Anais Gutierrez
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s 2020 presidential campaign was filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), on Sunday. The paperwork was filed on behalf of the actor by Kenton Tilford. Tilford aims to prove that the People’s Champion could actually one day become the People’s President. ‘The Rock’ has yet to announced about the draft.
More poise, less noise
The People’s Champion may well become the People’s President in 2020. The first political campaign group committed to the 2020 presidential run of one of the highest paid actors in Hollywood, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson.
Kenton Tilford, a political consultant from Wheeling, West Virginia filed a statement of an organization titled “Run the Rock 2020” on Sunday.
In an interview with CNN, Tilford discussed what made him create the committee. “I’ve been discussing (this committee) with friends for some time, but I ultimately decided to create the committee because America is incredibly divided,” he said.
“With this level of vitriol and anger, I believe we desperately need a leader who can unite us and not just pander to a small base of supporters,” he said.
He thinks the actor might be that leader. So he decided to give the actor a little push in the form of the campaign.The committee’s overall goal is “to build a grassroots community of Americans to show to Mr. Johnson that his incredible popularity as an actor and public figure can translate into politics seamlessly,” Tilford said.
Along with the committee, he also created a Twitter account called “Draft the Rock” for the committee.
“A grassroots movement to send The People’s Champion to the White House in 2020,” the Twitter bio reads. “#MakeAmericaRockAgain.” As stated in the FEC form, the committee “supports/opposes only one candidate and is NOT an Authorized Committee.”
Going political
The possibility of Dwayne Johnson, who rose to fame as WWE wrestler ‘The Rock’, running for the presidency has been the subject of rumors for over a year. Past November, he said to Vanity Fair that he “wouldn’t rule out” the idea of taking up the keys to the White House.
“It would be a great opportunity to help people,” he told the magazine. “This past election shows that anything can happen.” Then in May, the actor kept fueling the rumors with different appearances on TV shows.
Jonhson joked about it on the season finale of ‘Saturday Night Live.’ He shared an image of himself on Twitter standing behind a podium labeled “‘The Rock’ Johnson 2020” to promote the episode and “announced” on the show that he and Tom Hanks were teaming up for a bid.
Following that, he showed up at ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon‘ and said he thinks he has a shot at running for office because “I’ve become a guy that a lot of people can relate to.” Also, a poll that month by Public Policy Polling also showed that Johnson would “lead Trump 42/37 in a prospective contest.”
The actor weighed on the subject more seriously during an interview for the cover of GQ Magazine in June. “A year ago [the idea of running] started coming up more and more, there was a real sense of earnestness, which made me go home and think,” he told GQ
In the article he also addressed the 45th President of the United States’ aggressive and divisive stance, saying, “Personally, I feel that if I were president, poise would be important. Leadership would be important. Taking responsibility for everybody.
All jokes aside, this newly drafted political campaign committee could be the first real step toward a 2020 campaign—something Johnson’s called “a real possibility.”
Political activism and busy schedule
Johnson, who’s registered as independent, has appeared at both Republican and Democrat conventions in the past. In 2000, he spoke at the Republican National Convention. In an interview with C-SPAN at the time, he spoke about the need to get people to vote, whether they are “a billionaire or the garbage man.”
Seems like things are getting real for the wrestler turned actor turned possible presidential candidate. Whether he’s running or not for the presidency, Johnson’s ludicrously hectic schedule for evidence of his work ethic and ambition.
His most recent success is the reboot of ‘Baywatch.’ But the highest paid actor knew no rest. Reportedly work has just this week completed on his most recent production ‘Rampage,’ and he’s set to start his next, ‘Skyscraper,’ in less than a month.
Johnson’s next movie, ‘Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,’ opens on December.
Source: The Mirror
