Will Seattle forgive soccer co-owner Drew Carey for being a conservative?
By Knute Berger
November 14, 2007
When I heard that comedian and Bob Barker replacement Drew Carey was helping to bring Major League Soccer to Seattle, I shared the information with a friend who was appalled. So was I. My friend was horrified that one of Hollywood's big (and rare) conservatives was messing around in our town. I was reacting to the fact that an un-American foreign sport was invading our turf.
I was also disappointed that Carey, a Cleveland Browns fan, would be allowed to raise the 12th Man flag at the Seahawks Monday Night Football game to help promote the wrong kind of football.
But back to politics. Seattle doesn't much like Republicans, and Carey has given money to Republican candidates. He's also entertained George W. Bush and the troops in Iraq with his stand-up. Essentially, he's as right wing as you might expect a guy with a crewcut and big glasses from Ohio to be. I mean, it's not like he's been hiding behind his image.
But the truth is, Carey isn't a Bushie, he's a Libertarian. Among Carey's current conservative activities: The Drew Carey Project for the libertarian Reason Foundation (Free Minds and Free Markets!), a series of video shorts where Carey promotes stuff like medical marijuana and private highways. Hey, it beats the pathetic warmongering rants of Dennis Miller.