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SALT LAKE CITY -- In the midst of a heated battle for the Republican nomination in the 2012 presidential election, some celebrities, seemingly bored with the Hollywood high life, are deciding they would like to try their hands at the Washington game.
Real estate mogul and reality star Donald Trump has been the most outspoken celebrity to consider a presidential bid. Trump had originally considered running as a Republican, but announced last spring he would not seek the nomination. He left the door open for a third-party bid, though, in case the Republican Party had failed to coalesce around a single candidate.
Thursday, though, "The Donald" had a change of heart, endorsing former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney for the GOP nomination.
"Mitt is tough, he's smart, he's sharp and he's not going to allow bad things to continue to happen to this country we all love," Trump said, then, to Romney, "Go out and get 'em. You can do it."
With Trump out of the picture, the race for the presidency looked to be confined to the realms of business and politics. Now, Roseanne Barr, the famed comedian from Salt Lake City who is perhaps most remembered for a disastrous performance of the national anthem at a 1990 San Diego Padres baseball game, has decided to throw her hat into the ring.
Barr has completed the required paperwork to run for the Green Party nomination. Barr announced her intention to run for president in summer 2011, and confirmed the decision Thursday on Twitter.
"I am running for Green Party nominee for POTUS," she wrote. "I am an official candidate. I am4 the Greening of America&the world. Green=peace/justice."
Barr has taken a turn for the serious after a 2010 run for both U.S. president and Israeli prime minister. In a 2010 campaign speech, Barr said her platform consisted of making war illegal, legalizing marijuana, putting more women in office and "outlawing (B.S.)."
This, time, though, Barr has changed her tone, noting she does not expect to get elected, but hopes to drum up support for the Green Party and its likely candidate, physician Jill Stein.
"I run in support of The Green Party& probably of Jill Stein-hopefully I can be of service by speaking on media about a viable choice4 voters," she wrote on Twitter.
Barr is not the only celebrity to express interest in politics in recent days, though. Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow, while not going so far as to run for president, has said he would not rule out the possibility of running for office in the future.
"For me, it could be something in my future," Tebow said during an interview with Dave Feherty. "It's something I'll have to think about and pray about. I have no idea right now, but possibly."
The idea of a celebrity turning to politics is nothing new. Perhaps the most successful example of a celebrity- turned-politician is former President Ronald Reagan, who served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 to 1975 before serving two terms as U.S. president from 1981- 1989.
Reagan began his career in radio and later moved to film and television. While serving as the host of General Electric Theater, Reagan gave moving speeches that would eventually lead him to be persuaded to run for governor of California.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, another former actor, was elected to the California governorship in a 2003 recall election. His was the most recognizable name of the candidates, and although his political views were unknown to many Californians, he won with 48.6 percent of the vote.
Star power won out over politics, then, and some celebrities seem eager to repeat Reagan's and Schwarzenegger's feats. It is something comedian Stephen Colbert parodies regularly, playing the part of a clueless talk show host with an aye for politics.
Colbert announced plans in early January to explore a presidential bid in South Carolina, turning his super PAC loose to create ads promoting a candidate who seemed to be a Herman Cain/Colbert hybrid.
Colbert used his faux GOP campaign as a means to draw attention to campaign finance laws that allow super PACs to spend large amounts of money from unknown donors to support the presidential candidate of their choice.
Trump and Barr, though, seem to be more serious about their desires to transition into politics, causing some to wonder what would motivate a celebrity to take a stab at the presidency: fame, fantasy or the desire to do good.
