Satire v. Reality

Did anyone else watch Fox News' "Half Hour News Hour" on Sunday? Aside from the absurdity of Fox News even pretending to be a legitimate news channel at this point, it was as unfunny as previews indicated. Let's summarize: Comedians Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter do their usual schtick, the hosts call Hillary Clinton a lezbo and remind everyone Barack Obama is black, some spoof ad 'expose' about the ACLU, and a running gag making fun of Ed Begley Jr (?!) for owning an electric car. I genuinely felt bad for them watching it.

Anyway, on the subject of humor, I've often lamented how our increasingly insane political culture makes satire harder to pull off. How do you top, for instance, a U.S. company building a border fence to keep illegal immigrants out... and hiring illegal immigrants to do it?

It's on that note that I read this Onion article last week-

President Bush announced Monday that his administration will permanently sever ties with the democratically controlled United States Congress, ending a nearly 220-year-old alliance between the two governmental branches.

"Our administration no longer recognizes the authority of this rogue body," said Bush in a televised Oval Office address. "Clearly, these combative men and women have a political agenda in direct opposition to our own. They have no concern for my national interests, and have left me no choice."

After six years of cordial relations between the executive and legislative branches of government, tensions flared up in January when Congress came under the control of "hostile new leadership." After a dramatic standoff last week over American policy in Iraq, the president openly denounced Congress, refused to accept calls from majority leaders, and returned Congress–approved legislation unsigned and unread....

Pretty fun stuff, as usual. Then I read this, from U.S. News and World Report, days later-

With President Bush unable to get much traction so far in moving his agenda through Congress or in improving his job-approval ratings with the public, White House advisers are casting about for ways to jump-start his final two years, including issuing executive orders to get things done without having to ask for support from the Democratic-controlled Congress.

“He should get a list of the executive orders for the last 200 years, as a guide, and choose what he wants to do,” says an informal Bush adviser. One proposal that fiscal conservatives are pushing is to halve all capital-gains taxes, as a way to encourage investment and job creation.

Some conservatives argue that even if Bush somehow regains his political footing, whatever he might work out with the Democratic majority in Congress wouldn’t be very good legislation, so he should go the executive-order route and bypass Congress altogether.

Not as funny.

Reality outpaces satire again! {*shakes fist*}