In "Running for President," Mark Twain writes sardonically of the American political process which consists largely of investigating political candidates for the purpose of finding weaknesses or scandals in their past in order to defeat them in an election. In doing so, he takes the approach of reductum ad absurdum, i.e. taking the argument to absurd lengths, and verbally sketches a brilliant political cartoon whose imagery reduces the reader to wry chuckles of recognition. …showed first 75 words of 636 total…

…showed last 75 words of 636 total…the candidate as honestly depraved and therefore qualified for office. It is brilliant in its expose of the views of politicians and the political system, painting its absurdities in vibrant color and unforgettable imagery, thus creating a political cartoon without the actual drawing. It is this that has made Mark Twain one of the great American satirical writers of all time, and American politics, or, in fact, politics in general, the butt of infinite jokes.