“His campaign would catch fire with a snappy song.”
My Darling, Clementine comes to mind for some reason.
Huckelberry Hound?
Wikipedia reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huckleberry_Hound
Voiced by Daws Butler, Huckleberry was a blue dog that spoke with a southern drawl, with a relaxed, sweet, and well-intentioned personality. The term "Huckleberry" can be a slang synonym for a rube or an amateur, and that seems to fit Huck's personality. Most of his shorts consisted of Huck trying to find employment in different fields, ranging from policeman to (ironically enough) dogcatcher, with backfiring results, yet usually coming out on top, either through slow persistence or sheer luck. One regular villain in the series was "Powerful Pierre", a tall and muscular unshaven character with a French accent. Another trademark of Huck was his tone deaf (as well as inaccurate) rendition of "Oh My Darling, Clementine," often used as a running gag.
Too similar? Blackbird.