10.23.2006
The Lone Star: How Kinky Friedman Shook Up Texas (Independent.co.uk)
When a Jewish country music singer and political virgin entered the race to become Governor of Texas with the slogan 'How Hard Can It Be?', people thought he was joking. Eighteen months (and a slew of high-profile political scandals) later, Kinky Friedman has become a genuine contender in an election battle that has excited and delighted voters across America. Has he got what it takes? Andrew Gumbel joins the Kinkster on the campaign trail to find out
Published: 23 October 2006
Strange things start happening when a 61-year-old Jewish cowboy with a wicked sense of humour decides to run for governor of Texas. Ever since Kinky Friedman, hitherto best known as a tongue-in-cheek country singer and semi-autobiographical mystery novelist, threw his hat in the ring 18 months ago and declared his ruggedly independent candidacy, politics in the Lone Star State have undergone a remarkable transformation.
Mostly, they've got a lot more fun. Friedman has stayed true to the opening battle cry of his campaign - "Why the hell not?" - giving the whole system a jolt of reckless possibility. The joke is on everyone: career politicians, corporate lobbyists, Christian fundamentalists, liberals, moralists and the numerous friends and foes of George Bush. Friedman, with his dry, gravelly voice and impeccable timing born of years on the stand-up comedy circuit, unfailingly skewers them all. His one-liner about the President is that he is "a good man trapped in a Republican's body"; politics in general, he says, is the only profession where the more experience you have, the worse you get.
By now, the entire state is sharing the joke - whether people intend to vote for Friedman in the 7 November mid-terms or not. Surely, no other candidate for office would have received a letter like the one sent to Friedman recently by a doctor from the Dallas suburbs. Had it come to his attention, the good doctor asked, that sales of the Trojan Vibrating Ring - a semi-obscure sex aid - were prohibited within the borders of Texas? Bemoaning an "egregious injustice" born of religious bigotry and woefully misplaced priorities at the highest levels of state government, Friedman's correspondent went on: "Currently it is legal to buy a .357 Magnum at Wal-Mart, but I can't buy a techno french tickler at my local Walgreens. Where's the logic?"
Before Friedman came along, the 2006 election for Texas governor was shaping up to be a snorer, of no interest to sex-aid aficionados or anybody else. Sitting in the Republican corner was Rick Perry, the distinctly lightweight incumbent governor who succeeded George Bush six years ago, and has done little since then to enthuse anybody - except perhaps his lobbyist buddies in the energy, insurance and construction industries. In the Texas press, Perry is more frequently noted for his slick, full head of hair than for anything he might possess beneath it.
'TEXAS IS MY COUNTRY, TRUTH IS MY RELIGION - AND FUCK 'EM IF THEY CAN'T TAKE A JOKE'
(More ... Independent > News > World > Americas > The lone star: How Kinky Friedman shook up Texas)
Published: 23 October 2006
Strange things start happening when a 61-year-old Jewish cowboy with a wicked sense of humour decides to run for governor of Texas. Ever since Kinky Friedman, hitherto best known as a tongue-in-cheek country singer and semi-autobiographical mystery novelist, threw his hat in the ring 18 months ago and declared his ruggedly independent candidacy, politics in the Lone Star State have undergone a remarkable transformation.
Mostly, they've got a lot more fun. Friedman has stayed true to the opening battle cry of his campaign - "Why the hell not?" - giving the whole system a jolt of reckless possibility. The joke is on everyone: career politicians, corporate lobbyists, Christian fundamentalists, liberals, moralists and the numerous friends and foes of George Bush. Friedman, with his dry, gravelly voice and impeccable timing born of years on the stand-up comedy circuit, unfailingly skewers them all. His one-liner about the President is that he is "a good man trapped in a Republican's body"; politics in general, he says, is the only profession where the more experience you have, the worse you get.
By now, the entire state is sharing the joke - whether people intend to vote for Friedman in the 7 November mid-terms or not. Surely, no other candidate for office would have received a letter like the one sent to Friedman recently by a doctor from the Dallas suburbs. Had it come to his attention, the good doctor asked, that sales of the Trojan Vibrating Ring - a semi-obscure sex aid - were prohibited within the borders of Texas? Bemoaning an "egregious injustice" born of religious bigotry and woefully misplaced priorities at the highest levels of state government, Friedman's correspondent went on: "Currently it is legal to buy a .357 Magnum at Wal-Mart, but I can't buy a techno french tickler at my local Walgreens. Where's the logic?"
Before Friedman came along, the 2006 election for Texas governor was shaping up to be a snorer, of no interest to sex-aid aficionados or anybody else. Sitting in the Republican corner was Rick Perry, the distinctly lightweight incumbent governor who succeeded George Bush six years ago, and has done little since then to enthuse anybody - except perhaps his lobbyist buddies in the energy, insurance and construction industries. In the Texas press, Perry is more frequently noted for his slick, full head of hair than for anything he might possess beneath it.
'TEXAS IS MY COUNTRY, TRUTH IS MY RELIGION - AND FUCK 'EM IF THEY CAN'T TAKE A JOKE'
(More ... Independent > News > World > Americas > The lone star: How Kinky Friedman shook up Texas)
Labels: 2006 election, Independent, Kinky Friedman, Texas
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