Quoted:
Quoted: Well, there go Fred's chances of winning the White House.
| Carter made Playboy and was made President. (His 'Lust in ones heart' line made the papers all over.)
Uncle Ronnie was also interviewed by Playboy and was later elected.
Going by past history Fred's chances of becoming President just rocketed past most of the others. |
Interviews with Playboy had nothing to do with Reagan or Carter getting elected.
Carter won because the nation had just gotten rid of the most corrupt politician since Boss Tweed (Nixon) and replaced him with someone that the entire country viewed as being a moron. My Dad's perception of Ford was that they guy couldn't walk two feet and stay upright. On top of that the country was heading into a very bad recession. There couldn't have been better conditions for Jimmy Carter to run under.
Reagan won because Jimmy Carter completely tanked the economy, was scared of the Soviets and stabbed the Shaw of Iran in the back which led to the Iran Hostage Crisis. Again, Regan ran under perfect conditions.
Fred on the other hand is running under the banner of a party who started an unpopular war at a time when we are heading into an economic downturn and he already has a large chunk of his base that isn't happy with him. The deck is already stacked against the Republicans and on top of that he isn't showing any energy right now. Fred needs energy and unity. Appearing in Playboy (if anyone really notices) is not going to help him solidify his base.