Video: GOP launches new, er, “Young Guns” ad
posted at 9:32 pm on September 2, 2010 by Allahpundit
A few days old but worth watching. Here’s the thing: I like the overarching “rebranding” concept, and I really like the idea of showcasing the GOP’s younger stars (Paul Ryan especially). But there’s a certain wisdom in the second clip below (via Mediaite) about not giving yourself your own nickname. My appreciation for Ryan’s seriousness of purpose in advancing his roadmap to fiscal solvency somehow isn’t enhanced by reimagining him as a “Young Gun”; on the contrary, the thing I like about him is that he’s unusually mature in his willingness to make tough choices about entitlement funding and the national debt. Which is to say, while branding gimmicks are basically fine and harmless, it’s hard for me to believe that the “Young Guns” label enhances the next generation’s credibility. Am I wrong about that? Hopefully so, since they’re doing this to try to move a book laying out their leadership ideas.
Exit question: If they’re after younger voters, should they have called the book “Dirty Sexy Politics” instead? It’s damned catchy.
Blowback
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The “New Guards” maybe….?
like as in the Declaration of Independence.
ted c on September 2, 2010 at 9:33 PM
Meh, I’m all right wid it.
John the Libertarian on September 2, 2010 at 9:36 PM
Gag that ad sucks.
We need the demon sheep guy.
Khorum on September 2, 2010 at 9:37 PM
Those young gun candidates look … kinda old.
Scranton on September 2, 2010 at 9:38 PM
There’s quite a bit of Velveeta involved.
Quite a bit.
Allahpundit on September 2, 2010 at 9:38 PM
You are too right. It’s a bit like one of those college photos in a toga one regrets in later years.
… or so I imagine.
doufree on September 2, 2010 at 9:38 PM
Mama Grizzlies works because it fits, IMO.
Young Guns, not so much.
But I don’t think it matters a lot. The voters are still going to be all set to refudiate the Dems.
INC on September 2, 2010 at 9:39 PM
They should have gone with “Bad Girls,” with Michelle Bachmann and a few Mama Grizzlies. It was a better movie.
Ted Torgerson on September 2, 2010 at 9:39 PM
BTW, I love the word refudiate. It’s an intensive double down of rejection–refuse & repudiate.
INC on September 2, 2010 at 9:41 PM
Cheesier than a block of cheddar.
Dark-Star on September 2, 2010 at 9:41 PM
They need to be toting guns.
trapeze on September 2, 2010 at 9:42 PM
Damn it, they should have had Haley Barbour and the RGA do this. They know how to create slick, effective ads that are cheese-free.
Allahpundit on September 2, 2010 at 9:42 PM
I don’t think so.
Young Guns does sound mighty juvenile.
Tav on September 2, 2010 at 9:42 PM
Aw jeez. No-ho-ho-ho-hoooooooo.
IrishEi on September 2, 2010 at 9:44 PM
Actually there is not a bit of cheese in Velveeta.
darwin-t on September 2, 2010 at 9:44 PM
they are after younger voters,
not clueless boobs
or any boobs
;-)
macncheez on September 2, 2010 at 9:45 PM
The Cheez Whiz boys?
Tav on September 2, 2010 at 9:48 PM
Yup, old, but still cool. I wish this ad was as cool as the candidates.
To contrast the Grand “Old” Party brand, the ad’s creators were probably attempting to generate something fresh, new and cool. Instead, they created something dull and dated.
anXdem on September 2, 2010 at 9:49 PM
Paul Ryan is a really crappy version of Ron Paul.
Mitchelle Malkin on bailouts
Spathi on September 2, 2010 at 9:50 PM
With respect…
… Allah, are you not a NASCAR fan?
This will work, but it would have been better if they some how incorporated 300…!
Seven Percent Solution on September 2, 2010 at 9:51 PM
Did you hate the previous leaders? Well you’ll hate this new crop just as bad!
Spathi on September 2, 2010 at 9:53 PM
And a short rope with a big ol noose!
