‘The Simpsons’ – Just Another DNC Platform Now
It’s staggering to think Fox’s “The Simpsons” debuted all the way back in 1989.
The animated smash isn’t what it used to be. What show could sustain those early, glorious years? The series still packs a whimsical punch, but these days it's accompanied by political broadsides.
And, of course, they flow in one direction … from the Left.
The early “Simpsons” episodes dabbled in political matters, but they focused on the yuks and character development first. Young Lisa Simpson is the ultimate progressive, an unabashed tree hugger with the best of intentions.
That hasn’t changed, nor should it. The old “Simpsons” would gently poke both sides, though. An early episode focused on the runoff waste from Mr. Burns' infamous power plant in “Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish.”
We’d also see Grandpa Simpson get random checks in the mail and mutter, “I figured cuz the Democrats were in power again."
That, more or less, was how the show once approached politics. Like “30 Rock” in its golden days, “The Simpsons” focused on the funny. If a gag overlapped with the daily headlines, though, the show swung away.
Politically charged episodes like "Lisa Goes to Washington" let the satire flow without overt talking points.
That changed over the years, and the show began aping pop culture’s political obsessions. Democrats, Democrats, rah-rah-rah!
In season 23’s “Politically Inept, with Homer Simpson” the dopey patriarch becomes a rising star and chooses conservative rocker Ted Nugent to be the GOP’s presidential candidate.
Suffice to say Nugent comes off looking badly in the gig, although the rocker supplied his own voice for the episode.
Still, it can’t compare to the most embarrassing “Simpsons” moment to date. The show, no fan of President Donald Trump, uncorked a musical number featuring the real estate mogul and his Democratic foes.
The video, to the tune of “West Side Story,” finds Trump getting countered by the Squad and the Democratic presidential candidates circa 2020. You won’t find any laughs here, just pure DNC propaganda.
TRUMP: “They shouldn’t be in America / No one but me in America / No taxes for me in America / This is my natural hair-ica.”
THE SQUAD: “You’re Boris Johnson without the class / Can’t wait to see you behind prison glass / Your nose is right up Putin’s a– / We say it’s time to impeach you fast.”
Can you spot the Fake News?
The most embarrassing part? Trump is seen exhausted and out of breath, while Vice President Joe Biden (yes, THAT Joe Biden), croaks, “Who’s an old man now?”
Yes, the politician who works without a teleprompter for extended rallies is creakier than the gent who looks exhausted at the end of every third sentence.
Satire demands a kernel of truth to hit the bullseye.
The show also released, "A Tale of Two Trumps," another attempt at Orange Man Bad comedy.
Proving occasional bits like that were the new normal, “The Simpsons” wrapped its latest season by bringing Hugh Jackman and far-Left economist Robert Reich to the show. The duo team up for a musical lecture on economics, one brimming with class inequality rants and attacks on the rich.
Note to “The Simpsons” writing team: Jackman’s bank account is the envy of all.
The sad showcase includes actual lectures, like this from Reich:
“The decline of unions, rampant corporate greed, Wall Street malfeasance, and the rise of short-sighted politics all contributed to increased economic inequality, widespread real unemployment, wage stagnation, and a lower standard of living for millions of Americans.”
Laughing yet? That’s not the point, of course.
Most “Simpsons” shows stick to the dysfunctional family in play, and that’s for the good, with the show's progressive spirit seeping around the edges.
These overly partisan segues let the show flex its virtue, generate positive press from the mainstream media and, most likely, convince some viewers the classic show has run its course.