The biggest question leading up to the Republican presidential debate Thursday evening was: How many candidates were going to wear cowboy boots?
The debate followed three days of online banter among candidates over a superficially lighthearted TV ad targeting Sen. Marco Rubio run by the main super PAC backing former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s campaign.
Sparked by news articles that have mentioned the shiny black leather boots Rubio sometimes sports, the TV ad from Right To Rise USA appears to be a spoof. But it makes the serious political charge that Rubio has changed positions on Syria, immigration and other issues.
While music from Nancy Sinatra’s song “These Boots Were Made For Walkin’ ” plays, a narrator sings altered lyrics from the 1966 pop hit that make fun of Rubio for his alleged shifting of stances. It shows a dancing man in boots and a business suit, shot from the waist down.
One refrain goes: “You keep flippin’ when you shoulda not flop.”
“Flip-flop” became an enduring part of the American political lexicon in 2004, when President George W. Bush’s re-election campaign ran ads that used the term to claim that then-Sen. John Kerry, the Democratic nominee, had frequently changed positions on issues. Despite Kerry’s efforts to rebut the ads, many political analysts said they harmed his White House bid.
Perhaps for that reason, Rubio found no humor in Jeb Bush’s new TV ad.
I don’t have a height issue.
Jeb Bush on his signature cowboy boots
Joe Pounder, a Rubio campaign spokesman, took to Twitter on Tuesday to deliver a barbed response:
“After spending $75m w/ nothing to show for it, @JebBush campaign exists now for sole purpose of tearing down conservatives like @marcorubio,” the tweet read.
Undaunted, Bush upped the ante the following day.