It may not seem like a Vice Presidential candidate has a lot in common with a local plumber and a teenage vampire, but then again this was a year of surprises.  Sarah Palin, Ron Paul, Joe the Plumber and Edward Cullen showed the kind of impact that can be made when the everyman appeal hits home.

Sarah Palin

John McCain’s surprise pick of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate spurred a Republican resurgence of energy and a national media frenzy.  As Palin fascination grew, the t-shirts came pouring in – Palin actually unseated Obama for a time in the t-shirt primary, thus proving that a Bible-and-Gun-totin’ Hockey Mom could inspire more than her party members. Sarah Palin had a lot of nicknames and colloquiallisms applied to her that lent themselves naturally to merchandise, and many of them had to do with animals – not entirely inappropriate, given that she hails from the bucolic state of Alaska.  She was the Cougar, the Barracuda (and the Sarahcuda), the Moose-Hunter, Caribou Barbie and the Pit Bull with Lipstick.  She was also the Maverick (and used the term liberally to describe both her and McCain), the Hockey Mom, the MILF and the VPILF.

Given her unabashed love of hunting, guns and her religion, it wasn’t surprising to see strong opinions on both sides of the political fence about Sarah Palin.  The religious right embraced her as the All-American poster girl and portrayed her as the anti-Obama; liberals and feminists, insulted at the implied assumption that women would vote along gender lines rather than on political issues, decried her as inexperienced and anti-feminist and accused McCain of pandering to the 18 million voters who had chosen Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primaries.

It seemed that everything Palin did was worthy of a headline, most notably any homespun gaffes she might make in front of a camera.  But when Palin spoke, people listened.  From her noting Alaska’s proximity to Russia as foreign policy experience to her performance in the debates, Sarah Palin was someone who’s every word (and choice of accessory) was discussed and debated – and, very often, committed to the almighty t-shirt. In the end, Palin’s newsworthiness was unable to knock Obama out of the minds of American voters on election day.  But in the short time she was in the public eye, Sarah Palin managed to put Wasilla, Alaska on the World Map.  (It’s up by Canada, kinda next to Russia.)

Ron Paul

Republican Congressman Ron Paul burst onto the 2008 election scene Howard Dean-style.  Using the Internet as his canvassing ground, he amassed millions of supporters (The “Ron Paul Revolution“) who viewed the Republican Presidential Candidate from Lake Jackson, Texas as a heroic, no-nonsense, common-sense-talking anti-Bush.  Though a Libertarian at heart, Ron Paul has been open about the necessity of running for public office as a Republican in order to have a viable shot at Congress and the Presidency.  He is openly critical about President Bush and his administration, particularly as relates to the Iraq war and Bush big government straying from intrinsic Republican values.

Ron Paul hit the t-shirt scene in earnest in late 2007, and saw big sales and interest through early 2008.  He outsold McCain until March and outsold all other Republican candidates (with a minor hiccup from Huckabee) throughout the election season.  Shunned by the Republican party who later went so far as to try to ban him from the debates, Ron Paul nonetheless showed up and made some Libertarian-style points that won him cheers from his supporters and gave him first-place finishes in online polls by MSNBC, ABC News and C-SPAN.    His debate performance simultaneously guaranteed that he wouldn’t be receiving an invitation to the Republican National Convention, and it seemed that thereafter both mainstream media cameras and his own party took painstaking efforts towards pretending that he was Harvey the Rabbit.

Without the money to buy quality airtime and with the cameras aimed elsewhere, Ron Paul used the Internet and in-person speaking engagements to spread his message.  His dedication to his ideals and the massive online support he amassed did get people to stand up and take notice, though ultimately – like Dean before him – he was unable to transfer his online popularity into real-world votes.  Still, though, Ron Paul made a name for himself as an honest-to-a-fault public servant who stays true to his beliefs and his constituents, and he was the first candidate in the 2008 election to harness the power of the internet to mobilize his message and his supporters.

