AUSTIN, Texas -- U.S. Senator John Cornyn, R-Texas, is getting national attention for a campaign video that's gone viral.

"Big Bad John" shows the senator in western clothing and is set to the song by Jimmy Dean, with lines like "He rose to the top, in just one term. Kept Texas in power, made lesser states squirm. Big John."

The video has since been featured on major cable news networks, national blogs and The Daily Show on Comedy Central.

"This is a disaster for John Cornyn, because it just makes him look silly," said Democratic media consultant Dean Rindy. "They don't stop to realize Cornyn's not the Marlboro man. He's a plump, pasty politician in cowboy drag."

Cornyn's campaign had a California media team produce the video for the State Republican Convention, held in Houston earlier this month.

"There certainly was a message involved there, it was a lighthearted, humorous piece," said Kevin McLaughlin, Cornyn's campaign spokesman.

Even Cornyn acknowledged the humor, when he spoke at the convention.

"My staff convinced me that it would be a good idea. Maybe I need a new staff," he said in scripted comments.

Is all publicity good publicity?

Rindy said no, citing the much-watched and much-aligned video of Democratic presidential candidate Michael Dukasis emerging from a tank in 1988.

"There's nothing worse than looking foolish. Better to look crooked than to look silly. People want a strong US Senator. Not a fake cowboy," Rindy said.

Cornyn's camp disagrees, citing positive reviews on The O'Reilly Factor and from conservative bloggers.

"The response at the Republican convention was overwhelmingly positive, and that's who the target audience was," McLaughlin said. "You can't really buy the kind of attention this has been getting."