Bobby Jindal aimed for creative — and likely hoped for buzz — when he announced his presidential campaign via video on Wednesday.
He may have gotten more than what he wished for.
The Louisiana governor became the 13th Republican presidential candidate, unveiling footage recorded by a hidden camera seemingly lodged in a tree that showed how his three young children reacted after hearing he planned on running for the White House.
“Mommy and Daddy have been thinking and talking a lot about this, and we have decided we are going to be running for president this year,” Jindal said, to decidedly muted reaction from his kids, as shown by the video, which Jindal subsequently placed on Facebook.
The homemade film, with shaky audio quality and Jindal himself obscured by a tree branch, was largely mocked on social media as a smart idea that didn’t quite land.
A Jindal spokeswoman, Shannon Dirmann, later confirmed what appeared to be the case: Jindal’s children weren’t aware they were being taped at the time.
The footage was shot over the weekend at the governor’s mansion and the kids were eventually shown the video before it was made public. Dirmann said the children were fine with the tape and added that criticism of the video came largely from “liberals.”
Those tactics may be necessary for Jindal, who sits at the rearguard of the Republican field and has low name identification nationwide.
Many Republican candidates have announced their plans to run first on social media, followed shortly thereafter by rally-type events ranging from Ted Cruz’s preacher-like sermon at Liberty University to Jeb Bush’s lengthy roster of surrogates in Florida who testified to his record.
Jindal gave his own speech hours after releasing the film online.
“The big government crowd — they hate what I have done,” Jindal said to the crowd of about 500 gathered in Kenner, Louisiana.
“I am guilty as charged, and our state is better off for it today. We have had enough of talkers, it’s time for doers. I’m not running for president to be somebody, I’m running for president to do something,” he said.
Gail Montelaro, a woman from New Roads, Louisiana, who has known the new presidential candidate for 21 years, watched the two-minute video at his announcement rally just outside of New Orleans. She said that the unusual video concept of the video was characteristic of Jindal’s way of thinking.
“That’s Bobby,” Montelaro said. “He thinks outside of the box. And he cares about his children and likes doing things with them and their future in mind. That is not unusual about him.”