How many times have you heard people attribute election results to a candidates popularity or personality ratings in the polls? "She was too polarizing" etc. Candidates for higher office have become increasingly hand picked and packaged to win by pollsters and political consultants who seem to keep their ears to the ground and their fingers in the air when testing the political waters.
"The Candidate", a 1972 film by Director Michael Ritchie exposed the political machine associated with "candidate creation." Robert Redford's naive candidate is initially visited in his "ingenue" stage and then followed as he becomes a political player, both denying and inevitably giving in to the system he so desperately wants to change.
John Edwards was poised to win the Democrat nomination in 2008. However, Mr. Edward's handlers weren't able to keep his personal life away from the political spotlight. Unlike Redford's character in the Candidate, Mr. Edwards was a savvy political player, well aware of the rules of the game. He was very well "packaged" for the position. A successful lawyer and family man, he seemed to be well suited for political office on the national stage. However, when news of an extra-marital affair broke, his handlers couldn't fend off the political backlash created by his infidelity. Edwards ended up stepping out of the race, and out of the political spotlight.
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