Al Sharpton Turns Down 'Dancing with the Stars'

Controversial political figure Al Sharpton has turned down two invitations to appear on Dancing With the Stars.

As Al Sharpton explained in a TMZ video, he just didn't have the time. He said that his priorities were with his work in education and Action network. He said that it was one thing to take one night to do Saturday Night Live, and another to take weeks on Dancing With the Stars.

Sharpton did, however, affirm that he does have moves. He said he enjoyed busting out his James Brown moves on Saturday Night Live and nobody could touch him if he appeared on Dancing With the Stars. He just didn't have time.

Having political contestants is a relatively new phenomenon for Dancing With the Stars. In season 9, former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay competed for three weeks before bowing out due to injury. Bristol Palin, of course, appeared in season 11, where the votes of her base carried her all the way to the finale.

Before landing Tom DeLay, Dancing With the Stars had tried to recruit Bill Clinton, but Clinton turned them down (according to TV Shark). In December 2010, Contact Music reported that DWTS had approached Todd Palin about possibly appearing on the show, and they wanted to recruit a high-profile Democrat to go head-to-head with him.

Political figures are certainly a ratings boon for the show. As seen from DeLay and Bristol, high-profile figures tend to do well with the viewers.

Tom DeLay and Bristol Palin never scored well with the judges, but they had well-oiled voting machines to see them through. Bill Clinton and Todd Palin would likely experience similar success if they were to appear on Dancing With the Stars.

Political commentator Tucker Carlson is one exception, as he was voted off the first week of his season. Though, to be fair, his routine was painful to watch. He spent the first half of his performance bopping in a chair (I blame the partner for choreographing that routine).

Still, political figures tend to generate a different kind of excitement than the aging child stars and C-list celebrities who sometimes grace the dance floor. Political figures tend to attract viewers outside the typical DWTS demographics. Viewers who might not normally watch a show like DWTS might decide to tune in if they are supporters of a certain politician.

I once heard Al Sharpton speak at my university debate club meeting. The topic was affirmative action and he had spent the evening ranting about how "what government did, government should fix!" Although I was not impressed with the content of his speech, I could see how his personality could generate TV ratings on a show like Dancing With the Stars.

For the same reason viewers always stop to watch a car accident, people would stop to watch someone like Sharpton bust his James Brown moves.