Bobby Jindal is the Conservative Bill Clinton?

While I applauded Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal's message during last night's GOP response to President Obama, he has received a lot of criticism for his delivery.

For example, on Twitter, I noticed criticism such as, "It wasn't the accent, it was the cadence and sing-song delivery. Sounded like Kenneth the Intern on 30 Rock."

Another person Tweeted: "No, it was his tone of voice. Felt like he was talking down to me like a 5 yr old."

... Like it or not, style is now arguably more important than substance, and Republicans who were hoping for a great orator to take on Barack Obama may have overestimated Jindal's speaking ability.

In reality, as Michael Gerson describes him today in the Washington Post, Jindal is "Slight, earnest, deeply religious and supremely wonkish ..."



Simply put, Jindal has many strengths, but if people were looking for a conservative Demosthenes, they are probably not going to be impressed by Jindal.

Interestingly, Gerson goes on to compare Jindal to -- of all people -- Bill Clinton, writing:

Rush Limbaugh has anointed Jindal "the next Ronald Reagan." But Reagan enjoyed painting on a large ideological canvas. In person, Jindal's manner more closely resembles another recent president: Bill Clinton. Like Clinton (a fellow Rhodes scholar) ...

This is an interesting comparison, and one that may help put Jindal's performance last night in context.

It is not widely remembered, but in 1988, Bill Clinton was "introduced to America," via widely-panned (and even jeered) nominating speech at the DNC Convention. The audience literally cheered when he said, 'in conclusion'.

It remains to be seen whether or not Jindal can overcome his stylistic issues as his fellow Rhodes Scholar did, but it is clear that a mediocre introduction does not a career make ...