Joe the Plumber

Joe the Plumber (known as Joe Wurzelbacher by those who can pronounce it) made a name for himself during the third Presidential debate.  Better said, John McCain made a name for him (namely, Joe the Plumber), mentioning Joe 21 times.  Obama was good for 5 mentions, for a grand total of 26 mentions for Joe the Plumber. By contrast, Iraq came up 6 times and the economy was mentioned 16 times.  Joe far outshone mention of Sarah Palin and Joe Biden as well. Not surprisingly, we saw Joe the Plumber designs hit the system mid-debate and within a few hours Joe had about 1/4 the content of all plumber designs.

Joe became an unlikely hero for the McCain campaign after having a discussion with Obama on the campaign trail about the Illinois Senator’s proposed tax plan. McCain used Joe as an example of a hardworking American (dare we say Joe Six Pack?) who would pay more taxes under the Obama plan.  The Obama/Joe conversation was recorded by cameras; the uncut version ends with Obama noting that chatting with Joe was good debate prep:

As it turns out, Joe the Plumber doesn’t actually make $250,000 a year; it seems he was simply concerned about the principle behind Obama’s plan.  Despite being made an instant celebrity thanks to McCain, Joe initially wouldn’t endorse either candidate and went on-record that he was keeping his vote private.

His vote was kept private for 12 days, at which point he jumped on the bus and hit the campaign trail with John McCain.  In the meantime, Joe was made an instant celebrity and unlikely political pundit, being interviewed as a symbol of the everyman by everyone from Katie Couric to Mike Huckabee.  Local television stations around the country scrambled to find their own Joe the Plumber (my own local station used Eduardo the Electrician – yes, really), but none could match the t-shirt worthiness of the actual Joe the Plumber.

As is the case with so many relationships rushed into by two people who barely know each other, the McCain/Wurzelbacher romance hit the rocks a couple weeks later over McCain’s support of the Paulson bailout plan.  While Wurzelbacher now says he was “appalled” by McCain at that point and considered moving out (read: getting off the bus), he reconsidered due to their mutual desire to move the Arizona Senator into more modest accommodations in Washington, D.C..

With the election over, Joe has found a place for himself on conservative talk radio and television; he also has a book deal in the works.  When all is said and done, Joe the Plumber will go down as someone who took his 15 minutes of fame and ran with it.  (Er… or rode a bus with it.)

Edward Cullen

If you haven’t heard of the small town of Forks, Washington or its sparkly resident Edward Cullen, chances are that you don’t have a teenage girl in the house.  The real town of Forks is the setting for Stephenie Meyers’ “Twilight” book series, which portrays a love story between teenagers Bella (a mortal and recent transplant to Forks) and Edward Cullen (vampire, baseball player and Forks resident).

The hit book series was optioned by Hollywood, and the first “Twilight” movie hit theaters on November 21st to rave fan reviews.  Before the movie opened, the “Twilight” folks did something for their fans that’s a rarity in Hollywood: they gave them permission to make “Twilight” merchandise.

Given the avid fan base of “Twilight,” we looked forward to seeing creative, inspired designs – and we weren’t disappointed.  Twilight t-shirts immediately filled the fan portal to the tune of almost 450,000 Twilight products as of this writing, and motivated fans were able to wear their own creations – and those of other fans – to the opening night showing.

While Edward Cullen himself is by far the most popular character in the land of t-shirt fandom, there’s also a wide variety of shirts celebrating Bella, Jacob and the story itself.  All in all, it’s been a real treat to see the enthusiasm and creativity that “Twilight” enthusiasts have demonstrated over the past few months.

So what would Edward wear?  Well, we think he’d find something.

Well, today’s The Big Day – phew!

While many a motivated citizen look forward to the outcome of the election and the start of a new chapter in our political history, there are of course those wearied Americans who are just tired of all the political talk, tired of all the bickering, tired of their regularly scheduled programming being pre-empted for debates and such, and who just want this thing to be over so we can all get back to our everyday business.

