Beer and Presidential Politics, pt 2

Continuing the discussion of beer in presidential politics, the accompanying story to the beer recipes discussed earlier examines the the role of beer in campaigning:

“It’s nice to pose and kiss the baby and pose with the factory workers, but boy, it really gets a reaction when they knock back the beer,” [John Schlimm, author of The Ultimate Beer Lovers Cookbook] said. “The beer has become the new baby.”

The question of which candidate you would rather "have a beer with" has become a classic amongst pollsters. Despite the fact that President Bush had not had a drink since 1986, a 2004 "Zogby/Williams Identity Poll found that 57 percent of undecided voters would rather have [had] a beer with Bush than with Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.)" No word whether the President's drinking buddy ratings have fallen along with his job approval numbers.

This primary season, "Clinton... fared well in the alcohol department:"

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) did a shot and drank beer in New Hampshire... [and] we heard repeatedly about the overseas trip she took with Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), among others, to Estonia in 2004 during which she called for a vodka-drinking contest.

Whole lot of good it did her. Maybe next election cycle Hill should try a power hour?