April 11, 2009

Fat Pockets

By J.C. Arenas

Graduate from college, follow war hero father's presidential campaign around the country, bash a few conservative heavyweights, hit the talk show circuit, and voila!

Six figure book deal.

Some time ago, I convinced myself I would not write about Meghan McCain because in my personal opinion she is rather irrelevant. As I stated in my piece on Ashley Biden, I do not believe that the children of politicians should be news. However, Ms. McCain has chosen to enter the political fray, and consequently she is fair game for anyone's critique, good or bad.

While I still hold the same personal opinion, unfortunately she has been given a larger platform for her voice and the left-wing media has chosen to give her recognition for the attacks she has made towards the right.

I shudder at the thought that this book deal legitimizes her, not so much as a writer, but as some sort of political commentator who not only has something relevant to say, but a strong enough following that a publishing company would invest money in her for further profit.

Meghan has merely capitalized on her name and implemented her father's "bash the right, so the left likes me" strategy in order to gain recognition and make money within the realm of politics. Ultimately, she has succeeded as an opportunist, not a political commentator.

She has yet to explicitly state her views or give credible resolutions to what she perceives are problems, but then again you would only do that if you actually cared about politics.

Her compilation of articles on The Daily Beast range from "I need a man" to "leave my curves alone" to "the GOP's hottie" and as a result her collection reads no better than anything you could find on a high school sophomore's MySpace page or the latest entry in the Gossip/Rumors section of TMZ.

Is this what her readers are willing to pay for?

Given her track record, I struggle to believe there is much of anything one will learn from a $22.95 Meghan that they can not get from the free one.

The worst aspect of her "rise" is that she has tried to seize the role of spokesperson for young conservatives like me, and that is a role which no one asked her to play and for which she certainly does not have the message or credentials. By her own admission she she has not even been a registered Republican for a year.

While I do agree with her that the GOP needs to utilize technology to expand the outreach of their message, she will not ingratiate herself to young conservatives as long as she labels herself a "Progressive Republican", another way of saying that she stands for nothing, and will support whatever makes her popular on the left and right. It is precisely that juggling act that has the Republican Party in the minority, and the "centrism" she advocates is a big part of the reason her father is still a U.S. Senator.

I do not have a problem with Meghan expressing her opinions, and I certainly do not have a problem with her making money from doing so, but given her background and the connection she has to the world of politics, I believe she could do much more than she has thus far. As it stands, she commentates for a left-leaning website, and her followers are mostly liberal, so she will continue to sell herself to the left and derail the right, and that will advance her checkbook, not her politics.

However, I doubt she cares that much.