvel released a second Daily Bugle article correcting its initial reports, stating that while Colbert had won the popular vote Obama had secured more electoral votes, thus winning the presidency. "Oops, our bad," said Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada
of the confusion. "We completely forgot the Marvel Universe reflects what happens in the real world."
group "1,000,000 Strong For Stephen T Colbert" became the fastest growing Facebook group in the site's history, having averaged 78 new members per minute It surpassed one million members on October 26, 2007, less than ten days after its creation on October 17. Colbert's group grew at such a rapid rate—as many as 83 people per minute for eight days in a row—that it led one Facebook representative to tell the New York Times that the group had begun "overloading one of our servers," a problem that has since been resolved. The achievement has been given as an example of the networking site's "uncanny ability to mashup the serious and the silly aspects of everything it touches." As of October 25, 2007, the group was the most popular political group on the site, outnumbering the 380,000 of Obama’s "1 Million Strong Group", the 500,000 of "Stop Hillary Clinton: (One Million Strong AGAINST Hillary)" and the 615,000 of "I bet I can find 1,000,000 people who dislike George Bush!". Since reaching a peak of 1.5+ million members in late November 2007, the group has gone down steadily; however, it still remains extremely large.
Stephen Colbert
Stephen Tyrone Colbert is an American political satirist, writer, comedian, television host, and actor. He is the host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, a satirical news show in which Colbert portrays a caricatured version of conservative political pundits.Colbert originally studied to be an...
(in the guise of his character
Stephen Colbert (character)
The Reverend / Sir / Dr. / Stephen T. Colbert, D.F.A., brain-child of Google, is the persona of political satirist Stephen Colbert, as portrayed on Comedy Central's The Colbert Report. Described as a "well-intentioned, poorly informed high-status idiot", the character is a self-obsessed right-wing...
) officially announced that he would run
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
for President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. This came after weeks of being pressured to do so by the public and stating that he would need a sign
Omen
An omen is a phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change...
, which came from Aragorn
Aragorn
Aragorn II is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, one of the main protagonists of The Lord of the Rings. He is first introduced by the name Strider, which the hobbits continue to call him...
(Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Peter Mortensen, Jr. is a Danish-American actor, poet, musician, photographer and painter. He made his film debut in Peter Weir's 1985 thriller Witness, and subsequently appeared in many notable films of the 1990s, including The Indian Runner , Carlito's Way , Crimson Tide , Daylight , The...
) giving him the sword Anduril. Although the legitimacy of his campaign was questioned, he maintained that he was serious. Colbert had originally planned to run for both the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
and the Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
nomination in his home state of South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. After learning that the fee to file for the Republican primary was $35,000, he abandoned plans to run as a Republican (he had previously stated that he could avoid FEC rules
Federal Election Commission
The Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
if he stayed under $5,000 in campaign expenditure). Although he paid the $2,500 fee to be included in the South Carolina Democratic ballot, he was denied a place on the ballot by the South Carolina Democratic Party executive council. On November 5, 2007, Colbert officially dropped his Presidential bid.
Timeline
In the week prior to announcing his candidacy, Colbert appeared on a number of talk shows to promote his book I Am America (And So Can You). During these interviews, he parodied potential candidates' standard approach to a White House run, giving broad and generally unprompted hints towards a campaign on shows like Larry King LiveLarry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
. "A lot of people see this book as testing the waters for a run for political office," he told King in an October 14, 2007 interview. On the same day Colbert took over The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
opinion columnist Maureen Dowd
Maureen Dowd
Maureen Bridgid Dowd is a Washington D.C.-based columnist for The New York Times and best-selling author. During the 1970s and the early 1980s, she worked for Time magazine and the Washington Star, where she covered news as well as sports and wrote feature articles...
's column, which he used to engage in similar speculation: "I know why you want me to run, and I hear your clamor ... Nevertheless, I am not ready to announce yet – even though it's clear that the voters are desperate for a white, male, middle-aged, Jesus-trumpeting alternative."
The campaign began in earnest on October 16, 2007, when Colbert officially announced his candidacy on his own 11:30 pm–12:00 am EST Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
program, The Colbert Report. Colbert had earlier appeared on The Daily Show
The Daily Show
The Daily Show , is an American late night satirical television program airing each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central. The half-hour long show premiered on July 21, 1996, and was hosted by Craig Kilborn until December 1998...