Its OK its the next generation the “young guns” who need to wrest control of DC away from the fossils from the 60′s. The 60′s hippies are destroying our country through debt, regulation, taxation, and their attempt to control mother nature. FAILURES on both sides of the isle!
dhunter on September 2, 2010 at 9:54 PM
darwin-t on September 2, 2010 at 9:54 PM
this is true. I brought home a hunk of that once and my wife said, “I told you to get cheese.” ….as the dumb look crossed my face and I peered into the lovely hunk of what I had thought was the “cheese standard” for all these years…..sad.
ted c on September 2, 2010 at 9:54 PM
My thought exactly. Get that Dem crossover dude to make some killer videos. This one is kinda stale and predictable.
conservative pilgrim on September 2, 2010 at 9:56 PM
yeah, they did a helluva great video back a few months and then….. *cricket* *cricket* whats up?
ted c on September 2, 2010 at 9:56 PM
The Young Guns: A new crop of party apparatchiks
Spathi on September 2, 2010 at 9:56 PM
Why did all the white guys decide to accentuate their whiteness with white shirts? Very monochromatic…..
///just trying to preempt Chris Matthews’ response
conservative pilgrim on September 2, 2010 at 9:57 PM
I think he moans and then his eyes roll back in his head and the toes curl or something…..
you did mean when the leg thingy starts goin’ right???
ted c on September 2, 2010 at 9:58 PM
Yes! We need a little more Dale Peterson. Though he is hardly a “young” gun, he’s got more cheese than Janesville, Wisconsin.
Fallon on September 2, 2010 at 9:59 PM
Ron Paul is a really crappy version of Ron Paul.
Spathi on September 2, 2010 at 9:50 PM
darwin-t on September 2, 2010 at 9:54 PM
No kidding. If I were Paul Ryan I’d take any comparison to RP as a major insult.
annoyinglittletwerp on September 2, 2010 at 9:59 PM
Young Guns.
Old Ammo.
portlandon on September 2, 2010 at 10:00 PM
You know who would never call Velveeta cheese? Paul Ryan.
sammypants on September 2, 2010 at 10:01 PM
Seriously, this video is like the typical Republican party ad. IOW, B-O-R-I-N-G, no diversity, focused on people, unimaginative, etc. This is the best they could do?
I just watched it and all I remember: a couple of politicians, the deep voice, nothing about content. What was the content? Oh yeah, Young Guns or something. Really, it’s awful.
conservative pilgrim on September 2, 2010 at 10:02 PM
Don’t like it. The general concept is good, but this missed the mark, IMHO.
You are correct AP. You don’t give yourself a nickname. Costanza wanted to be ‘T-Bone’ and ended up as ‘Coco’ the monkey. Plus, I don’t think three whitebread office worker types in ties works with the mental image of gun slingers. That’s what young guns are. They even named a movie that and it was about 20 something gun slingers. It had the Sheen/Estevez brothers in it. Isn’t that the idea? That these guys are politically conservative versions of Namath, Montana, Favres? Young, sexy, hip, a little dangerous….. and conservative? Not with these three anyway.
Last and most important, I do not trust Eric Cantor. As I’ve reminded before, he was part of the brain trust that came up with the GOP ‘listening tour’ after McCain lost. Am I the only one who remembers how totally lame that was? How they rolled out McCain as a headliner? The freakin’ idiot that just blew the election. And it was all about “We are listening because you voters want Democrat policies, right? We, the GOP, can do that. We aren’t Reagan anymore” BS! Don’t trust Cantor as a genuine conservative. My gut keeps screaming it to me.
JimP on September 2, 2010 at 10:03 PM
Terrible.
Me. Me. Me.
It’s not about you guys. You could be next.
faraway on September 2, 2010 at 10:03 PM
Paul Ryan is not the synthetic cheese type.
anXdem on September 2, 2010 at 10:03 PM
heh! +2
BTW. there is a dude running for Obey’s job that’s a lumberjack and is like a real dude. Some reality show guy with a h0t esposa. can’t recall his name but he’s a gunner and probably knows that velveeta aint’ cheese
ted c on September 2, 2010 at 10:06 PM
Paul Ryan maybe, Cantor I am not sold on whatsoever, and I do not even know who the other guy is. I am not sure Cantor has done enough or anything really to have earned my support. Paul Ryan at least has a plan out there that is serious and also hard hitting and Cantor won`t sign onto the Road Map. He completely dodged that the other night on Greta.
bluemarlin on September 2, 2010 at 10:09 PM
Alot of former military personel are running for office in November.
