We've seen Nixon shaking hands with Elvis, Kennedy sharing a laugh with Sinatra, and Clinton blowing a sax solo for Arsenio. Now a 2008 hopeful is continuing the presidential publicity tradition, with help from a guy so manly he reportedly makes onions cry.

"I appreciate Chuck Norris' endorsement," Republican candidate Mike Huckabee said in a statement this week, unveiling a tongue-in-cheek commercial that has him standing alongside the "Walker, Texas Ranger" star. "We want to show that running for president is serious business, but a person can have fun doing it."

Viewable on the Arkansas governor's Web site, the "Chuck Norris Approved" ad plays off the wildly popular Norris facts that began popping up all over the Internet in 2005. The tidbits — including "Chuck Norris does not breathe; he holds air hostage" and "When Chuck Norris wants popcorn, he breathes on Nebraska" — have not only cemented the tough guy's pop-culture legacy, but inspired everything from books ("The Truth About Chuck Norris") to Conan O'Brien sketches and soft-drink commercials.

"My plan to secure the border?" Huckabee asks in the ad. "Two words: Chuck Norris."

Standing next to the bearded thespian, who has starred in action classics such as "Lone Wolf McQuade," the presidential hopeful then begins reciting a few of his favorite Norris gems, while the man himself reveals so-called "HuckChuckFacts." "Mike Huckabee is a lifelong hunter, who'll protect our Second Amendment rights," Norris explains. "Mike's a principled, authentic conservative."

"When Chuck Norris does a push-up, he isn't lifting himself up — he's pushing the Earth down," counters a straight-faced Huckabee, whose campaign has been surging in recent polls. "Chuck Norris doesn't endorse; he tells America how it's going to be."

The ad's high point comes near the end, with Norris spoofing the ubiquitous "I approve this message" sign-off by punching his fist toward the camera and announcing that Huckabee is "Chuck Norris approved."

"This is a lighthearted ad which draws attention to important issues," Huckabee said in the statement. "[I appreciate Norris'] participation in the ad, which was designed to spotlight some key issues and to draw interested voters to our Web site."

On top of the ad's online presence, a Huckabee staffer confirmed that the ad will be on TV in the political battleground of Iowa.

Norris' endorsement has been accompanied by similarly eyebrow-raising support from professional wrestling legend Ric Flair, who said in a statement: "To be the man, you've got to beat the man, and Mike Huckabee is the man," adding his trademark "Whoooooo!" Other candidates exerting pop-culture prowess have included Barack Obama (with help from a recent "Saturday Night Live" episode) and Hillary Clinton, who spoofed the "Sopranos" season finale on her Web site alongside husband Bill.