, the program immediately preceding his own on the Comedy Central lineup, but had stated that his final declaration of candidacy would be made on a "more prestigious show". Subsequent to his declaration, Colbert appeared on Meet the Press
Meet the Press
Meet the Press is a weekly American television news/interview program produced by NBC. It is the longest-running television series in American broadcasting history, despite bearing little resemblance to the original format of the program seen in its television debut on November 6, 1947. It has been...
on October 21, 2007, where he asserted the reality of his campaign: "I'm far realer than Sam Brownback
Sam Brownback
Samuel Dale "Sam" Brownback is the 46th and current Governor of Kansas. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S. Senator from Kansas from 1996 to 2011, and as a U.S. Representative for Kansas's 2nd congressional district from 1995 to 1996...
, let me put it that way," said Colbert.
Colbert's campaign touted him as South Carolina's native or favorite son
Favorite son
A favorite son is a political term.*At the quadrennial American national political party conventions, a state delegation sometimes nominates and votes for a candidate from the state, or less often from the state's region, who is not a viable candidate...
candidate, running exclusively in that state and exclusively for that state's interests. "I am from South Carolina and I am for South Carolina and I defy any other candidate to pander more to the people of South Carolina, those beautiful, beautiful people," he said after his Colbert Report announcement. As such, he challenged Democratic candidate John Edwards
John Edwards
Johnny Reid "John" Edwards is an American politician, who served as a U.S. Senator from North Carolina. He was the Democratic nominee for Vice President in 2004, and was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2004 and 2008.He defeated incumbent Republican Lauch Faircloth in...
'—himself a native South Carolinian—own prospective role. As Colbert began campaigning in South Carolina in late October, Edwards' spokesperson Teresa Wells teased Colbert about his sponsorship by Doritos
Doritos
Doritos is a brand of seasoned tortilla chips created by Arch West and produced since 1964 by the American food company Frito-Lay ....
nacho chips: "As the candidate of Doritos, his hands are stained by corporate corruption and nacho cheese. John Edwards has never taken a dime from taco chip lobbyists and America deserves a President who isn't in the pocket of the snack food special interests." The Edwards team also released a press release responding to Colbert directly: "Edwards was born in South Carolina, learned to walk in South Carolina, learned to talk to in South Carolina and will kick Stephen Colbert's New York City butt in South Carolina." One commentator suggested the humorous response might aid Edwards' image by presenting him as a candidate who could "make fun of himself". In addition, Edwards booked American film actor and celebrity
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
Danny Glover
Danny Glover
Danny Lebern Glover is an American actor, film director, and political activist. Glover is perhaps best known for his role as Detective Roger Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon film franchise.-Early life:...
to stump for him in South Carolina on the same day Colbert was making his appearance in the state; a chance at a "perfect political salvo", in the opinion of one reporter, although one left underexploited.
Mike Huckabee
Michael "Mike" Dale Huckabee is an American politician who served as the 44th Governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007. He was a candidate in the 2008 United States Republican presidential primaries, finishing second in delegate count and third in both popular vote and number of states won . He won...
, Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
and even himself, as possible running mates. He also agreed to endorse Garry Kasparov
Garry Kasparov
Garry Kimovich Kasparov is a Russian chess grandmaster, a former World Chess Champion, writer, political activist, and one of the greatest chess players of all time....
's bid to win the Russian presidency in return for Kasparov's support for his campaign.
Colbert had planned to appear at the College of Charleston
College of Charleston
The College of Charleston is a public, sea-grant and space-grant university located in historic downtown Charleston, South Carolina, United States...
on October 27, but was unable to make the event due to a scheduling conflict. One beauty shop owner in Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
turned down a request from one of the Colbert Report
Bob Coble
Robert D. "Bob" Coble is a former mayor of Columbia, South Carolina. Coble has been a resident of Columbia for most of his life having attended Dreher High School and graduating in 1971. He served as mayor from 1990 until 2010...