This ad I think is a reflection of thet fact.
sonnyspats1 on September 2, 2010 at 10:10 PM
Awful.
Particularly the part where the words “innovative” “energetic” “just a little bit douchey” flash on the screen.
myrenovations on September 2, 2010 at 10:14 PM
Careful! We don’t need celebrity politicians, that’s what got us into this fix. There better be a lot of substance to them, we’re waaaay past admiring or trusting a politician just because they say that they’re better than the evil guys. And “young” doesn’t impress me.
obladioblada on September 2, 2010 at 10:16 PM
This ad is worse than some of McCain’s ads.
faraway on September 2, 2010 at 10:19 PM
Yeah, we really have to worry about what Scarborough thinks. Eat sh*t Allah.
echosyst on September 2, 2010 at 10:19 PM
Lame.
This one is much better.
publiuspen on September 2, 2010 at 10:22 PM
I don’t see the “cheese” thing, to me that IS OH SO 80′s! Which heh it’s my era. It was hard for me to click on it; the screen still was freaky in itself.
This will have a Teflon effect. It just won’t stick. Do these “guys” have “cowboy material?” Do they look like they won’t care if they run over a squirrel? On the contrary, if all of them were in the military, and in service wearing their uniforms–that would be uber sexy, hawt and mega macho. Chicks like me dig that stuff.
But of course, I agree with the no self-branding. Because of my stainless steel digital cyborg heart, if i was one of those fellows’ wife, I’d be laughing my arse all the time. I can’t imagine Mr. PPF in that ad. I’d tease him to death. And he’s got it and is a young gun indeed!/facepalm
Yeah, I was gonna comment on Dale Peterson. He sure does has more than cheese!
ProudPalinFan on September 2, 2010 at 10:24 PM
Did the state of Wisconsin promote this?
carbon_footprint on September 2, 2010 at 10:24 PM
My worldview of Velveeta cheese ended tonight. Tomorrow, to the grocery store. I gotta know WTF I ate as a kid!!
ProudPalinFan on September 2, 2010 at 10:25 PM
They need puppets of them blowing up terrorists in France.
tomas on September 2, 2010 at 10:27 PM
I just watched it and I have no idea what it was about. Maybe it was just that forgettable, or maybe it had no message. Same difference.
More like Middle Aged Golfers IMO.
sharrukin on September 2, 2010 at 10:33 PM
Nobody cares what Gary Condit err I mean Joe Scarborough thinks.
tetriskid on September 2, 2010 at 10:34 PM
Well put. Cheesy, yet artificial.
Lord help us, I hope they can do better than that.
iurockhead on September 2, 2010 at 10:35 PM
Find out who made this video an never let them near another conservative.
faraway on September 2, 2010 at 10:36 PM
Excuse me…….YOUNG FREAKING GUNS?
Any “leadership” put forth by the RNC has to be RINO-Cons or Progressive. I don’t trust the RNC, and especially Eric Cantor. Paul Ryan has a mixed voting record, and don’t know anything about the McCarthy guy. Except I did notice the staging.
First of all THEY ARE ALL WHITE WASPISH Law School looking types. And to top it off, to accentuate their whiteness……THEY WEAR WHITE SHIRTS!!!
Real Conservatives aren’t part of a “branding” campaign by the Beltway. Real Conservatives are the DAN MILLER of Alaska types…..that the Beltway Cocktail Party Republicans despise.
MORE MILLER……………LESS MURKOWSKI.
PappyD61 on September 2, 2010 at 10:39 PM
Terrible.
Me. Me. Me.
It’s not about you guys. You could be next.
faraway on September 2, 2010 at 10:03 PM
THREAD WINNER……..always talking about THEM having the solutions. How about something like “YOU SPOKE BY THE MILLIONS…….AND WE’RE LISTENING…”
PappyD61 on September 2, 2010 at 10:42 PM
Pathetic. We’re on the cusp of the most ideologically important election for this nation in our LIFETIMES, and the best they can do is regurgiate this ‘young/new’ crapola??
