ABC’s Designated Survivor was abruptly canceled last week, so the May 16 episode "Run" was the last time the series could make yet another biased statement. In a year filled with gun-control pleas, Republican smears, and even the threat to oust a president, the series finale was almost unremarkable. However, not even the Kiefer Sutherland-led show could resist making one last political jab this time, ironically, on a non-American issue: the Brexit vote.
In the middle of President Kirkman’s (Kiefer Sutherland) possible indictment, Press Secretary Seth Wright (Kal Penn) and Political Director Lyor Boone (Paulo Costanzo) travel to the fictional U.S. Territory of Taurasi. There, they discuss a recent referendum for independence with the local governor. Apparently, the people have voted in favor of becoming an independent nation from the United States despite the U.S. insisting on keeping Taurasi as a territory.
In an attempt to dissuade the governor from signing the referendum into law, Lyor warns him to look at 2016’s Brexit vote.
Habalo: Lyor, you and Seth have come a long way on behalf of your President, and I appreciate that.
Lyor: I don't think you do, Governor. America's close relationship with Taurasi goes back nearly 80 years.
Habalo: And in that time, we've given you airstrips, access to our harbors.
Seth: In exchange for billions in aid, military protection.
Habalo: And we are grateful. But it's 2018. The Taurasi people don't want to be a fiefdom anymore. They want economic independence, which is why they democratically voted to sever official ties with your country.
Lyor: Per your constitution, that vote is ineffective without your signature.
Habalo: And why should I withhold it?
Seth: Because, Governor, the vote was skewed by millions of dollars in TV ads that America's enemies poured into your market.
Lyor: Look, we get how going it alone is enticing. We do. But ask Great Britain how Brexit has worked out for them.
Just what is wrong with Brexit? We know that liberal publications like the New York Times would like to make people believe it’s a non-stop nightmare of conflict and hate crimes despite no direct link or evidence. We know that hundreds of thousands of pounds are being spent by a George Soros-funded group to persuade people against Brexit with almost no outcry from the media. We know that even now opinion on the referendum is split at best despite the nearly two-year onslaught of anti-Brexit propaganda - for which this show itself just provided the equivalent of "millions of dollars in TV ads."
Not even Seth and Lyor provide a good defense for refusing independence. Their argument stems down to simply “If Taurasi leaves, it could be the first domino to fall” and the end of an "American empire" during Kirkman’s administration, which certainly speaks to leftists' fears that other countries will follow Great Britain and exit the European Union.
Just like Brexit, there is no consideration for the people who voted, they are treated as if they don't matter and the political elites know what's best for them. But you can't compare a territory leaving the protection and economic power of the U.S. to go it alone to Great Britain leaving the costly and bloated E.U. to preserve its sovereignty.
In the end, after the United States assists Taurasi in the wake of a massive tsunami, the governor promises a re-vote. The United States likely keeps its territory on television despite Brexit still looming large in the real world, once again giving leftists the happy ending they want but will never receive. Even with Designated Survivor exiting the ABC lineup, there seems to be no shortage of those.
