Can Roly Poly Become President of the U.S.

No really overweight guy has been elected president of the United States since 1913, observes Lloyd Grove on the Daily Beast. The question is: Can a fay guy such as New Jersey governor Chris Christie nail down the job of U.S. president in the future?

The last roly poly had been William Howard Taft. Although two-termer Bill Clinton liked his french fries his weighty issues weren't serious. In essence, campaigns for major jobs such as U.S. president are beauty contests in this media age. The attributes that play well on television and YouTube include energetic, prepared for anything, and charismatic. Fat makes for a very different image. That image is not likely to play well when voters want a leader who has what it takes to get the economy back in a high growth mode.

Of course, you might also be wondering if a fat woman could become U.S. president? It seems the public would be willing to consider full-figured ones like Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton. Actually, during the midterms, voters rejected the Barbie types for the U.S. Senate, like California's Carly Fiornia and Connecticut's Linda McMahon. However, the negatives associated with excess poundage tend to be much greater for females.