/and it helps if the ‘young’ campaign doesn’t feature someone who’s 40 and probably dyeing their hair. Or someone who’s 47 and isn’t.
Seriously, is this all those RINO apparatchiks in the GOP can come up with? What’s next, ‘we spend less than the other guys’?
rayra on September 2, 2010 at 10:43 PM
Exactly.
No more Cantor & Paul Ryan bullcrap! We’ve had enough of those TARP voting idiots!
We want Allen West and Joe Miller.
tetriskid on September 2, 2010 at 10:44 PM
Want catchy?
Want identifiable?
Want where the people are (not what some consultant/branding expert tells you)?
HEAR THEM growl.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oF-OsHTLfxM
PappyD61 on September 2, 2010 at 10:45 PM
Geez guys, it’s a video promoting a book not a campaign video. It was okay, and AP wouldn’t like it no matter what they did. Hell, if Palin was in it he’d hate it. And compared to Reid, Schumer, Pelosi, et al these guys are young.
Deanna on September 2, 2010 at 10:45 PM
Actually, they didn’t give the name to themselves, Fred Barnes gave it to them a couple of years ago. Not the hippest place to get the moniker from, but that’s where it comes from.
lizzie beth on September 2, 2010 at 10:54 PM
No no no no no no!
MCGIRV on September 2, 2010 at 11:00 PM
A beta ad for beta males – Young Guns – Please. How about Americans Defending the Constitutional Republic. It ain’t dirty or sexy, because this ain’t a game.
It’s pure and it’s the most miraculous government that ever existed, and it’s in imminent danger of extinction.
It’s a title that would also hold their feet to the fire. Can’t have that though. Country is burning, we need to play the ultimate hardball with the ultimate destroyers and this is the best the establishment can do. It’s just weak.
They once again ignored Sarah Palin, while lifting her “commonsense conservative” phrase and applying to the whole lot of them. And I don’t think it’s just because she isn’t holding an office right now that she was ignored. Among ALL of those in the video, and in the entire party for that matter, Sarah Palin is the Top Gun.
And imo, we are too easily pleased and ready to love Paul Ryan without him doing much to earn it. He’s been on the wrong side of things a bit too often for my taste.
It is a sad indictment on the party that it is such a big deal that his “Roadmap” causes such a ballyhoo and hosannahs shouted from the rooftops. Why? Many posters right here have been calling for these cuts forever. It’s not rocket science, it’s merely making cuts that are obvious and screaming to be made.
The fact that he has been the only one in the entire party to take the time to put pen to paper and articulate the basic subtraction doesn’t say much about what the other GOP personnel are up to.
I don’t give points for doing something BASIC and having that be big news.
I would give him more credit if he said he was going to put the budget into balance by returning some constitutional sanity; by eliminating horrors like the DOE, EPA, every “czar”,their budget and staff, and cut every govt. salary by 15%, to be frozen until further notice. All hiring frozen too. All the cushy govt. retirement perqs realigned also.
imho, Paul Ryan’s roadmap doesn’t get us there, it only gets the car out of the driveway and a few blocks out of town.
tigerlily on September 2, 2010 at 11:01 PM
I believe the Morning Joe crew is more like “The Three Amigos”
Jdripper on September 2, 2010 at 11:02 PM
Thanks for finding the culprit. Next, target the advertising agency, down to the nitwit who conceived the idea. Liberal? I say bear trap. Still, they OK’d it. Which is a triple facepalm.
ProudPalinFan on September 2, 2010 at 11:04 PM
Y la rubia con su Blackberry conectada con Casa Blanca…gonna grow a double chin looking down so much. Hiding the obvious.
ProudPalinFan on September 2, 2010 at 11:06 PM
The Young Guns backfired – triple fail.
faraway on September 2, 2010 at 11:07 PM
lizzie beth on September 2, 2010 at 10:54 PM
Fred Barnes, eh? He’s a nice guy, but a complete inside the beltway bubble person. HE would see these guys as gun slingers. He’s as whitebread straight laced as they come. Not a criticism, just a fact. Fred is L-7 as they used to say. Oy! These guys aren’t gun slingers. They aren’t James Dean, Brando, Wyatt Earp or Doc Holiday.
