The Body Politic.

• Author: MCDONNELL, LYNDA
• Position: Effectiveness of Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura

Jesse Ventura sure can talk. If only he could govern.

WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE ABOUT JESSE Ventura's life? The former wrestler overcame a lack of money and party structure to snatch 37 percent of the vote and win a three-way race back in 1998. Now, Minnesota's big and blustery governor lives in a state-owned mansion with maid service and a good cook; is chauffeured and guarded at taxpayer expense; draws $120,000 a year at his day job; and earns multiples of that moonlighting as autobiographer, one-night wrestling referee, color commentator for the XFL, and national media darling.

Only last fall, America's foremost political mavericks, John McCain, Ralph Nader, and Pat Buchanan, came calling at the state capital to size up this phenomenon, perhaps hoping to absorb some of his magic or learn how to win voters with blunt talk. Even Al Gore cozied up to him. Ventura was the third-party candidate who won control of the ship of state and changed Minnesota's fortunes while handsomely boosting his own. Moreover, despite a softening economy and occasional bout of foot-in-mouth disease, Ventura is rich in popularity, the hard currency of democratic politics. Popularity can get a long shot elected, as with Ventura's upset victory in 1998, and it can also protect an embattled president, as with Bill Clinton. When asked a few months ago about his state approval rating, Ventura said "the number's 71 percent and I like it."

But having people like you isn't the same as being effective. Getting things done requires a vision, tenacity, and the ability to forge careful alliances, especially for a party of one, like Ventura. His record so far should give Jesse-wannabes pause and make the rest of us wonder whether a third-party politician, even one with Ventura's star power, can do much to move the electorate or the political status quo. Ventura may well run for reelection next year, but unless he learns to convert popularity into political muscle, he could be a political novelty item: the guy who discovered the value of public office for bolstering a waning entertainment career.

Playing Politics

Ventura isn't the first American celebrity to enter the ring of politics, of course. His career trajectory is faintly reminiscent of Ronald Reagan's. Like Reagan, the affable optimist, Ventura is an accomplished performer whose on-camera persona--the roughhousing truth-teller--engenders both bemusement and a deep trust among many voters. The difference is that Reagan came to the presidency with extensive political experience, a fully formed vision based on anti-communism and faith in free markets...