, mayor of Columbia
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
, was more welcoming. On Sunday October 28, 2007, Coble presented Colbert a key to the city, "a proclamation that Colbert is truly 'South Carolina's Favorite Son,'" and a "necktie with Palmetto trees". Residents of the city had previously stated that although they knew Colbert would "use the visit as comedic fodder," they hoped the visit would bring humor and press coverage to the city. Colbert met with former Democratic governor Jim Hodges
Jim Hodges
James Hovis "Jim" Hodges is a Democrat who served one term as the 114th Governor of South Carolina from 1999 until 2003.-Early career:...
, who signed Colbert's campaign petition and offered himself as a possible vice presidential
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
choice. Colbert declared to cheering crowds that "I love South Carolina almost as much as South Carolina loves me!", and that his slogan for improving the state in the 21st century will be "First to secede, first to succeed." Colbert also made an appearance the same day at the University of South Carolina
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
, where, playing to interstate rivalry, he promised to "crush the state of Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
".
Colbert had originally planned to run for both the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
and Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
nominations in his home state of South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. Upon obtaining the forms to put himself on the ballot, however, he discovered to do so requires a non-refundable fee of $25,000 plus a $10,000 late fee for the Republican primary and $2,500 or three thousand signatures on a petition for the Democratic primary. On the October 31, 2007 episode of The Colbert Report, Colbert announced that he would no longer be seeking a spot on the Republican Party ballot, primarily because he was unwilling to write a $35,000 check to the Republican Party, but also because spending more than $5,000 on his campaign would make him subject to greater levels of scrutiny under federal election law. However, Colbert reaffirmed his bid for a Democratic ballot spot by displaying a photograph of himself holding a $2,500 personal check made out to the Democratic Party, as well as a notarized application form for the Democratic ballot.
The following day, November 1, 2007, the South Carolina Democratic Party executive council voted 13–3 to refuse Colbert's application onto the ballot. “The general sense of the council was that he wasn’t a serious candidate and that was why he wasn’t selected to be on the ballot," stated John Werner, the party's director. Colbert has announced that he will not continue his campaign.
On the April 28, 2008 episode of The Colbert Report, guest Feist said that she had been planning to offer her song "1234
1234 (song)
"1234" is a song from Feist's third studio album, The Reminder. It is Feist's most successful single to date. The song was co-written by Sally Seltmann, an Australian singer-songwriter who also recorded under the name New Buffalo, and Feist...
" as the official campaign theme.
At the 2008 Libertarian National Convention
2008 Libertarian National Convention
The 2008 Libertarian National Convention was held from May 22 to May 26, 2008 at the Sheraton Hotel in Denver, Colorado...
, Colbert received one write-in vote for the Libertarian
Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party is the third largest and fastest growing political party in the United States. The political platform of the Libertarian Party reflects its brand of libertarianism, favoring minimally regulated, laissez-faire markets, strong civil liberties, minimally regulated migration...
nomination in the second round of voting.
On the June 11, 2009 show Colbert stated that if he were to run for President again, he would claim his time spent in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
as part of the USO
United Service Organizations
The United Service Organizations Inc. is a private, nonprofit organization that provides morale and recreational services to members of the U.S. military, with programs in 160 centers worldwide. Since 1941, it has worked in partnership with the Department of Defense , and has provided support and...
as "military service." Colbert was in Iraq as a part of Operation Iraqi Stephen, a tour aimed at supporting and boosting the morale of the United States Military in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
.
Opinion polling
A national poll from Public Opinion Strategies from Oct 18–21 had Colbert receiving 2.3% of the vote in the Democratic field (ahead of Bill Richardson, Chris Dodd, Dennis KucinichDennis Kucinich
Dennis John Kucinich is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997. He was furthermore a candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections....
, and Mike Gravel
Mike Gravel
Maurice Robert "Mike" Gravel is a former Democratic United States Senator from Alaska, who served two terms from 1969 to 1981, and a former candidate in the 2008 presidential election....
) and less than 1% in the Republican field. A second poll, taken by Rasmussen Reports
Rasmussen Reports
Rasmussen Reports is an American media company that publishes and distributes information based on public opinion polling. Founded by pollster Scott Rasmussen in 2003, the company updates daily indexes including the President's job approval rating, and provides public opinion data, analysis, and...
