People in South Dakota like the tune Senate candidate Rick Weiland is singing, we like the tune he's singing, and national Democrats do too—and now the national media is taking notice. ABC News, for example:
A South Dakota US Senate Candidate Is Making Music Videos, And They're A Must-Watch
Since April, his campaign has aired three music videos in the state that put an election-year spin on songs like Johnny Cash’s “I’ve Been Everywhere” and Roger Miller’s “King of the Road.”
Weiland, 56, has made campaign finance reform a central plank of his campaign.
In one parody, “Big Wheel,” inspired by Old Crow Medicine Show’s rendition of “Wagon Wheel,” Weiland sings, “So I’m running for the Senate but I’m not a big wheel, don’t have an RV, just my automobile / Hey, no one’s bought me.”
Weiland's voice isn't the strong suit of the videos, though it's not bad. What makes them work is that his message—that people should take back their country from powerful interests—resonates, and he comes across as a credible messenger. It reminds me a lot of the great
1990 Paul Wellstone media campaign in neighboring Minnesota. Unlike those ads, these ones are two to three minutes long, and although he has aired them on television, most of their distribution comes online and from free media. But they are nonetheless a great way to define his candidacy.
Rick Weiland is singing his way to the U.S. Senate to take back our country from big money interests. We can stop the Tea Party takeover of the Senate, but only if we come together to support progressive fighters in tough races now. Can you chip in $3 to elect Democrat Rick Weiland?
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The great news is that Weiland is
a really good Democratic candidate who
has a real shot of winning because the South Dakota Senate race is a three-way contest. The DSCC has already committed a surprising $1 million to the race, but Weiland still needs a boost to win. So please step up and chip in $3 or whatever you can to help Weiland win a seat in the Senate—and to keep the Senate in blue control for another two years.