Why does every late-night host not named Gutfeld ignore President Joe Biden?
It’s not for lack of material.
The stumbling, bumbling Commander in Chief is a gift to comedy satirists. Here’s just one of many examples a fair-minded comic would skewer if given the chance:
"Let's go lick the world."
— Young Americans for Liberty (@YALiberty) April 14, 2023
– President Joe Biden pic.twitter.com/yzYC6rgvzs
Yet Team Late-Night ignores him.
Why?
He’s a powerful Democrat, and progressive comics would risk almost anything to avoid hurting him and, by extension, his party.
It’s just a joke, right? No, not really.
Comedy can cut to the chase better than a brilliant op-ed or power-point presentation. It’s why the comedy world avoids punch lines targeting Democrats.
The best satire illustrates undeniable truths better than almost any other medium.
The latest example? Dave Chappelle’s surprise appearance Thursday in San Francisco. The stand-up comic, dubbed by some as the GOAT (greatest of all time), cracked wise at the city’s Masonic Auditorium.
It’s what the star of Netflix’s controversial 2021 special “The Closer” said about his time in the West Coast city, though, that caused a kerfuffle. He’s no stranger to San Francisco, having played the city many times over his decades-long career.
This time, though, the city felt different. Weird. Scary.
“What the f—- happened to this place?”
The comic said he watched in shock as someone defecated outside a restaurant he wanted to visit. He dubbed the City by the Bay “half ‘Glee,’ half zombie movie” before the line that’s bound to linger in the hearts and minds of many.
“Y’all [N-words] need a Batman!”
It’s just a joke, right? Yes … and no.
It’s no secret San Francisco is in a terrible, near-death spiral. People are fleeing the crime-infested city, one where unchecked progressive policies have had disastrous consequences. Major stores are heading for the hills, too, exhausted by endless shoplifting and violent threats to their workers.
The public hears the drip, drip drip of terrible news, and they absorb it to a certain degree. It’s still amorphous, though, a talking point meant to be debated across social media.
Chappelle slashed through that thinking with one, withering wisecrack. Seven syllables, to be exact. That’s all it took to crystallize a slow-moving disaster into something sharp and profound.
The best comedians do that.
Dana Carvey’s withering, but hardly mean-spirited President George H.W. Bush impressions got to the heart of the milquetoast leader. Tina Fey’s Sarah Palin nailed her lack of intellectual gravitas.
Now, it’s Chappelle’s turn.
And, chances are, the line will be repeated more than a few times whenever San Francisco comes to mind. And he won’t mind it a bit.
Chappelle may lean to the Left, but truth and comedy remain his prime directives.
