"But I thought he was the kind of chap I could have a beer with."

More seriously, that was the great Reaghan con-trick. Later Rove/Buce/Darth showed how successful it could be: large chuinks of America were so stupid as to think that this favoured son of riches would countenance the notion of having a beer with them down the trailer park. How delusional can people be? -- or, rather, how powerful are the populiat media in indoctrinating the public with delusions?