Former President Donald Trump made a spectacular return to the spotlight at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Tuesday, but his bandaged ear was a reminder of the assassination attempt he survived just two days earlier at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Meanwhile, in the latest episode of popular comedy podcast “Kill Tony,” comedian Shane Gillis made a spectacular comeback of his famous impersonation of the 45th president, this time dressed as Trump.
Taped live from the Comedy Mothership in Austin, Texas, the episode began as always with special secret guest “Joe Biden” (played by comedian Adam Ray), who strode slowly onto the stage with a hollow smile on his face, joining host Tony Hinchcliffe and producer Brian Redban on stage as show regular Casey Lockett hyped up the crowd.
Wray’s long-winded, Biden-esque talk was punctuated by a patriotic MAGA-themed video montage, leading to an appearance by Gillis dressed as Trump.
Just like in Milwaukee, the crowd erupted.
The episode was pre-recorded on July 8th, and the timing of its release couldn’t have been better.
“This guy showered with my daughter. Would you believe that?”
Gillis and Wray played the president for nearly two and a half hours, trading presidential diatribes, with Gillis zeroing in on one disturbing allegation about the sitting president.
When a comedian guest revealed that he got married at 17, Gillis joked. “I was the perfect age to shower with my dad.” [Biden’s] My daughter did it.”
“Check it out! I think you’ll be amazed that this man was in the shower with my daughter. Can you believe it? Until she was 13,” he added.
“I love my family!” Wray replied, flashing Biden’s trademark smile.
Gillis was referring to a diary entry by Biden’s daughter, Ashley, which contained an unpleasant childhood memory of taking a shower with her father.
“Was I sexually abused? I believe so,” she wrote.
The fake presidents also touched on foreign policy: After a former Army Ranger revealed he’d been deployed to Afghanistan three times, host Tony Hinchcliffe said Trump wasn’t getting the credit he deserved for ending the Middle East wars.
Mr Gillis, playing Mr Trump, then criticised Mr Biden’s failure to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, saying: “I wanted to get out of there and what Joe did…it’s an utter disgrace, it’s terrible.”
Ranger agreed, saying he would vote for Trump in 2024 just as he did in 2020.
The lukewarm audience reaction to Gillis’ antics made clear what “Kill Tony” fans have known for a long time: The liberal, anti-Trump stranglehold on comedy is loosening.
Contrast Gillis’s poking fun at Trump with the humorous banter of Jack Black’s bandmate, Kyle Gass of Tenacious D. While performing in Australia the day after the shootings, Black sang Gass “Happy Birthday” and then asked him to make a wish.
Gass jokingly called on future assassination plotters to “make sure Trump doesn’t miss out next time.” The lukewarm response to Gass’ comments, both in person and online, suggests that there is less demand for Trump’s ideological “humor.”
Instead of the well-worn Orange Man-Hitler material, Gillis and Wray offered exaggerated but fundamentally accurate portrayals of Trump and Biden, respectively, and if Gillis’s Trump worked out better, it wasn’t because of any partisan bias on the show’s part.
In other words, it’s funny because it’s true, and the raucous reaction from that night’s audience in America’s notoriously liberal city offers a sign of hope that authentic comedy, which prioritizes laughter over politics, will never go out of style.
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censorship and sign up for our newsletter to receive stories like this directly to your inbox. Register here!