October 19–21 (before Colbert's Meet The Press appearance), had Colbert receiving 13% as an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
running against Rudy Giuliani
Rudy Giuliani
Rudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani KBE is an American lawyer, businessman, and politician from New York. He served as Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001....
and Hillary Clinton, and 12% as an independent running against Fred Thompson and Clinton. Results were particularly high among respondents aged 18–29, where Colbert received 28% of the vote among likely voters in a Giuliani–Clinton contest, and 31% in a Thompson–Clinton contest. Drawing a connection between the two polls, one reporter commented that if Colbert continues "gaining over 10% a week", Colbert "should be leading the field before November is out."
Legality and viability
Doritos
Doritos is a brand of seasoned tortilla chips created by Arch West and produced since 1964 by the American food company Frito-Lay ....
brand tortilla chips. In an October 26, 2007 appearance at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
, Colbert declared that, if elected, he would be "as good for the country as Doritos are for your body". Colbert's campaign was initially called the "Hail To The Cheese Stephen Colbert's Nacho Cheese Doritos 2008 Presidential Campaign", until he was advised that the finances obtained from Doritos could legally be used to fund only his television show's coverage of the campaign, rather than the campaign itself. Colbert responded by adding the word "Coverage" to the title. Some commentators argued that such distinctions could have had serious legal ramifications for Colbert irrespective of how serious his campaign effort was. In order to avoid breaking election laws and maintain the distinction between coverage and activism, Colbert had to move a petition for South Carolina Democrats to sign from his show's website to an independent website that is not affiliated with his show. A spokesperson for Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
, the network hosting The Colbert Report, stated that, based on "the law, prior rulings made by the Federal Election Commission
Federal Election Commission
The Federal Election Commission is an independent regulatory agency that was founded in 1975 by the United States Congress to regulate the campaign finance legislation in the United States. It was created in a provision of the 1975 amendment to the Federal Election Campaign Act...
and advice of expert outside counsel", there was nothing in the run that ran contrary to federal campaign election laws.
Prior to Colbert's announcement, Colbert Report staff had consulted representatives of both parties. Joe Werner, executive director of the State Democratic Party
South Carolina Democratic Party
The South Carolina Democratic Party is the South Carolina affiliate of the United States Democratic Party. The Democratic party thrived during the Second Party System between 1832 and the mid-1850s and was one of the causes of the collapse of the Whig Party....
, had been called by a Colbert representative three weeks before the announcement, for queries regarding filing dates and other requirements. Katon Dawson, chairman of the State GOP
South Carolina Republican Party
The South Carolina Republican Party and the South Carolina Democratic Party are the two major political parties within the U.S. state of South Carolina...
, had been called on October 15, a handful of hours before the show declaring Colbert's candidacy was taped. Estimations of Colbert's chances were mixed, but neither party disputed his ability to place himself on their respective ballots. The dual Republican–Democrat nature of the run, however, elicited opposing responses from the party representatives. Dawson found nothing in his party's regulations preventing Colbert from running on both ballots, but Werner was more leery at the suggestion. Said Werner: "I don’t believe you can do that." "It's in our rules somewhere that you can't be on two ballots."
Any candidate wishing to run in the South Carolina Democratic Primary requires the approval of the State Democratic Party's Executive Committee, which must declare a candidate viable before adding him to the ballot. The determination of what constitutes viability is up to the Executive Committee alone. The S.C. Democratic Party Executive Committee asserted that a candidate must have actively campaigned in the state before he is listed on the ballot. Several members of the committee expressed dismay over Colbert's apparent lack of serious intention, citing his failure to campaign nationally as a reason to doubt his viability; one member stated that Colbert would only get on the ballot "over my dead body."
Colbert also stated on the aforementioned Meet The Press episode that he did not expect to win the presidency: "I don't want to be president. I want to run for president. There's a difference," he said. Colbert made no attempt to appear on the ballots in any other state primaries, and so it is unlikely that he would have been able to gather enough delegates to secure either party nomination unless he were to win other states by a write-in vote.
Write-in candidates must generally submit forms with intention to run prior to being written-in by the populace; however, some internet campaigns started to garner interest in writing-in Colbert as a purely satirical exercise.
Reaction
Man of the Year (2006 film)
Man of the Year is a 2006 Comedy film directed and written by Barry Levinson and starring Robin Williams in the lead role. In addition to Williams, the film features Christopher Walken, Laura Linney, Lewis Black and Jeff Goldblum....
