Bobby Jindal announced on Tuesday that he is suspending his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, leading many Americans to ask, “who?” The Louisiana governor had a tough time breaking into the crowded Republican field and on Tuesday remarked, “this is not my time.” He will be missed by about 0.4 percent of likely Republican voters. In remembrance of this fallen candidate, here are the top seven moments of Bobby Jindal’s campaign (10 moments are reserved for candidates who poll over 1 percent).
1. His campaign announcement
Any great presidential campaign begins with a great announcement video. Bobby Jindal’s hidden cam announcement to his unenthusiastic family was a pretty good precursor for the American public’s reaction.
“Yaaaaaay…”
2. Calling for the End of the Supreme Court
Right at the beginning of his campaign, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of legalizing gay marriage, to the dismay of many social conservatives. Bobby Jindal boldly proposed the best solution for this political frustration: disbanding a branch of the federal government.
I don’t think RBG is going down without a fight.
3. Having a lower approval rating in his deeply red home state than Barack Obama
Many people commented that Jindal’s campaign was a long shot and pointed out that he didn’t have the support he needed to get the nomination. Unfortunately, not even his home state of Louisiana was behind him. His approval rating stood at 32 percent when he announced his candidacy, compared to 42 percent for President Obama.
And he’s governor of a state where Obama lost his reelection by 17 points. Rough.
4. Polling higher than Jeb Bush in Iowa (Briefly)
Despite the doubters and the critics, Jindal fought hard and campaigned even harder, especially in Iowa. This paid off, when he recently topped former front-runner Jeb Bush in an Iowa poll.
I’m not sure whether this was more exciting for Jindal or sad for Bush. Even more, in the most recent Iowa polls before he dropped out, Jindal stood ahead of Mike Huckabee, Chris Christie, and John Kasich.
5. Stating that he deserves a spot in the primetime debate.
In late October, Jindal was highly critical of the debate structure which only allowed the top 10 candidates in national polls to participate. It is unclear whether he would have preferred a debate with 15 people on the same stage, a debate with a rotating stage, or maybe a head-to-head tournament style debate.
Caesar Flickerman seems to like the last idea
6. Attacking Chris Christie for being a “big government Republican.”
Speaking of debates, one of his biggest moments came in the most recent JV debate where he staked out ground as a true conservative Governor, calling out Chris Christie. He has spent much of his campaign defining himself as an aggressive candidate, and this was no exception.
Come at me, bro.
7. Dropping out.
Unfortunately for Governor Jindal, the 2016 presidential race just wasn’t his to win. In a year with so many eccentric, anti-establishment Republicans, there was little chance that an unpopular, bland governor could get the nomination. Kudos to him for running anyway, and extra kudos for realizing that he should drop out.
Here’s to hoping more candidates follow suit…
Bonus: Muslim no-go zones and Muslims colonizing Europe
Earlier this year, before he announced his campaign, Jindal discussed his theory about “no-go zones” in some European cities that were overrun by violent Muslims and even stated that Muslims were “colonizing” Europe.
He will be greatly missed.