According to comments made on John Catsimatidas’s AM radio show, reality star Caitlyn
Jenner is considering a Senate run in California. This revelation, of course, comes on the heels of last
week’s, when Kid Rock teased the possibility of a Senate run in Michigan.
Both Jenner and Rock (is that how we should refer to him here?) have been vocal supporters of the GOP and Trump in the past, and would run as Republicans. One has to wonder why it’s always these kinds of celebrities who run for office, rather than, say, informed political agents like Angelina Jolie, or George Clooney, or even environmentalists like Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo. Perhaps it’s because the latter understand they can get more done outside of Washington; perhaps it’s also because they don’t care about fame or attention, while Jenner and Rock, whose popularity has been waning for years, crave it. (The obvious outlier here is the Rock, who would most likely run as a Democrat and is at the peak of his popularity, and popularity in general.)
Whether or not Jenner actually makes a run, it’s telling that another creature of our reality TV culture is contemplating public office. Unlike actors or singers, Jenner and Trump are famous for being themselves—or playing up versions of themselves. There’s a slight learning curve when it comes to these figures, in that the public too easily conflates the person they see on reality TV—or Instagram, which is more or less a reality TV equivalent—with the real thing. That’s part of the reason we ended up with Trump. And it could be the reason we end up with Senator Jenner.
God. I already hate the sound of that.
Both Jenner and Rock (is that how we should refer to him here?) have been vocal supporters of the GOP and Trump in the past, and would run as Republicans. One has to wonder why it’s always these kinds of celebrities who run for office, rather than, say, informed political agents like Angelina Jolie, or George Clooney, or even environmentalists like Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo. Perhaps it’s because the latter understand they can get more done outside of Washington; perhaps it’s also because they don’t care about fame or attention, while Jenner and Rock, whose popularity has been waning for years, crave it. (The obvious outlier here is the Rock, who would most likely run as a Democrat and is at the peak of his popularity, and popularity in general.)
Whether or not Jenner actually makes a run, it’s telling that another creature of our reality TV culture is contemplating public office. Unlike actors or singers, Jenner and Trump are famous for being themselves—or playing up versions of themselves. There’s a slight learning curve when it comes to these figures, in that the public too easily conflates the person they see on reality TV—or Instagram, which is more or less a reality TV equivalent—with the real thing. That’s part of the reason we ended up with Trump. And it could be the reason we end up with Senator Jenner.
God. I already hate the sound of that.
