Uber-conservative Bobby Jindal was an obvious pick to deliver the GOP response to the president’s Address to Congress. While there were rumors that the Republican wunderkind was on John McCain's short list of possible VP nominees, Jindal is still relatively unknown to Americans outside of his home state of Louisiana. Jindal's speech therefore served to brief viewers on his personal and political narrative, with the governor highlighting many of his achievements in Louisiana. Unfortunately for Jindal,it was the style of his speech - rather than the substance - that dominated the media's response to the Republican response to the president's address.Jindal's delivery of his party's response gave the 37-year old the opportunity to try out for a leadership role in a party that is desperately lacking in charisma and star power. The speech also exposed the southern governor to the unflinching glare of the national media. While Jindal has remained coy when questioned about his career ambitions, he is undoubtedly aware of the fact that the most significant test of a presidential contender is his/her ability to weather the storm of media attention while projecting a "presidential" aura. Unfortunately for Jindal, his almost childlike delivery during his speech exposed the governor's stylistic shortcomings.
Jindal's weaknesses are theoretically fixable, however. The Catholic convert is young, but he has racked up an impressive resume in his relatively short career. It is therefore conceivable that Republican strategists might hone Jindal's delivery to tone down his folksy style. The media may have been too quick to dismiss Jindal entirely. When an MSNBC anchor was caught muttering "Oh, God..." as Jindal approached the podium to give his party's response, it became clear that the left leaning members of the media were already preparing to be unimpressed. Following the speech, liberal bloggers almost immediately blasted the governor's performance by drawing an unfavorable comparison between the governor and 30 Rock's Kenneth the Page. In an entertaining twist, Kenneth the Page himself took to the airwaves to address claims that the Louisiana governor had swiped his style.
Jindal has managed to survive a series of bruising political missteps involving legislative pay raises and broken campaign promises that embittered many Louisiana voters. His aggressive posturing against political corruption (like Sarah Palin, he too has sought to portray himself as a reformer) has netted him approval ratings in Louisiana topping out at 77%, despite these hiccups. The widespread mockery of his speech and mannerisms, however, may have inflicted more lasting damage than any political scandal.
In his response to President Obama’s address, Jindal emphasized his party’s commitment to small government and fiscal responsibility, arguing that Obama’s stimulus package will “grow the government, increase our taxes down the line and saddle future generations with debt…” The speech was smartly worded in that it avoided attacking the popular president, and instead focused the party’s criticism on overspending. Jindal has apparently decided to match his talk with action; he recently attracted attention by refusing millions of dollars in unemployment assistance allotted for the state of Louisiana in Obama's stimulus plan. However, the fact that Jindal's funny accent made the most impact in the media does not bode well for his future as a policy maker.
Bobby Jindal began his speech by remarking on the historical significance of Barack Obama’s first address to Congress. Jindal did not hesitate to add, however, that he too is the child of an immigrant father who came to this country to achieve the American dream. Whether Bobby Jindal’s personal narrative becomes as entrenched in the American consciousness as Barack Obama’s remains to be seen. What is clear, however, is that the comedic possibilities for a Bobby Jindal cameo on 30 Rock are endless.UPDATE: This probably isn't the sort of press Jindal was hoping for. Turns out his Katrina anecdote (about the dangers of over regulation) was a fairly blatant exaggeration. Unsuprisingly, conservative media outlets have not chosen to run with this story, while left leaning analysts have given the story close attention.
