The ABC drama For The People has been another reliable source for liberal bias when it comes to the complex topics of profiling, racial bias, and just plain evil corporations. Now it looks like the show’s tackling the more specific topic of a liberal comedian posting a picture of herself threatening the president's life. And people say there are no original ideas left!
The May 1 episode “Have You Met Leonard Knox?” pits young lawyers Sandra Bell (Britt Robertson) and Seth Oliver (Ben Rappaport) against each other in a Kathy Griffin-style case involving a female comedian under fire for posting an inflammatory picture on social media that threatens the sitting president (they don't mention him by name but say he is a Republican) for his position on gun control.
Sandra learns she will be playing defense for Caz Murray, a woman who posed pointing a loaded gun at the Commander in Chief and saying, "Locked and loaded and coming for the President," while Seth will be presenting the government's case against her.
Jill: Caz Murray.
Sandra: Who?
Jill: Caz Murray -- She's a comedian. She posted a photo of herself on Yowler last week pointing a gun at a picture of the President.
Sandra: "Dear Mr. President, is this what it's gonna take for you to finally sign a gun control bill?" I liked your joke more.
Jill: People went crazy, things escalated, eventually Caz Yowled that she's "Locked and loaded and coming for the President."
Allison: And people took her seriously?
Jill: The Secret Service took her very seriously. She's been charged with threatening the President.
Sandra: It was a joke.
Jill: The U.S. Attorney's Office isn't exactly known for its sense of humor.
Roger: No.
Seth: It's ridiculous.
Roger: This comes directly from Washington. I'm not taking it back.
Seth: It's a goofy picture and some online ranting. It can't be worth our time.
Roger: It's not my time. And your time isn't worth very much.
Seth: Well, I think whoever is pushing this forward is completely humorless.
Roger: That's you now. And I agree.
Seth: What?
For her part, Sandra does inform her client that threats are not protected speech. What she fails to bring up is that any threat made towards the President is a federal crime under United States Code Title 18, Section 871 and, as such, suggests the need for personal investigation. Even Kathy Griffin was subjected to a Secret Service probe for her picture holding a model of President Trump's bloody, severed head, leading to her apology for her image…which she promptly took back. Bottom line, any threat regarding the president is not “just a joke.”
Prosecuting Attorney Seth doesn’t make the argument any easier as he questions aloud, “Who's gonna believe a comedian would try to kill the President?” as if the idea itself is ridiculous. Why should anyone, especially in the federal government, have a problem with assassination jokes? It’s ironic that in this age where CNN can track a Twitter user for using violent memes that we’re supposed to shrug off threats to the president. Something tells me that if President Obama was still in office, we would be having a different conversation.
Still, in real life Kathy Griffin was not charged with a crime. Caz Murray, however, is given probation and a restraining order after Seth discovers her plan to cross paths with the president at an Auto Summit. Rather than wallow in her loss, she celebrates the outcome as major publicity boost, stating she “might even get a cable special out of this.” Considering Kathy Griffin still attended the White House Correspondents’ Dinner this weekend after her shameless episode, that outcome isn’t much of a stretch on television.
For now, let’s just hope that the show, and liberals in general, put more effort into their material for the future. If Kathy Griffin, "Caz Murray," and Michelle Wolf are their idea of funny, we are in for a brutal midterm election.
