You know your campaign is on the rocks when your best tactic is to make fun of yourself.
That’s precisely what it’s come to for Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s flailing campaign. As the gaffes mount, his poll numbers drop. In Iowa, the TPM Poll Average has him in 6th place with a meager 5.6% of the vote. So Perry is out with a new ad making fun of himself.
The ad begins with a clip from Perry’s disastrous CNBC debate in which he tried to list the three departments he would cut but could only name two. Next, the self-deprecation continues with Perry admitting, “if you want a slick debater, I’m not obviously your guy.” But, he says, if you want a balanced budget amendment, a flat tax, and a part-time Congress, “I’m your man.” The kicker, of course, comes at the end: “I’m Rick Perry and…what’s that line again?”
According to Politico, the new ad will air tonight when Rick Perry goes on Jay Leno, where the embattled candidate will undoubtedly try to win over voters by making fun of himself. The point seems to be: compared to sex scandals and flip-flopping, a few gaffes here and there aren’t so bad. But it’s pretty bad when that’s the best you’ve got.
Watch the ad, courtesy of Politico:
Pema Levy
Pema Levy is a News Writer at TPM covering the 2012 election. Before coming to TPM, Pema was an assistant editor at The American Prospect where she wrote about politics and the economy.
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