Does Oprah Want to Be Vice President?

by Derek Broes

The announcement that Oprah’s ending her show after 25 years came as no surprise.  In fact, I have been expecting this sort of announcement since Oprah took the stage with Barack Obama to announce her support for his presidential run.   During her first of many stump speeches in Manchester, I heard the crowd chant Oprah! Oprah, and listened to her give a well-crafted speech.  I also noticed a transformation in her voice and delivery.  She sounded more like a pastor giving a fiery sermon, closer to Reverend Wright, than a professional talk show host.  She seemed to revel in the moment and the difference in reception that comes with political power.  I couldn’t help but think of Oprah’s career and what was left for her to do that she hasn’t already done.

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She became the country’s first Black Billionaire, she has maintained the crown of Queen Of Daytime for the last 23 years,  she’s built schools in Africa and convinced Americans to read whatever book she suggests, no matter how ridiculous.  She even started her own magazine appropriately called “O” during a time when the printed magazine market was being pummeled by digital delivery via the Internet, and it has somehow succeeded. 

So, what’s left for her to do?  What could possibly feed an ego of that size?  It’s an ego that insists she appear on every cover of her magazine and claims that her readers insisted on it. Egos are a funny things because they actually have an appetite, so when I read that she’s ending her run in 2011 as the Queen Of Daytime, I realized that she most likely isn’t abandoning the single largest source of food for her internal animal but, in fact, would use it to catapult herself in a position that her money and power could never buy: Vice President of the United States.

Sure, Joe Biden would have to be dealt with, but that’s nothing for the woman that helped Obama get elected and it sure doesn’t hurt that Joe Biden can’t seem to show up at any event without acting like the manager of a used car lot.  Oprah is a regular visitor to the White House and also from Chicago, so she certainly knows the CHICAGO WAY.  With the President’s daily tracking poll dropping below 50%, he realizes he’ll need more than change and hope to get re-elected.  He will need the power of “O,” but not just as a supporter, but as powerhouse with unfettered access to money and media. Not to be overlooked, Obama and Oprah could both take even a larger part of history by getting not only the first woman elected as VP but the first African American woman. Can you just imagine the size of the ego that would emerge from such a victory?

I’m not privy to the square footage of the Vice President’s official mansion but I am certain it would need expansion.

Now, before you go calling me a racist or chauvinistic pig, I will admit that Oprah has done some amazing things.  She’s helped a tremendous number of people and put her money towards many great causes — so I try not to judge those actions as an ego-boosting activity, although these good deeds are bound to make one feel as though they somehow deserve greater gratitude than others.  Nonetheless, I applaud her good deeds.

MY PREDICTION: As we move closer to 2011 you will see Oprah’s shows become more and more focused on political issues and figures –  wait… it’s already begun.  Sarah Palin’s appearance might have been the first shot at defusing a potential contender in the next election.

After all, Palin’s “Going Rogue” is not listed on Oprah’s book of the month, even though it was a best seller even before its release.  Let the battle begin…Something tells me this will be a long and painful three years of television.


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Posted Nov 26th 2009 at 5:58 pm in Celebrity News, Politics | 114 Comments