JimP on September 2, 2010 at 11:12 PM
Couldn’t tell you their names even if I watched that thing again. Unlike… I don’t know… Sarah Palin! Or Allen West! Or John Bolton!
Feedie on September 2, 2010 at 11:12 PM
Quien es la rubia?
tigerlily on September 2, 2010 at 11:12 PM
That guy Mike Allen on Morning Joe is totally worth running to and turning up the volume whenever he is on. He’s from Politico. He can barely complete a sentence, stumbles on his words, and bugs out his eyes. When he’s doing a Conservative bashing piece, especially on Palin, he bounces up and down. He has no upper lip. Really fascinating.
Marcus on September 2, 2010 at 11:14 PM
You don’t need a gun, young or otherwise, to control government.
You need a pen, and the courage to use it. A hand, and the courage to raise it.
Talk issues, folks. Forget the PR campaign.
Build a better mousetrap and let it speak for itself.
IndieDogg on September 2, 2010 at 11:20 PM
Young Guns ?
My youngest is a Kel-Tec PF-9 – Born about 2-1/2 years ago. Before that his big cousin, a DPMS AR at about 3-1/2.
As for the politicians…… I better not say anything other than this:
They’re supposed to be on the side of The Constitution and our Republic. Let ‘em get into office and we’ll see…… we’ll see. Trust is one hell of a hard thing to come by right about now.
Cheers !
Kenny Solomon
South Flori-duh
I carry a firearm because a police officer is too heavy.
E T Cartman on September 2, 2010 at 11:23 PM
Well I’m glad they’re not the first two, terrible hams. Now Kurt Russell…
Deanna on September 2, 2010 at 11:23 PM
Add some corny surfer music to the ad plz.
Spathi on September 2, 2010 at 11:24 PM
Loved it! Gotta love how country music just gets it said.
inmypajamas on September 2, 2010 at 11:26 PM
That was cringeworthy
Aquateen Hungerforce on September 2, 2010 at 11:38 PM
What’s her name, Mishka? The one holding the Blackberry with the WH key notes to speak about?
ProudPalinFan on September 2, 2010 at 11:57 PM
OT: Dan Riehl is coming after us and Allahpundit.
http://www.riehlworldview.com/carnivorous_conservative/2010/09/figures-allah-couldnt-resist.htmlT
ProudPalinFan on September 3, 2010 at 12:00 AM
Kinda what I thought too…
This was lame sorry… ESPECIALLY since it’s the women of the GOP who are kicking a$$e$ and taking names…
CCRWM on September 3, 2010 at 12:07 AM
I just wish they didn’t have Cantor in there. He’s a mealy-mouthed weasel, and a petty bureaucrat to the core. This is the guy I most expect to become the next McCain, after his pathetic interview with Laura Ingraham. I can already see he’s a spineless jellyfish and a bitch.
Virus-X on September 3, 2010 at 12:42 AM
I just wish they didn’t have Cantor in there. He’s a mealy-mouthed weasel, and a petty bureaucrat to the core. This is the guy I most expect to become the next McCain, after his pathetic interview with Laura Ingraham. I can already see he’s a spineless jellyfish and a punk.
Virus-X on September 3, 2010 at 12:43 AM
Dan Riehl get paid by Michael Steele so nobody cares.
tetriskid on September 3, 2010 at 1:43 AM
Young Guns is dumb.
These guys are Rebels With A Cause.
Dusty on September 3, 2010 at 2:16 AM
Actually, I take it back. I don’t know enough anything about McCarthy, I wouldn’t give it to Cantor, and while I like Ryan, I don’t know if it fits. I’m going to reserve that nick for others, like Miller, West, Scott, Rubio, et al, once they meet up.
Dusty on September 3, 2010 at 2:22 AM
When Palin says Mama Grizzlies it’s like you’re chatting to her at the checkout, it’s authentic. When media types create something like Young Guns it’s just Adspeak.
You need to contact Wasilla and get the number of the person who did the MG video for The ‘Cudah….
callingallcomets on September 3, 2010 at 6:08 AM
that’s horrible.
Metro on September 3, 2010 at 6:52 AM
Anyone else notice the reference to “Common Sense Conservatives?” Hmmmm, it seems I remember that phrase being used a lot by a certain gal from Alaska.