And for that wearied, put-upon or apathetic voter, we say: just hang in there.  It’s been a long political season, but there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.  (Country Western fans and more cynical voters may insert “Let’s just hope it’s not an oncoming train” here.)

And so today we take a recap look at the longest t-shirt election season we’ve seen ’round these parts.  We have The Meter to track candidate sales per date ranges, and today we’ll also share a few highlights that hit on this long road to a new President.

Billary was the first to make an appearance on the 2008 political t-shirt scene; we started seeing “Bill for First Lady” shirts back in 2006, long before most of us had heard of that Obama character.

And so it was for awhile; lots of Hillary merchandise on both sides of the fence, as political pundits assumed that she’d be the Democratic nominee and Republicans didn’t have a clear leader in their posse.  Some early Hillary standouts:

Indeed, the “Anybody but Hillary” sentiment was a solid Right Wing mantra… right up until that other guy showed up, at which point Republicans were reminded of Mom’s “careful what you wish for” life lesson.

But before Obama was a household name – and seemingly out of nowhere – Ron Paul showed up and gave the other potential candidates a lesson on using the Internet as a viable way to raise a campaign, raise awareness and raise funds.

Though he made huge waves online, Ron Paul – like Howard Dean before him – was unable to carry that momentum out into the world to an extent that would win him the Republican nomination.  But to his credit, he managed to inspire a whole lotta people.  Not to mention a whole lotta t-shirts.

Huckabee, too, had some early promise in the t-shirt primary, but started to take a dive with Ron Paul and Hillary Clinton, who up to this point had been both the Democratic frontrunner and the Republican anti-Christ.

Which is to say that mainstream Republicans, unsure of their candidate, had been using anti-Hillary sentiments as their go-to mantras.

And then Obama showed up and change did happen.  Change in the form of a product explosion unlike anything we’ve seen in previous elections.

Obama merchandise was creative, inspired and staggering in its volume.  And as Hillary merch started a slow but steady decline, and John McCain made a minimal appearance that was slightly less popular than Al Gore’s draft movement, the Obama t-shirt primary exploded.

As of today, we have 1.7 million Obama t-shirts and 2.6 million Obama products overall.  That’s more merchandise than the entire George W. Bush catalogue, which has been enthusiastically built – mostly by the anti-Bush faction – over the past 8 years.

And so we’ll take a time-out to showcase some groovy Obama designs:

It was also around this time that the anti-Obama merchandise started to crop up, but the sheer volume and creative variety of the pro-Obama merchandise far outshone (and outsold) the anti-Obama camp.

With McCain as the presumed and then official Republican nominee, his merchandise popularity began a slow incline.  But Obama was still holding a strong lead in the t-shirt race until…

Yep, you betcha. Sarah Palin showed up, and inspired designers on both sides of the political fence went crazy.  Pit bulls, rifles and moose – oh my!  Yes, Palin t-shirts took McCain t-shirts with them into an upwards curve that actually met the demand for Obama merchandise, while the not-so-plentiful anti-McCain merch also saw an uptick as anti-Palin sentiments seemed to motivate the Left to design something other than Obama t-shirts.

And so it was that in mid-September, there was a dead heat in the McCain/Palin and Obama/Other Politician Dude merchandise race.  But that tie was brief, and even with supporters like hockey moms and Russia and the ever-popular Joe the Plumber, Obama again pulled ahead of Palin and McCain by the end of the month and their paths have continued to diverge ever since.

What will happen in today’s election is still an unknown.  What we do know is that this election season has led to the most interesting, creative and inspired t-shirt race we’ve ever seen.  And for that we thank the First Amendment and, of course, all the people out there who chose to get their mind onto their chests and wear it loud this political season.  (Just remember to spare the flair at your polling place.)

Indeed, a good race has been had by all.

