The Art Of Politics – All The Usual Fools For April…
by Richard Bruton
The Art of Politics, a monthly look at all the terrible things going on in the political world – where one image cuts to the chase of the issues far better than thousands of words – all thanks to some of the best political cartoonists.
Another month of chaos and calamity politically across the world, all of it captured by the finest political cartoonists. So, let’s start in the USA…
YAY, YAY USA… Elections, Indictments, Court Cases and, yes, of course, guns…
Election time already?
Yep, the US Presidential Election might not be happening until November 2024 but we’re already ramping up things. Ex-Pres Trump has already announced he’ll be running (even if it’s from jail), Pres Biden made the decision to throw his hat in the ring, even though he’d be 85 at the end of a second term. With a sitting Pres, it’s unlikely there’s going to be any real challenge on the Democrats’ side. But Trump’s likely to have Florida Governor Ron De Santis running against him. He’s not announced yet (well, not at the time I’m writing these words at least) but there’s already a terrifying ad running supporting him.
Anyhow, lots of cartooning going on about Biden’s age and Trump possibly being in jail by election time…
Bill Bramhall on a similar theme…
Tim Campbell on a general feeling around the lack of excitement from the Democrats over Biden…
Trump gets indicted… at last
Long time coming but Donald managed to get another first this month, as he was finally indicted in New York with business fraud over hush-money payments made to Stormy Daniels. After a huge amount of excitement amongst liberals, it was all a bit of a let-down. No clapping him in irons, no marching off to jail. Just a hearing, charges brought, and then adjourned to December. Pretty much the most fun we got was watching the orange one visibly prickle at the indignity of having to push open a door that got closed in his face…
Steve Bell working Trump’s indictment into his coverage of Gran’pa Joe Biden’s trip to Ireland…
DeSantis Versus Disney…
Ron DeSantis has spent the last few years as Florida Governor taking the Trump playbook and going harder on it. In short order, he’s stripped away rights for women, for LGBTQ+ people, passed bills on gender-transition treatments, really gone after drag shows, and made Florida THE place to be for censorship and book bans. Worst of all was the whole ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law that’s a chilling reminder of the Clause 28 laws in the UK of Thatcher’s ’80s. Clause 28 effectively banned the discussion or promotion of LGBTQ+ issues and the Don’t Say Gay laws are horrifyingly similar. Starting off with a ban on classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in grades K to 3, Florida recently expanded it to all grades, impacting kids up to grade 12, aged 17.
Basically, not one of the good guys. But now that he’s decided to make an enemy of Disney, he may well have come up against one thing he can’t bully. After taking the hump over Disney objecting to ‘Don’t Say Gay’, De Santis got petty, meaning a lot of back and forth and De Santis being outmanoeuvred by Disney Corp all leading up to Disney taking him and Florida to court. (For a good summary, see this NYT article.)
Fox Vs Dominion…
Fox News got themselves sued by Dominion, a company responsible for many of the voting machines in the US 2020 elections. Fox, and by extension Conservative Republicans, started throwing around all sorts of conspiracy theories about the stealing of the election and the role of Dominion and other companies in it.
Well, obviously those accusations were false. Hell, even Fox knew they were false. They stopped being a news organisation a long time ago and just peddle whatever they know will bring in the money and the viewers.
Well, maybe, just maybe, things are coming back to bite them in the ass. Dominion settled for $788 million and there’s more law suits to deal with coming up.
Shortly after that settlement, Fox News parted ways with their #1 news anchor (well, there are other names for him) Tucker Carlson, their chief architect of lies and conspiracy nonsense. (Again, here’s a nice summary at Vox)
And Rowe again…
Kal –
But will all this make any difference to the Fox News agenda? Nope, probably not… here’s Nick Anderson on that…
The not so Supreme Court…
The Supremes, a group of honourable men and women representing the finest in law-making. Well, that was the way it might have been. But those days are sadly gone.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas failed to disclose that Harlan Crow purchased three properties owned by Thomas and his family, provided Thomas and his family with luxury trips and accommodations for decades, and then, despite Thomas saying Crow had no business before the court, turns out he did. Oh, and then there’s the small matter of Crow having a worrying amount of Nazi memorabilia in his collection. (How much is a worrying amount of Nazi memorabilia you might ask. Well, personally I reckon it’s any number above zero.)
Kal –
And Ann Telnaes on something stinking up the Supreme Court… as Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. is invited by Sen. Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) “to testify at a public Senate hearing next month on ethics rules governing the Supreme Court.”
And of course… gun deaths…
Another month. Another series of meaningless deaths by gun. A day in America is more likely to have a mass shooting than not. Guns are the number one cause of death for children in America, more than vehicle deaths. There were 641 mass shootings in 2022. 19,895 people were shot dead in America in 2022 – that’s not including suicides.
This month seemed to be a time to be showcasing the stand-your-ground rules in America. Now, without even going into the right and the wrongs of those, it did point out just how terrifyingly trigger-happy American gun owners are… a 16-year-old shot for ringing the wrong doorbell, a 20-year-old shot and killed for mistakenly pulling into the wrong driveway, an 18-year-old shot for trying to get into the wrong car. A six-year-old and her dad shot because her basketball rolled onto the wrong lawn.
America, armed to the teeth and whipped into a frenzy of paranoia thanks to the likes of Fox News. And it’s not going to change any time soon.
Kal –
BRITAIN…
No-one welcome in not so Great Britain
Not too much Easter Christian spirit coming from the Conservative Government and in particular Suella Braverman, Home Secretary and woman most likely to cosplay as Cruella de Vil, whose plans to stop any movement of immigrants into the country are just vile examples of playing to the right-wing crowd without really even beginning to look at any problems…
Ben Jennings on Braverman’s determination to press through with the migrants to Rwanda plan dreamed up by the last Home Secretary, Priti Patel. Who’d have thought we could find a more mean-spirited Home Sec than Auntie Priti, eh?
Absolutely nothing to do with Brexit… absolutely not… strikes, cost of living crisis, and more…
Easter strife… the country’s still beset by strikes, the cost of living crisis continues, the Bank of England is telling us that we’ve got to get used to being poorer, and the Easter getaway stalled with major delays at Dover. The latter two have absolutely nothing to do with Brexit… of course not, not a bit of it. Or at least that’s what all those rabid Brexiteers are saying. Yeah, right.
Chris Riddell on the whole definitely not Brexit thing…
Ben Jennings on the cost of living crisis biting hard…
Lou Mckeever on the Easter non-getaway…
Morten Morland on the same…
Ben Jennings on the continuing Doctor’s strike…
And Nicola Jennings on the government’s approach to the National Health Service…
Sarah Akinterinwa on the news of a report talking about fears of ‘nanny statism’ holding back governments for the last 30 years tackling the obesity crisis.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has decided that the REALLY important thing to get Britain going is more maths lessons, coming up with the idea of a compulsory maths plan up for students all the way up to 18.
Martin Rowson on that…
Arise King Charles, not quite yet…
It’s the Coronation of King Charles on May 6, where the amount of money on display is going to be spectacular. The clothes, the jewels, the carriages, the everything. And this in a country where the Bank of England’s chief economist said that people ‘need to accept’ they are poorer.
Steve Bell on Charles’ estimated £1.8 BILLION private fortune.
Ella Baron – on record high prices and Charles’ choice of a Coronation Quiche as the official food of the Coronation.
