The Village offers Ted Cruz another chance to join the club
by digby
Oh sure, everyone knows he’s a radical, anti-establishment throwback but that’s no reason not to welcome into the inner circle of power with the rest of the good old boys. He’s quite famous, after all:
The trick at the annual Gridiron Dinner is to singe without burning, and Washington’s political and media establishment will soon find out whether Sen. Ted Cruz is up to the task. Today, the venerable club, whose sole purpose is to host an annual white tie shindig, announced that Texas’ junior senator has agreed to serve as the Republican speaker.
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It can be a tough assignment to share a spotlight with the president. But as Gridiron members note, plenty of speakers have gone on to win their party’s nomination for president.Cruz is the second big name Texan in two years to serve as a guest speaker. Gov. Rick Perry was fresh off his epically flawed 2012 presidential bid when he got tapped, and his killer delivery helped him rebuild his reputation among the Washington elite he purported to scorn. He called that campaign “the three most exhilarating hours of my life,” and lamented that this was the “weakest Republican field in history and they kicked my butt.”
“But look,” Perry said, “I like Mitt Romney as much as one really good-looking man can like another really good-looking man under Texas law.
For Cruz, the dinner provides an opportunity to soften his edges. Self-promoters bomb at these sorts of events. Self-deprecators find their reputations enhanced.
Sadly, I really think that’s all it takes.
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