Could a t-shirt cost you the right to vote?  Well, maybe.  It depends on your polling place.  E-mails have been circulating about in such a manner as the Nigerian money scam, making internet-savvy folks skeptical about the assertion that their “Geezer/Dingbat” shirt could possibly cost them entry to their polling place.

But it’s true in some places.  Here’s the deal:

Spare The Flair from CafePress on Vimeo.

Now, some call it “electioneering” and some call it “passive electioneering,” which makes slightly more sense given that the actual definition of “electioneering” tells us that it’s to work actively for a campaign or political party.  And it’s a stretch to consider a wardrobe choice to be an activity – because unless you’re a nudist, getting dressed is something we all have to do every day, regardless of political involvement.

First Amendment pundits have been pondering whether these kinds of restrictions conflict with our right to Free Speech, with some local Judges making last-minute determinations on the matter.

What’ll happen in your local polling place is a question for your local officials.  So please, pass the above PSA along, inform your friends and remember:

On November 4th, SPARE THE FLAIR!

Bumper sticker activism is always at its finest during an election year, and nowhere is that more evident than here at CafePress.

Our political bumper sticker collection has exploded this year – some are fun, some are serious, some are just hilarious, and some might run you the risk of having it forcibly removed or otherwise molested if you park in Berkeley, CA or on Wasilla Main Street.

And so today we bring you, in no particular order, the 10 stickers most likely to risk being defaced in these 2 towns.  (Though admittedly, Berkeley residents are more likely to wait by your car to have a cruelty-free and well-meaning chat with you about your political views, then segue into a discussion of peak oil.  But you get the picture.)

5 most potentially unpopular stickers on Telegraph in Berkeley, CA

A gun, a McCain endorsement *and a Clint Eastwood reference insulting Liberals.  You’ve hit the trifecta!  Beware: you may be assaulted with a long-winded opinion on gun control.  Run away, run away!

Some communism symbols and a dash of Marx plus an insult to someone’s intelligence is a recipe for a Berkeley-style smackdown, bub.  And by smackdown we mean a pamphlet on tolerance and a researched treatise on Obama’s lifetime church affiliations and their significance.

Extra bonus points for implying terrorism and a Middle Eastern policy worry simultaneously.  Watch out, though: some pesky overly-literal Berkeley student might point out that while this sticker is actually true, it’s also true that Barack Obama is also the most popular candidate in the rest of the world, too.  So have your retort ready.

In the land of Political Correctness, this sticker is a timeless classic that will earn you lectures long after the 2008 election is over.  Those lectures will be in English, incidentally – after all, the people you’re insulting can’t read your sticker.  And therein lies the secret beauty.

A notable punctuation error and an outrageous comparison will offend grammarians and Liberals alike – and this is after all a University town.  Spelling and punctuation count.

On the other hand, this sticker may be saved if those viewing it think you’re being ironic/satirical in that hipster kind of way, and you might get an I-use-crystal-deodorant-and-it-works (no it doesn’t) enthusiastic if fragrant pat on the back rather than a VW Bug key to the driver’s-side door.

And that brings us to…

5 most potentially unpopular stickers on Wasilla Main Street

A crass anatomical reference and a Bush comparison are sure to get the Moose-hunters out in arms – and they’re actually armed, so beware.

In addition to announcing your anti-Republican sentiments, this is hunting country.  Braking for animals is for sissies.  And Wasilla Main street doesn’t cotton to sissies.

Now it looks like you’re just trying to annoy people.  The smugness of this sticker is sure to irritate more than a few Wasilla Main Street denizens, and will likely remind them uncomfortably of Obama’s suggested elitism.  Wasilla is a working class town, and its people like honest to goodness folks like that nice Joe the Plumber, not some smug liberal counting unhatched (and unwanted) chickens.

Putting aside the fact that this announces an “alternative lifestyle” to the world and you’re brazenly trumpeting your crusade for rights, now you’ve gone and brought that nice, God-fearing Mrs. Campbell and her ex-husband into it.  That’s just rude.

