Political Decoys

Today I learned from the Internet that after Hillary Clinton wobbled and was taken to her daughter’s apartment, she was switched! The person who emerged from the apartment was a body double, a political decoy.

The evidence, the internet said, was there. Look at the earlobes! The nose! Why was no one nearby in case she wobbled again? She was sick and now feels better. Clearly a coverup.

As a kid, I recall the buzz about Nixon being switched. It happened in China, when he took a bathroom break. The Nixon that emerged after was a different person, or so the rumors swirled. I remember adults having fun with it, but no one taking it terribly seriously.

Whether or not either of the above true, the use of political decoys is a real thing, and accusing others of using decoys is a time-honored method to make an opponent seem weak or afraid to appear before the people.

In some historical examples, people impersonated others on purpose and with permission. Soldier M. E. Clifton James impersonated General Bernard Montgomery during WWII to confuse Germans. Hitler, Stalin, Saddam Hussein, Winston Churchill, and Henry Kissinger are rumored to have used doubles to fake people out.

In other cases, the impersonations were unauthorized. Harry Truman said that someone claiming to be him called up the President of Haiti and got him to change a vote.

We also had many people acting for Ronald Reagan in his final years, with his wife standing in for him in some cases.

If Clinton or Trump used a body double, would it matter? I’m doubting that many would care. Sure, there would be a few that speak out and say the real person should be doing the work, but I’d bet many Americans would just get used to it.

“Did you see the doubles debate? Wasn’t my candidate’s double so much better than yours? Your candidate should get a new stand-in. This one isn’t working.”

In an age where policies are set by donors and polling, does it matter who is running the place? Isn’t a team of advisors running things? Of what matter is the figurehead?

A positions suddenly changes, or a promise is broken. Who changed their mind?