Fat Male Politicians Get More Respect Than Skinny Ones??

New Study Shows Heavy Male Politicians Considered More Reliable, Honest Than Thinner Counterparts


Male political candidates looking for an edge should hit their local Dairy Queen. Female pols would be better off hitting the gym.

Researchers found that pudgy male politicos are considered more reliable, honest and even more inspiring than their thinner counterparts.

For female pols, thin is still in, according to a new study.

"A candidate's physical appearance plays a greater role in evaluation than we have thought in the past," said Dr. Elizabeth Miller," a political scientist at the University of Missouri and co-author of the study.

"We assume voters only pay attention to things like issue position, but to think that they don't pay attention to physical appearance is a bit naive."

Miller's findings were affirmed in at least one recent election.

In the runup to New Jersey's gubernatorial election last fall, incumbent Jon Corzine released ads that appeared to highlight rival Chris Christie's considerable girth.

Christie went on to trample the less hefty Corzine, anyway.

While few obese pols have made it to the Oval Office, William Taft was one of the exceptions.

The rotund Taft tipped the scales at more than 300 pounds and earned the title "Tubby" after he became stuck inside the White House bathtub numerous times.

Of course, some stick-thin pols have also managed to win voter's hearts. Just ask Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Brooklyn, Queens), whose wiry frame hasn't stopped him from winning a seat on the City Council at age 27 and serving five terms in Congress.

Miller cautioned against giving her findings too much weight.

"Partisanship, ideology and issue position still matter more than physical characteristics," she noted.

In her study, Miller split 120 volunteers into four groups.

Each group was presented with descriptions and photos of four separate phony candidates who had the same gender and body type: obese male, skinny male, obese female, skinny female.

Within each group, each phony candidate's political views differed.

The study subjects then rated the candidates based on a series of criteria, including honesty and ability to perform.

The obese males were viewed 6% more positively than skinny males, while skinny women were viewed 5% more positively than their full-figured counterparts.

Overall, obese females were viewed 10% less favorably than obese males.

The results were of little surprise to some New Yorkers.

When men "are portly or bigger or fatter, they may be associated with a ... grandfatherly image or a priestly image," said Alvaro Deprat, 46, a writer from Washington Heights.



Sources: NY Daily News

Christie vs Corzine (NJ) Its Super Tuesday! Vote!

View Larger Map

Sources: Youtube, Google Maps

Mayor Bloomberg (Daddy Big Buck$) Spends 250 Million+ To Remain In Public Office

(Monied campaigns. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine have spent $338.8 million on their campaigns.)

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Who’s biggest Campaign Spender ever?

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has spent more of his own money in pursuit of public office than any other individual in U.S. history, with his latest re-election bid already running at $85 million, the New York Times reported on Saturday.

Citing newly released campaign records, the Times said Bloomberg was on pace to spend between $110 million and $140 million before the Nov. 3 mayoral election. That means the self-made billionaire will have spent more than $250 million in his three bids for mayor of America's most fabled city.

In contrast, New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine, a former chairman of the banking firm Goldman Sachs, spent about $130 million in two races for governor and one for the U.S. Senate, the Times reported.

And publisher Steve Forbes poured $114 million into two bids for president, it said.

Bloomberg's wealth, much of it from the Bloomberg LP media and information empire, is estimated at $16 billion. He has used it to establish what the Times called an "insurmountable financial dominance" in the race.

A finance report filed by his campaign for a Friday deadline covers Bloomberg's expenses since Sept. 29. He spent $20.4 million in that period, helping him break his $85 million record from 2005. He spent $74 million on his first run in 2001.

Opponent calls it "obscene"

His opponent, William Thompson, a Democrat, has spent just $6 million in the race. A Thompson campaign spokeswoman on Friday told the Times the mayor's spending was "obscene."

But most New Yorkers surveyed in a poll this week said they don’t care about Bloomberg’s spending. Only 20 percent say they are less likely to vote for him, while 72 percent say it doesn’t affect them at all. The rest say it makes them more likely to vote for him.

Bloomberg was 16 points ahead of Thompson in the poll and has been spending at a rate of more than $850,000 a day.

The bulk of Bloomberg's spending has gone into television, radio and Web advertising, the Times said.

But some of the money has trickled down to recession-hit small businesses, including Goodfellas Brick Over Pizza on Staten Island and in the Bronx. The Bloomberg campaign has so far forked over $8,892 for pizza at Goodfellas alone.

Thompson has also sought to portray Bloomberg as opportunistic for political moves he has made, including changing his lifelong party registration from Democrat to Republican to avoid a crowded primary in 2001 and persuading the City Council to extend the term-limits law last year so he could run again.

Bloomberg is no longer a member of any party but is running on the Republican and Independent Party lines.



View Larger Map

Sources: MSNBC, Google Maps