Publication Type: Invited Paper
Abstract: This paper examines the rhetorical force of Chuck Norris Facts in the 2008 Iowa caucuses. In April 2005, the Chuck Norris Fact Generator appeared on the internet, sharing Facts including “The chief export of Chuck Norris is pain” and “America isn’t a democracy, it’s a Chucktatorship.” It has received over 200 million hits, and the Facts have been mentioned by many media outlets. The Washington Post called this groundswell of popularity “Chuck Mania.” In November 2007, Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee received an endorsement from Chuck Norris and aired a campaign ad co-starring Norris. In the ad, Huckabee delivers Chuck Norris Facts, and Norris touts Huckabee’s campaign platform in the style of the Facts. Almost overnight, Huckabee surged in the Iowa pre-caucus polls. In the caucuses, he received 34% of Iowa Republicans’ support, trailed by Mitt Romney with 25%. This paper argues that the figure of Chuck Norris operates as a public secret that both legitimates and metaphorically displaces state violence. I argue that “Chuck Norris” functions as the name for an unnamable fear of a state violence that pervades the American public imagination. First, I illustrate the articulation of nation, sovereignty, and violence in Chuck Norris Facts. Next, I trace the circulation of that meme in public culture, showing how it bolsters an antidemocratic formulation of American nationalism. Finally, I characterize the uptake of Chuck Norris Facts, accounting for the popular fetishistic cathexis that underwrites the Facts’ political effectivity.