A Trump presidency must also be a laughing matter

By E.W.

COMEDIANS and politicians once delighted in the idea of a Trump presidency. Seth Meyers, host of “Late Night”, noted that “Trump owns the Miss USA Pageant, which is great for Republicans, because it will streamline their search for a vice president.” At the 2011 White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Barack Obama joked that Donald Trump “certainly would bring some change to the White House,” as the screen flashed to an image of the “Trump White House Resort and Casino” replete with gold pillars and neon purple signs. Two years later, John Oliver urged Mr Trump to run: “Do it. Do it,” he said on the “Daily Show”. “I will personally write you a campaign check now, on behalf of this country, which does not want you to be president, but which badly wants you to run.”

Now the joke has mutated into reality. In the immediate aftermath of Mr Trump’s victory, laughter has proved difficult. Judd Apatow, a comedy behemoth involved in such films as “Anchorman”, “Knocked Up” and “Bridesmaids”, tweeted on election night: “One thing I do not want to watch right now—comedy about any of this. That’s how terrifying and disappointing this is.”