Kafir on September 3, 2010 at 7:00 AM
New Solutions? My ass. We need time tested solutions that have a track record of success. And even if there’s no easy or quick way out, at least operate in the meantime with some self respect and dignity, for f***’s sake.
New Solutions sounds like the kind of b.s. tinkering that we’re dealing with now.
Just emphasize the fact that America has nothing to apologize for and this bogus indictment of America’s past is like a domineering parent who still gives you crap for something you broke when you were in the third grade… “I always knew you were no good. Remember that time when you broke Grandma’s lamp? You were always so careless!”
“We’re America. We’re what’s right in the world. Now let’s fix this mother****ing economy, shrink this bloated mess and get these deranged bums out of Washington.”
Metro on September 3, 2010 at 7:00 AM
Very, very bad.
Socmodfiscon on September 3, 2010 at 7:16 AM
The Ad sucks.
I don’t think I saw Michelle Bachmann in that ad was she in there? True, she’s not that “young” – but then the people they’re featuring in the ad aren’t that young either.
Every time the GOP establishment tries to prove it’s “hip” they end up looking like clowns.
It’s because they are out of touch and, they need to go home.
Not that I dislike any of the guys in this ad. I like Eric Cantor and Paul Ryan – I don’t always agree with them but I like them. However, it’s very interesting to me how the GOP establishment continues to push the Tea Party movement away – even thought it’s the TP that’s the SOLE source of the fuel for the GOP fire coming.
HondaV65 on September 3, 2010 at 7:26 AM
Pretty much of everything coming out of the rnc is like hand loads with wet powder…
jerrytbg on September 3, 2010 at 7:48 AM
Joe Miller for leader …
tarpon on September 3, 2010 at 7:55 AM
What’s new. Metrosexual men ridicule what’s macho. While kids take on the hero image from yesteryear.
Problem being, ‘young guns’ as often as not were amoral hired hands paid by the robber barons. If they were for law and order, they became lawmen and joined the Texas Rangers or became US Marshals or a Sheriff like Joe Arpaio (God Bless).
“Young Guns” would be Cantor’s idea. Ignoring Hollywood’s brokeback, he might have thought better of alluding to the Wild West. “True Grit” got hijacked, as well, with the Hollywood remake doomed to fail.
But we know they mean comes next. The OK Corral.
maverick muse on September 3, 2010 at 7:55 AM
HondaV65 on September 3, 2010 at 7:26 AM
Eric Cantor eschews Michele Bachmann for actually BEING what they are supposed to be, doing the heavy work he refused to lift a finger to support.
Tea Party Caucus
Cantor’s just too good a sell-out to actually make a commitment to rescind federal corruption and abuse of power. He wants his turn commanding the pirate ship while the getting’s good.
maverick muse on September 3, 2010 at 7:58 AM
Kafir on September 3, 2010 at 7:00 AM
Lest you forget who was campaigning on that before she showed up, Teh Fred.
maverick muse on September 3, 2010 at 7:59 AM
Myopic take, AP.
It’s about energy.
fossten on September 3, 2010 at 8:00 AM
callingallcomets on September 3, 2010 at 6:08 AM
Check this out.
maverick muse on September 3, 2010 at 8:04 AM
First try. What the label exposes is what they wish they were, what they want you to think they are. Clark Kents prior to makeovers.
maverick muse on September 3, 2010 at 8:10 AM
Hey Mav, isn’t that a little out of your genre …just kidding ; )
jerrytbg on September 3, 2010 at 8:34 AM
Cantor as a Young Gun? He started in the VA House of Delegates in 1992 and has been in Congress in 2000. He’s a guy who, as far as I can tell, has only sucked off of the public teat his entire adult life. And he’s trying to pretend that he’s a new, outsider type guy for the GOP? Crikey, he’s part of what’s wrong with the GOP.
I swear that people outside of Virginia do not understand how much Cantor is part of the problem. If the GOP could take the House AND lose Cantor, I’d be ecstatic. He’s my representative, but I want him out. Today. Yesterday, if possible.
Physics Geek on September 3, 2010 at 9:31 AM
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