Sarah Palin has, here and there, mentioned that Alaska is separated by a narrow maritime border with Russia.  And now your sticker is somehow mocking the narrowness of that border and its significance.  You also get extra bonus points for referencing Tina Fey’s Palin send-up, and that’s hitting a sore spot.

On the other hand, some Wasilla residents may find this sticker close enough to the truth to be a pro-Palin sticker.  If you’re actually Tina Fey, though, you probably can’t pull that one off – better get the extra rental car insurance.

Remember, bumper sticker activism is an American tradition in demonstrating our First-Amendment right to free expression.  So get on out there and make your voice heard.  Just remember, drive safely.  And consider parking on a side street.

The third and final Presidential debate covered the economy, healthcare, taxation and the VP choices – but none of them were afforded as much attention as Joe the Plumber.

McCain mentioned Joe 21 times and Obama was good for 5 mentions, for a grand total of 26 mentions for Joe the Plumber.  By contrast,  Iraq came up 6 times.  Joe came up more that the economy (16 times) and outshone mention of Sarah Palin and Joe Biden as well.  Not surprisingly, we saw Joe the Plumber designs hit the system mid-debate and within a few hours Joe had about 1/4 the content of all plumber designs.

Joe Wurzelbacher (his last name isn’t “The Plumber” after all) became an unlikely hero for the McCain campaign after having a discussion with Obama on the campaign trail about the Illinois Senator’s proposed tax plan.  McCain used Joe as an example of a hardworking American (dare we say Joe Six Pack?) who would pay more taxes under the Obama plan.

Obama countered by repeating what he’s been saying throughout the debates:  That if you make less than $200,000 a year, your taxes will decrease.  This works out to 98% of small business and 95% of America, making some wonder why Joe the Plumber is being held up as an everyman if he’s in the top 5% of small business owners.

As it turns out, Joe the Plumber doesn’t actually make $250,000 a year and is eligible for the Obama tax cuts.  It would also seem that Joe would be eligible for the Obama tax cuts if he purchased the business he referenced, as gross receipts (the $250,000 – $280,000) is different than taxable income.

It seems Joe was concerned about the principle behind Obama’s plan.  He worries that if he someday makes that much money he’ll be penalized for it, and he’s concerned that Obama might at some point lower the taxation thresholds.

Despite being made an instant celebrity thanks to McCain, Joe won’t endorse either candidate and is keeping his vote private.

Because that’s the American way.

Tuesday night’s Presidential debates went off with Tom Brokaw as moderator in a town hall style affair, leading to a couple new buzzwords that have made their way to merchandise.

McCain referred to Obama as “That One” during the debate, which some found insulting and others just found to be fodder for some unique Halloween buttons.  (No word on whether this person is handing them out instead of candy this year, but they are available in a 100 pack.)

McCain’s repeated use of “My friends” to introduce his points also resonated with Obama supporters, who are taking the time to remind the Senator that he is not Tom Anderson and they’re not feeling the friend vibe.

Most the commentary out there gives the win for last night to Obama, including more conservative news sources.  What the American people thought of this specific debate, of course, will be history in a month – that’s when the voting speaks louder than any candidate buzzword.

The third and final Presidential debate is next Wednesday, October 15th.

Voter registration deadlines begin October 4th, so don’t forget to get on out there and register to vote if you haven’t already.

There’s lots of great folks and organizations out there making it easy for you to vote – Rock the Vote has an easy online registration application for you (not to mention some groovy pro-voting t-shirts), and the folks at Mobilize the Vote 2008 will entertain you with a video that you can share and pass along to friends before (or after) you register via their site.  And hey, they have some cool voting merchandise as well.

Indeed, there’s lots of interesting videos out there right now encouraging people to get on out there and vote.  And thus may today be known as Voting Movie Thursday.

