Wrestlers in the political arena
Posted: Jan 23rd 2008 By: mikeiles
I was watching MSNBC yesterday ? yes, I do watch more than just pro wrestling shows ? and I saw a clip of Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee giving a speech in South Carolina with none other than the ?Nature Boy? himself, Ric Flair, standing prominently behind him.
Flair is no stranger to politics. He is a staunch Republican and has appeared in the past at fund raisers for politicians such as President Bush and former North Carolina Sen. Jesse Helms. Flair has said that he once even considered running for governor of North Carolina, but that he decided against it because he had too many skeletons in his closet.
I can see his point. It?s pretty common knowledge that Flair lived his wealthy playboy gimmick and always was the life of the party. The stories of Flair getting loaded at bars and dropping his pants have been told many times.
When I was working as the editor of WCW Magazine, I had a conversation with a young woman who worked in the office and her boyfriend, who was on the magazine staff. She was telling us how basically every woman who worked for WCW had seen Flair naked from the waist down in a bar at some point. She began telling us her own experience with Flair by saying, ?The first time I saw [him without his pants] ? ? Her boyfriend cut her off. ?What do you mean, ?the first time?? How many times were there?? he asked. ?Too many to count,? she replied.
It?s because of Flair?s notorious partying past that I?m surprised that Huckabee would want Flair standing anywhere near him on a podium. After all, Huckabee is an ordained minister and the candidate of choice for ?values voters.? I wonder if those voters know that Huckabee is being endorsed by a kiss-stealin', wheelin?-dealin' son of a gun??
The more I think about it, the more the Huckabee-Flair tag team just doesn?t make sense. Case in point: Flair was a member of Evolution; Huckabee doesn?t believe in evolution.
Flair isn?t the only pro wrestler who is publicly endorsing a candidate. Kane (Glen Jacobs) and Val Venis (Sean Morley) are backing Republican Ron Paul. This all got me to thinking about the presidential candidates and which pro wrestling figures seemed best-suited to endorse them.
Hillary Clinton-Vickie Guerrero: Both are strong women seeking power in male-dominated environments. Something else they have in common is that both of their husbands were more well-liked than them, even though the men were known to lie on occasion.
John Edwards-Dusty Rhodes: Edwards is the son of a millworker, while Rhodes is the son of a plumber. Although both emerged from blue-collar upbringings to become rich and famous, they never stopped being concerned about the plight of the common man.
Rudy Giuliani-Big Vito: They both are Italian and were born and raised in Brooklyn. Oh, and they also both enjoy wearing women?s clothes.
Mike Huckabee-Shawn Michaels, Sting or Ted DiBiase: Any of these wrestlers ? all born-again Christians ? would be better for Huckabee?s squeaky-clean image than Flair. Michaels might want to curb the crotch-chopping at campaign rallies, though.
Dennis Kucinich-Rob Van Dam: Kucinich is an advocate for the decriminalization of marijuana, so it would figure that Van Dam would be high on him.
John McCain-Ric Flair: The Senator from Arizona seems like a better candidate for Flair. Like ?The Nature Boy,? McCain is the oldest contender in the game, he?s had a distinguished career and he?s looking for one final run on top. Also like Flair, McCain got divorced and later married a much-younger woman. Woooo!
Barack Obama-Mr. Kennedy: Both have outstanding oratory skills and came out of nowhere to become big stars. The question surrounding them is whether they have enough experience to be the top guy in their respective fields. I?ve also heard some political pundits compare Obama to Kennedy. Oh, wait. That?s a different Kennedy.
Mitt Romney-Vince McMahon: They both have strong ties in New England and have done exceedingly well in business. While McMahon was acquiring other wrestling companies, Romney made his fortune by buying out many well-known businesses. Plus, they both are in fine shape and have tremendous heads of hair for men in their 60s.
Supplemental Information
Spotlight in History
- 2008 The New York Express (Thomas Knight & Jeff Knight) def. The Untouchables (J. D. Rebel & The Enforcer) for the SECW Tag Team Titles
- 2008 Martin Justice became the SECW Cruiserweight Champion
- 2014 Spanish Wolf (Nathan Estrada & Michael Wolf) def. The New York Express (Jeff Knight & Thomas Knight) for the OECW Tag Team Titles
- 2025 Butcher def. Riker for the WFC Hometown Heroes Title
- 2025 Iron Mountain (Duke Blanchard & Jack Davenport) def. Toxic Masculinity (Johnny Lightning & Johnny Dynamite) for the WFC Tag Team Titles
- 2025 Phil Shark def. Franco D’Angelo for the TexPro Texas Title
Week of Sun 09-06 to Sat: 09-12
- 09-06 2008 The New York Express (Thomas Knight & Jeff Knight) def. The Untouchables (J. D. Rebel & The Enforcer) for the SECW Tag Team Titles
- 09-06 2008 Martin Justice became the SECW Cruiserweight Champion
- 09-06 2014 Spanish Wolf (Nathan Estrada & Michael Wolf) def. The New York Express (Jeff Knight & Thomas Knight) for the OECW Tag Team Titles
- 09-06 2025 Butcher def. Riker for the WFC Hometown Heroes Title
- 09-06 2025 Iron Mountain (Duke Blanchard & Jack Davenport) def. Toxic Masculinity (Johnny Lightning & Johnny Dynamite) for the WFC Tag Team Titles
- 09-06 2025 Phil Shark def. Franco D’Angelo for the TexPro Texas Title
- 09-07 1979 Mark Lewin def. Bruiser Brody for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Title
- 09-07 1980 Terry Gibbs became the TSW Tri-State Champion
- 09-07 1981 Frank Hill & Eric Embry def. Joel Deaton & David Deaton for the TSW Tag Team Titles
- 09-07 2004 Kenzo Suzuki & Rene Dupree def. Paul London & Billy Kidman for the WWE Smackdown World Tag Team Titles
- 09-07 2012 Brandon Walker def. Tim Rockwell for the ComPro Heavyweight Title
- 09-07 2014 Robert Lee def. Striker for the WFC Hometown Heroes Title
- 09-07 2018 Nikki Knight def. Erica for the MSWA Ladies Title
- 09-07 2019 Brian Dixon def. Tommy Dean for the BPW Oklahoma Title
- 09-07 2019 Luke Langley def. Brandon Groom for the BPW Lion Heart Title
- 09-07 2019 James Southard def. Lake Hefner for the ASP Inter-County Title
- 09-07 2024 The Subject (Cade Fite & Derek James) def. Toxic Masculinity (Johnny Lightning & Johnny Dynamite) for the WFC Tag Team Titles
- 09-07 2024 Wrangler Rhett def. Alex Royal for the WFC Prime Title
- 09-08 1947 Leroy McGuirk def. Buddy Rogers for the NWA Midwest World Title
- 09-08 1958 Danny McShain def. Mad Man Martin for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Title
- 09-08 1974 El Gran Markus def. Jose Lothario for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Title
- 09-08 1978 Rocky Johnson def. Bruiser Brody for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Title
- 09-08 2006 The Patriots (Bad Boy & Glen Steel) def. Aaron Neil & Alexander Lucas (Subbing for Se7en) for the MSWA Mid-South Tag Team Titles
- 09-08 2007 Al Farat became the MSWA Mid-South Heavyweight Champion
- 09-08 2013 Robert Lee became the WFC Hometown Heroes Champion
- 09-08 2017 The Cursed (Blade [2nd] & Kuda) def. The Cub Scouts (Brock Landers & Grizzly Gates) for the MSWA Mid-South Tag Team Titles
- 09-08 2018 Anarchy [2nd] def. Garrett Murphy for the NAW Lightweight Title
- 09-08 2018 Garrett Murphy def. Big Smooth for the NAW Heavyweight Title
- 09-09 1970 Waldo Von Erich def. Jack Curtis for the TSW Mississippi Title
- 09-09 1980 The Grappler def. Ted DiBiase for the MSW North American Heavyweight Title
- 09-09 2002 Papa Voodoo def. HIMM for the ACW Hardcore Title
- 09-09 2002 HIMM def. Papa Voodoo for the ACW Hardcore Title
- 09-09 2011 Michael Barry def. Dustin Heritage for the MWA MAX-Division Title
- 09-09 2016 One Man Sam def. Brock Landers for the MSWA Mid-South Cruiserweight Title
- 09-09 2017 Ray Martinez def. Brandon Groom for the BPPW Oklahoma Title
- 09-09 2017 Tristan Thorne became the ASP 5-Star Champion
- 09-09 2017 Michael Wolf def. Aaron Anders for the ComPro Heavyweight Title
- 09-09 2017 Michael Duplanti def. Garrett Murphy for the NAW Lightweight Title
- 09-09 2023 Johnny Lightning became the WFC Prime Champion
- 09-09 2023 Tino Valentino def. Derek James for the UWO Heavyweight Title
- 09-09 2023 Manico became the NAW Openweight Champion
- 09-09 2023 Manico def. Ryan Reed for the NAW Heavyweight Title
- 09-09 2023 Martin Justice def. Thomas Knight for the XDWF New GenX Title
- 09-09 2023 Thomas Knight def. Martin Justice for the XDWF New GenX Title
- 09-10 1968 The Spoiler & Gary Hart def. Fritz Von Erich & Grizzly Smith for the WCCW American Tag Team Titles
- 09-10 1971 Ramon Torres def. Roger Kirby for the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title
- 09-10 1978 David Von Erich def. Bruiser Brody for the WCCW Texas Heavyweight Title
- 09-10 1979 Oki Shikina & Sugar Bear Harris became the TSW United States Tag Team Champions
- 09-10 2011 Drake Gallows became the BYEW Entertainment Champion
- 09-10 2016 Psycho Sawyer def. Ray Martinez for the SRPW Heavyweight Title
- 09-10 2016 Psycho Sawyer def. Spyder for the SRPW United States Title
- 09-10 2021 Legend Has It (Thrash & Killbane) def. Two Man Sam (Sam Stackhouse & Samuel Savage) for the CPW Tag Team Titles
- 09-10 2022 Team Boner (Drake Gallows & MLP) def. Psychotic Messengers (Maniac Mike & Malachi) for the AIWF Tag Team Titles
- 09-10 2022 MLP def. Duncan Kincaid for the RDW Iron Man Title
- 09-10 2022 Nashoba def. Al Farat for the MajCW 24/7 On Call Title
- 09-11 1957 El Medico def. Duke Keomuka for the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Title
- 09-11 1958 Angelo Savoldi def. Dory Funk for the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title
- 09-11 1963 The Bolos (The Great Bolo [1st] & The Mighty Bolo) def. Bill Watts & Jerry Kozak for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
- 09-11 1967 The Von Erichs (Fritz Von Erich & Waldo Von Erich) def. Brute Bernard & Mike Paidousis for the WCCW American Tag Team Titles
- 09-11 1967 Danny Hodge & Skandar Akbar def. Chati Yokouchi & Togo Shikuma for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
- 09-11 1968 Danny Little Bear & Kit Fox def. Jack Dalton [1st] & Frank Dalton for the TSW Louisiana Tag Team Titles
- 09-11 1978 Bruiser Brody def. Fritz Von Erich for the WCCW American Heavyweight Title
- 09-11 2010 Ryan Reed became the NCW Heavyweight Champion
- 09-11 2010 The Unknown & Yoshi became the NCW Tag Team Champions
- 09-11 2010 Aerial Assault (Ky-ote Joe & Eric Rose) def. The Future Hall of Famers (Dane Griffin & Shane Rawls) for the IZW Tag Team Titles
- 09-11 2010 Team Shake It (Josh Evans & Martin Casaus) def. The D-Stinguished (Elias Castaneda & Arik Angel) for the ACW Tag Team Titles
- 09-11 2021 Warren Powers def. Drake Gallows for the EPW All-American Title
- 09-11 2021 Drake Gallows def. Warren Powers for the EPW Internet Television Title
- 09-11 2021 Revan became the RDW Iron Man Champion
- 09-11 2021 Most Wanted (Dan Webber & Reese & T-Arsenal) def. The Rejecs LM (Dr. Corvus & Elijah Sparks) for the WAH Tag Team Titles
- 09-12 1982 King Kong Bundy & Bill Irwin def. The Von Erichs (Kerry Von Erich & Kevin Von Erich) for the WCCW American Tag Team Titles
- 09-12 1983 Butch Reed & Jim Neidhart def. Magnum T. A. & Jim Duggan for the MSW Mid-South Tag Team Titles
- 09-12 1988 The Samoan SWAT Team (Samu & Fatu) def. John Tatum & Jimmy Jack Funk for the WCCW Texas Tag Team Titles
- 09-12 2004 Chris Matthews def. Brandon Bishop for the ACW Heavyweight Title
- 09-12 2009 Bobby Starr def. Kevin James Sanchez for the BYEW Entertainment Title
- 09-12 2010 Xavior def. Kevin Morgan for the MSWA Oklahoma Title
- 09-12 2015 Double D def. Aaron Neil for the IZW Impact Division Title
- 09-12 2015 Erica def. Paige Turner for the IZW Queens Title
- 09-12 2015 Brad Michaels def. Johnny Z for the IZW Heavyweight Title
- 09-12 2015 Richie Adams def. Jake O'Brien for the ComPro Heavyweight Title
- 09-12 2015 Shawn Hernandez became the DI2IW Intercontinenal Champion
- 09-12 2015 What Wrestling Should Be (Jermaine Johnson & Jordan Jacobs) def. Impact, Inc. (Damon Windsor & Johnny Z) for the IZW Tag Team Titles
- 09-12 2015 The K. C. Wolves (Graham Bell & Luke Langley) def. What Wrestling Should Be (Jermaine Johnson & Jordan Jacobs) for the IZW Tag Team Titles
- 09-12 2025 Floyd Maystorm def. Clover Botello for the WAH Hunger Dojo Title
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