![Matthew McConaughey]()
Is it too late for Matthew McConaughey to throw his name into the hat?
These remarks from the 54-year-old movie star are from this past Friday at the National Governor's Association meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah. McConaughey had said these things prior to the
shocking assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump that took place yesterday in Pennsylvania.
That story has, of course, taken over the news cycle - as it should. There have been a number of assassination attempts in the history of the United States, though this is one of the first that has happened outside of the history books. It's been interesting to
see the response in the "digital age" we live in, and it's obviously a very sad situation considering one of the innocent people attending the rally
lost their life.
Needless to say, the lead up to the 2024 Presidential Election was already chaotic, and yesterday's violent attempt only added to the chaos. Years ago, Matthew McConaughey saying that he may want in on the presidential election would be front page news. In 2024, it's probably not even good enough for the second or third page.
He ultimately declined to run for Governor in the state of Texas, arguing that he could probably do more for the state of Texas outside of politics.
But this past week, McConaughey did have some interesting things to say about politics at the very least, once again leaving the door open for political office. At one point he said that "decency doesn't seem to be on the table," and ironically adding that politics and entertainment shouldn't mix:
"I understand it’s hard to market and sell success in how people negotiate, because it’s not as fun, it’s not as sexy, it’s not as exciting as the car wreck. We’re a nation of rubberneckers. I think right now we’re all caught up in short-term, short-money wins.
And so we come to the table, we argue, we call each other names, and America sees a lot of us when we do that - This is entertainment. I’m in the entertainment business. Our leadership and our leaders don’t need to be in the entertainment business."
Notice that he mentioned he's in the entertainment business, and that leaders shouldn't be.
Because shortly after he said that, McConaughey responded to a question about whether or not he'd be willing to make a run for political office:
"Yes. I have thought about running for office, getting into this category. I’m on a learning tour and have been for probably the last six years of understanding what this category means. Do I have instincts, intellect that it would be a good fit for me and I would be a good fit for it. That would be useful. I’m still on that learning tour, and, you know, days like this. I’m learning a lot."
I think a lot of people would be "Alright, Alright, Alright" with Matthew McConaughey calling the shots.
And in the most thoughtful quote from the actor's sit down at the National Governor's Association meeting, McConaughey spoke on what he'd like to see out of modern day politics. He conceded that a lot of tactics that are used by both sides "work" to grab attention, but it's not always about that:
"I want to hear more vision from our leaders rather than just, ‘I want to do the opposite of what they want to do.’ Well, no. How do you see the way forward? Instead of just saying, 'No, all I know is I don’t want to do it that way or that’s the wrong way.' We see it right now - It’s with two presidential candidates. Fear. Let’s admit fear’s easier to sell than hope. It’s more measurable.
The train wreck is front page bold print. How can you sell belief, which I think is what we really need more of in our country right now is belief, whether it’s literal belief in the prime mover or God, or whether it’s belief more in ourselves and our neighbors in what America can be, we need more belief."
There's always 2028...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vN4fYJvyCKU
