In recent years, the Republican Party has struggled to attract the youth vote and make inroads with Hollywood. National Review columnist Mark Steyn, author of “After America: Get Ready for Armageddon,” doesn’t believe the party’s presidential front-runners are helping to improve the situation.
Filling in for Rush Limbaugh on his radio show Thursday, Steyn analyzed an insult delivered by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, which referenced a 1952 episode of “I Love Lucy,” mocking former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s “Pearl Harbor” reaction to being left off the Virginia primary ballot.
“This is the kind of cutting edge pop cultural references that I think the Republican Party really needs to cement itself with young voters because you know the Democrats always have all the big celebrities and endorsements,” said Steyn. “And if you have ever seen the — I believe you can get it at Barnes & Noble, the ‘Encyclopedia of Republican Celebrities,’ a handsome leather-bound single sheet of paper with writing only on one side.”
“This is terrific,” he joked. “Mitt has found his pop culture comfort zone.”
Watch:
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Steyn was also amused by Gingrich’s reaction to Romney. Gingrich told his rival to “man-up” and say it to his face.
“Newt was mad about this,” Steyn explained. “Newt said when he was told on TV that Mitt compared him to Lucille Ball and the chocolate factory — he didn’t like that. … He said, ‘I’d like to hear [Mitt] say that to my face, because real men get into bar fights over Lucille Ball jokes.'”