, in which Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
plays a comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
who runs for president, but more to comedian Pat Paulsen
Pat Paulsen
Patrick Layton "Pat" Paulsen was an American comedian and satirist notable for his roles on several of the Smothers Brothers TV shows, and for his campaigns for President of the United States in 1968, 1972, 1980, 1988, 1992, and 1996, which had primarily comedic rather than political objectives,...
, who received over 200,000 votes when he ran in 1968
United States presidential election, 1968
The United States presidential election of 1968 was the 46th quadrennial United States presidential election. Coming four years after Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson won in a historic landslide, it saw Johnson forced out of the race and Republican Richard Nixon elected...
as a result of dissatisfaction with the current candidates at that time. While Colbert's motivation remains unclear, his campaign to "bring truthiness
Truthiness
Truthiness is a "truth" that a person claims to know intuitively "from the gut" or that it "feels right" without regard to evidence, logic, intellectual examination, or facts....
to the '08 race" remained popular.
Colbert's candidacy had met mixed reviews, and the growing realization that Colbert may be serious about his candidacy raised the ire of the American political and media establishment. When the Public Opinion Strategies poll put Colbert ahead of Bill Richardson, Richardson's spokesman responded: "This is a serious election with serious consequences and we are not going to comment on this ridiculous exercise". Katon Dawson, South Carolina's Republican party chairman believed Colbert would be better off using the $35,000 entrance fee to "buy a sports car and get a girlfriend". The high polling gave way to what New York
New York (magazine)
New York is a weekly magazine principally concerned with the life, culture, politics, and style of New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to The New Yorker, it was brasher and less polite than that magazine, and established itself as a cradle of New...
called a "Stephen Colbert Backlash", as bloggers criticized Colbert for verging into legitimate political territory, asserting that he had "crossed the line from lampooning the process to actively messing it up." Republican candidate John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
gave a more positive view, stating that he hoped Colbert would join the Republican party's debates. "He can make them livelier and he can reach a wider audience than that narrow little sliver that watches his show." In conversation with ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
, Fox News
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
commentator and template for Stephen Colbert's The Colbert Report persona Bill O'Reilly
Bill O'Reilly (commentator)
William James "Bill" O'Reilly, Jr. is an American television host, author, syndicated columnist and political commentator. He is the host of the political commentary program The O'Reilly Factor on the Fox News Channel, which is the most watched cable news television program on American television...
dismissed Colbert's run as a publicity stunt for his book, I Am America. O'Reilly also called Colbert out for not going on the O'Reilly Factor
The O'Reilly Factor
The O'Reilly Factor, originally titled The O'Reilly Report from 1996 to 1998 and often called The Factor, is an American talk show on the Fox News Channel hosted by commentator Bill O'Reilly, who often discusses current controversial political issues with guests.The program was the most watched...
to discuss the book: "He knows the book is dumb, so he's not going to come in. Instead, he runs for president." Sam Brownback
Sam Brownback
Samuel Dale "Sam" Brownback is the 46th and current Governor of Kansas. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S. Senator from Kansas from 1996 to 2011, and as a U.S. Representative for Kansas's 2nd congressional district from 1995 to 1996...
's October 19, 2007 withdrawal from the race was humorously attributed by some to competition from the comedian, but others took Colbert's challenge to Brownback's run more seriously. As one reporter for The Atlantic
The Atlantic Monthly
The Atlantic is an American magazine founded in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1857. It was created as a literary and cultural commentary magazine. It quickly achieved a national reputation, which it held for more than a century. It was important for recognizing and publishing new writers and poets,...
wrote, "Sam Brownback may cite other reasons for dropping out today, but Colbert’s plan to run in South Carolina wouldn’t have made his job there any easier."
Democratic candidate Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
jokingly questioned the authenticity of Colbert's "native son" posturing: "I don't get much of an accent. If he's from South Carolina, he wasn't really down-home South Carolina — that's my impression. I can't picture Stephen eating grits
Grits
Grits are a food of American Indian origin common in the Southern United States and mainly eaten at breakfast. They consist of coarsely ground corn, or sometimes alkali-treated corn . They are also sometimes called sofkee or sofkey from the Muskogee language word...
