Friday, March 18, 2016

Should Comedy Writers Vote for Trump?


As Donald Trump’s wins continue to pile up in the Republican primaries, it has become increasingly obvious that the man, whose candidacy was initially considered to be nothing more than a ridiculous novelty, has somehow managed to amass millions of supporters. So who are these supporters? Who are the people who believe they would most benefit from the presidency of a billionaire, bully, buffoon? So far the main contingents seem to be wealthy people disinterested in kindness, poor people disinterested in facts, and Duck Dynasty fan club members.

But I would argue there is another contingent that has not expressly stated their allegiance to Trump that would benefit from his presidency more than any other group. I’m speaking, of course, of comedy writers. Trump has already given comedy writers so much. From MAD magazine to SNL, from The Onion to late night talk shows, from political cartoonists to Twitter hashtag wars—Trump has provided humorists with a never-ending source of high-quality comedy gold.

Whether it’s the natural comparisons to long dead dictators or the easy potshots about his questionable hair, Trump provides a treasure trove of material for comedians on a daily basis. And that’s just now, while he’s campaigning. Imagine what it would mean to the comedy world if Trump took his circus act to the White House.  How much material would be gained from insulting exchanges with other world leaders, bombastic State of the Union addresses, and garish White House dinners? With all the softballs Trump’s administration would lob out there, comedy monologues would practically write themselves.

On the surface it would appear that it would be in the best interest of comedy writers to support Donald Trump en masse. A Trump presidency would seem to ensure job security for those whose livelihood depends on satirizing current events.

But could there be too much of a good thing in this scenario? If a comedy writer can turn on CNN for five minutes and get 38 Trump jokes without batting an eye, would it make them complacent and lazy? And with all the attention focused on Trump’s every moronic word and action, would it distract comedians from poking fun at other topics rife for satire? Indeed, with the mass overload of Trump material, who would have time to skewer the Kardashians?

So I say to my fellow humorists, that while it may be tempting to vote for Trump, because you think it would give you stability in your work, I say this would only be a short-term gain. In the long run, the never-ending supply of easy Trump gags would make you soft, and after his administration was over you’d be reduced to writing knock-knock jokes and limericks.

A vote against Trump is a vote for your comedy future! (Besides, a new Clinton administration wouldn’t exactly make your well run dry.)