Mobilize the Vote has done a new video that reminds the 45 million of-age Millennials that their voices count in this election:

If you’re more into comedic takes on voting, Sarah Silverman’s “The Great Schlep” is a targeted outreach to young Democratic Jews, just in time for the High Holidays.  (Note: this video may not be appropriate for the workplace.)

The Great Schlep from The Great Schlep on Vimeo.

No response from Republican celebs yet, but perhaps Shannen Doherty will do an answer video reaching out to the 90210 zip code…

Now of course, topmost on a lot of folks’ minds today is tonight’s Vice Presidential Debates.  Until they start, though, you can always revisit our own take on the debates…

But do take time out from all the TV-and-movie-watching to register to vote.  Because, you know, voting is a good thing.

And if you have your own favorite voting video, feel free to share it.  We like movies.

The first of the three Presidential Debates took place on Friday as scheduled, with various news sources and bloggers disagreeing on which candidate won the night, though polling numbers post-debate have shown a slight Obama increase.

While the winner, it seems, is in the eye of the beholder, we did learn a few interesting facts throughout the night that went beyond the candidates’ Iraq strategies and fundamental economic policy differences:

South Koreans are taller than North Koreans.

Barack Obama has a bracelet, too.

John McCain is not Ms. Congeniality.

The aisle is very wide if you’re trying to reach (so please pass the pork barrels).

Other buzzwords from the election: orgy of spending, pork barrel politics, earmarks, Main Street vs. Wall Street.

The next debates on the docket are the Vice Presidential debates in Missouri on October 2nd.  The second Presidential debates follow soon after, and if you have something on your mind you can submit a question to the candidates via MySpace.

Google’s also created a Moderator application to help you voice your questions, and – as seen in our own Presidential Debate video – there’s always the print area of the almighty t-shirt to help you wear your voice loud and clear.

John McCain stunned the nation yesterday when he requested that Obama agree to postpone the Presidential debates in order to work on the economic crisis.

Critics of McCain were quick to claim that the Senator is using the economic crisis as an excuse to avoid being on-camera with Obama.  Whether McCain feels ill-prepared to debate Obama, is trying to prevent a Kennedy/Nixon repeat or simply wants to focus his full attention on the American economy is up for… well, debate.

But for those of you who were waiting impatiently for the Presidential debates, you’re in luck: we have our own version of The Great Debate for you.  It’s only 2 minutes long, but hey – it’s better than no debates at all, right?

The Great Debate from CafePress on Vimeo.

So for everyone out there who wants to have their own debate over the issues, just remember: an image is worth 1000 words.  (Liberals here may insert a “Just ask John McCain.”)

Big thanks to the Ditty Bops for use of their song – check out their site for more throwback music that will summon memories of an era when the thought of a televised Presidential debate was mere fantasy.

(Will history repeat itself?)

Very official song credit:

“Skinny Bones”
Performed by The Ditty Bops
Written by Abby DeWald & Amanda Barrett
Published by Ditty Bops Music, (ASCAP)
Courtesy of The Green Witch Society

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buzzcowboy note:

In the time since this post has been up, the Right Wing has added their voice to the Debate debate.  Most designs are however still pro-Obama on the issue, so if you have a strong pro-McCain or anti-Obama position on the Presidential Debates Debate do remember that your image is a great way to get your voice out there.  Here’s some newer designs:

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson raised some eyebrows when he announced his plan for a taxpayer-funded bailout of Wall Street, most notably because of the clauses that would allow him to spend $700 billion in taxpayer money without any oversight.

While political pundits managed to avoid head-on discussion of the financial crisis for the past 6 months by arguing back and forth on semantics as to whether or not this kind of action (i.e. the Bear Stearns rescue) is a “bailout,” those days are over.  It’s bailout time.

In a nutshell: The Paulson plan proposes to use American taxpayer money to buy distressed mortages in order to prevent a banking collapse.

So: *will Main Street bail out Wall Street?  And, if so: will we all get personalized thank-you notes from Freddie and Fanny?