Washington Monthly has an amusing, if not all-together serious, piece in the current issue encouraging Dems to consider an outside-the-box approach to presidential candidates. I’m all for creative approaches, so I read it with great interest.
Nothing hurts Democrats more than their own aversion to risk. If they are to confront a Republican Party now eyeing a constitutional amendment to make their favorite Austrian-born-movie-beefcake-turned-GOP governor eligible for the White House, Democrats must start thinking audaciously. Instead of bellyaching about the supposedly shallow 2008 bench, why not consider the following list of people, who probably no one — including those on the list — have yet pictured duking it out in New Hampshire?
There are a handful of actual politicians on the list — Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen and Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, for example — but the more amusing ideas include discussion of candidates like Bill Cosby, Tom Brokaw, Lance Armstrong, and Tom Hanks, each of whom, the editors of the Washington Monthly believe, “can make a more exciting candidate than Tom Vilsack.” Maybe so.
But the piece got me thinking: when was the last time a non-politician even won a major party’s presidential nomination? In my lifetime, every nominee has either been a governor, senator, vice president, or some combination therein. What about unelected outsiders? It’s not entirely without precedent.
Looking back over the last century of candidates, there are only four major-party nominees who had not served in elected office before becoming president. Two of them won.
Dwight Eisenhower is, of course, the most famous example. Before getting elected in 1952, Ike hadn’t served in politics at any level, though he did a few things of note in the military, such as commanding the Allied Forced in North Africa in 1942, serving as the Supreme Commander of the troops invading France on D-Day, and assuming the command of NATO in 1951. He was a national celebrity — sought out by both political parties — in 1952. Perhaps this isn’t the best example.
A more on-point comparison to the Washington Monthly’s list may be Wendell Willkie, who ran unsuccessfully against FDR in 1940. A successful business man, Willkie developed a following as president of the Commonwealth & Southern Corporation, fighting Roosevelt over the Tennessee Valley Authority. Before the election, Willkie became a Republican and launched a presidential campaign after volunteers established hundreds of Willkie Clubs around the country (call it a precursor to MeetUps). He got the GOP nomination, despite never having served a day in government at any level, and lost badly on Election Day.
William Howard Taft never held elected office, but he was a successful and popular judge for most of his life. He also headed the Philippines Commission for McKinley, headed the War Department (later known as the Defense Department) for Teddy Roosevelt, and was supervisor of the Panama Canal construction before Roosevelt convinced the GOP to make him its nominee in 1908. He won the race despite losing every southern state. (Hmm, why does that sound familiar…)
And, finally, there’s poor Alton Parker, who was nominated to run against Teddy Roosevelt in 1904, despite only having served in government as a New York judge. He didn’t do terribly well, earning only 37% of the popular vote.
That’s not a great track record for “non-traditional” candidates. Two-for-four in the last century, none since the dawn of the modern presidential campaign. I guess Tom Hanks will just have to stick to the movies.