Sometimes, I get the e-mails that suggest that Republican women are better looking than Democrat women. The Republican women pictured include Ann Coulter, and the Democrats include Madeline Albright. It's silly, but cute. Is it sexist? Of course. Is it as primitive as "My dad can beat up your dad?" Sure it is. But still, it has a kind of trailer trash charm that's undeniable.
My own ambitions are loftier than that, though. And it takes more to impress me. I look at people like Dick Cheney, George Will, Brett Stephens, Marco Rubio (when nothing interrupts him), Paul Ryan, Newt Gingrich, and maybe the newcomer, Ted Cruz. Never mind Mitt Romney. His appeal is much more like Ann Coulter's than Dick Cheney's. He's a very pretty face, featuring a mouth that can spout platitudes. But these other guys are smart. Very smart. They talk circles around many Democrats. I don't know if they could outargue Bill Clinton, who's as smooth as silk, but it's possible they could. They do dazzle with brilliance. But that's because they have to.
The other end of that joke is baffling with bullshit. And they have to do that, too. But to convince people, they have to do it in a compelling way, a way that sounds logical, reality-based, confident, and intelligent. In trying for a wide appeal, like to the less endowed classes, they have to sell ice to the Eskimos, and coals to Newcastle. They have to convince poor people to endorse a system that leaves the poor poorer, and in exchange enriches the rich. At the expense of the poor people who are urged to go along with this.
This task is not easy. It requires a really smart person. Any dummy can sell something that is so clearly advantageous that it sells itself. All the salesman has to do is offer the product or service, and get out of the way. But it's a real challenge to sell snake oil, and to some people who aren't even ailing. Sure you have to be glib, but that glibness comes from a certifiable great intelligence. The best of the sociopaths is like that. Bernie Madoff talked some really smart people out of a lot money. I couldn't have done that, even if I had wanted to try. I'm not smart enough to confuse people that much, sometimes in areas of their own semi-expertise. Bernie Madoff is a really smart guy. Just like Cheney, Will, Stephens, Gingrich, and the rest. They have to be.
