John Kerry does some stand-up in Las Vegas

Audiences take them for granted. But jokes told to crowds can be powerful political tools, especially self-deprecating ones.

For instance, it's charming when someone who loses the race for president can make a joke about it, even if he might be still bruised inside. After the sting of his 2000 loss, Al Gore often told audiences, “I used to be the next president of the United States.”

And after Bob Dole lost to President Bill Clinton in 1996, the former Kansas senator would say: “I slept like a baby. Woke up crying every two hours.”

In that fine tradition now comes John Kerry, who campaigned this afternoon with Michelle Obama in the common room of a modest Las Vegas condominium complex. Along listening closely and taking notes was The Times' Robin Abcarian.

“When I was here in 2004,” said Kerry, “I vowed that I would come back in 2008 in the presidential race … and here I am. Thanks to you, I won -- we won -- 59 million votes, more than any other Democrat who has ever run for president of the United States.

"I felt super good about that," Kerry added, "until I learned that Sanjaya on 'American Idol' got more votes than me." Pretty good.

But then Kerry dipped a little too deep into the treasure chest of political yuks for a joke that virtually every politician has told for at least the past 15 years.

“In an airport," Kerry said (but the setting could be a convenience store or a McDonald's), "some guy pointed at me and said, ‘Anybody ever tell you you look like that Kerry guy?’ I said, ‘Yeah, they tell me that all the time.’ And he said, ‘Kinda makes you mad, don’t it?’ ”

-- Andrew Malcolm

Comments

[Lee]

John Kerry is a back stabbing creep, I voted for him because I wanted Bush out of the Whitehouse. Bush will automatically be gone. I will not vote for
the person he has endorsed, Obama. Kerry endorsement is like a kiss of death for Obama. Obama not an establishment candidate, well he certainly is Oprah endorsed him, multimillionaire, John Kerry, multi-millionaire, wife part Heinz dynasty. Patrick Leahy, old guard Senator, Gary Hart, (loser), some of
people who have endorsed all establishment, Obama is the establishment, and neo-con bourgeois black, hiding in Democratic clothing. Cut from the same cloth as neo-con, Condi Rice, Judge Thomas and sellout Colin Powell. Ignorant black man, raised in white environment and thinks that because he got through school, it's easy for everybody else. Looks at the world through rose color glasses, definately not into reality and the news media has helped him reach the status of what people are calling "the One", he may be the one but not the one you think it is. He is an Atheist, but next he'll be comparing himself to
God, when he really should compare himself to Satan.

[MFox]

Yes, I've heard that joke once or twice....

(I'll just bet you have.)

[MAC]

Yes, I have heard the 2nd joke before, but it still is current and benign. I don't have a problem with him telling it more than a couple times.

[Ronald Loui]

Is the crying baby joke an insider Republican ID mechanism? I mean, I hear Republicans telling this joke all the time and it's not so funny. It's an homage, perhaps, to Reagan, if he ever used it famously (but I don't remember if he did). Like the Jesus fish on the backs of cars? A verbal version of the lapel pins, the comb-overs, and the red ties over white shirts under dark blazers?

Or MAYBE the way the Republican brain is wired, it is predisposed to find this not-so-funny joke absolutely LOL, LMAO, ROFL. Someone call the brain folks at UCSD and get them some research money!