, but who knows?" Colbert promptly ate several bowls of grits on the next night's show. Carol Fowler, the S.C. Democratic Party chairwoman, stated that Colbert's long absence from the state following his leave for college might backfire on him. The scheme might not work against the other candidates anyways. "By primary day, they’ll all be claiming to be from here," she said.
In the 2009 animated film Monsters vs. Aliens
Monsters vs. Aliens
Monsters vs. Aliens is a 2009 American computer-animated 3-D science fiction film produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Paramount Pictures...
, Colbert was chosen to provide the voice of the President of the United States.
Comedy Central's Indecision 2008 coverage during election night, a program which featured both Jon Stewart and Colbert reporting on election results, referenced his failed South Carolina campaign. Upon announcing the results of the election in South Carolina, a state won by John McCain, Colbert's portrait was featured next to the two candidates, framed by Doritos chips.
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, polling high among superhuman
Superhuman
Superhuman can mean an improved human, for example, by genetic modification, cybernetic implants, or as what humans might evolve into, in the near or distant future...
s and mutants
Mutant (Marvel Comics)
In comic books published by Marvel Comics, a mutant is an organism who possesses a genetic trait called an X-gene that allows the mutant to naturally develop superhuman powers and abilities...
. In the Marvel Universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
, Colbert's campaign successfully continued as a third party candidate running against both McCain and Obama, on a "Populist" platform. "Colbert '08" paraphernalia appeared in the artwork of various Marvel
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
comics and Colbert himself teamed up with Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
in the October 2008 comic Amazing Spider-Man #573. His policies in the campaign included contacting T'Challa
Black Panther (comics)
The Black Panther is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and penciller-co-plotter Jack Kirby, he first appeared in Fantastic Four #52...
and Doctor Doom
Doctor Doom
Victor von Doom is a fictional character who appears in Marvel Comics publications . Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Fantastic Four #5 wearing his trademark metal mask and green cloak...
for help in fighting the Skrull
Skrull
The Skrulls are a fictional race of extraterrestrial shapeshifters that appear in publications by Marvel Comics.-Publication history:The Skrulls first appeared in Fantastic Four #2 and were created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby....
s. On November 5, 2008, Marvel announced that its fictional newspaper The Daily Bugle was reporting Colbert's victory over both John McCain and Barack Obama. However, several hours later Marvel released a second Daily Bugle article correcting its initial reports, stating that while Colbert had won the popular vote Obama had secured more electoral votes, thus winning the presidency. "Oops, our bad," said Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada
Joe Quesada
Joseph "Joe" Quesada is an American comic book editor, writer and artist. He became known in the 1990s for his work on various Valiant Comics books, such as Ninjak and Solar, Man of the Atom...
of the confusion. "We completely forgot the Marvel Universe reflects what happens in the real world."
Facebook popularity
The FacebookFacebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
group "1,000,000 Strong For Stephen T Colbert" became the fastest growing Facebook group in the site's history, having averaged 78 new members per minute It surpassed one million members on October 26, 2007, less than ten days after its creation on October 17. Colbert's group grew at such a rapid rate—as many as 83 people per minute for eight days in a row—that it led one Facebook representative to tell the New York Times that the group had begun "overloading one of our servers," a problem that has since been resolved. The achievement has been given as an example of the networking site's "uncanny ability to mashup the serious and the silly aspects of everything it touches." As of October 25, 2007, the group was the most popular political group on the site, outnumbering the 380,000 of Obama’s "1 Million Strong Group", the 500,000 of "Stop Hillary Clinton: (One Million Strong AGAINST Hillary)" and the 615,000 of "I bet I can find 1,000,000 people who dislike George Bush!". Since reaching a peak of 1.5+ million members in late November 2007, the group has gone down steadily; however, it still remains extremely large.
External links
- Official campaign site – Colbert08.org
- Unofficial campaign site – StephenColbert08.com
- Unofficial campaign headquarters – Colbert08.us
- Official coverage site
- The Colbert Report
- Indecision 2008 The Daily Show: Colbert's Big Announcement 2007-10-16 (video clip) – announcement of consideration
- Indecision 2008 The Colbert Report – Colbert '08 2007-10-16 (video clip) – announcement of seeking office
- Get Colbert On The Ballot in South Carolina!
- The Marvel Universe campaign: