Taylor Swift, The West Wing, James Taylor: Politics is So Hip These Days I Can Barely Stand It

People like to say we're in a Golden Age of TV, but I think we're also in a Golden Age of Political Pop Culture References. Politics is just so hip these days. 

Did you see that John Boehner's office sent out an email blast using Taylor Swift GIFs to argue against President Obama's free community college plan? The point is that "free college" isn't really free. Pretty clever… 

Or, as GIF number five says, "Still, 60 billion dollars is a lot of money…you can't just shake it off." (That's another subtle Taylor Swift reference, for the fans.) 

Speaker of the House / Taylor Swift

This guy is the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the United States Congress, and he's referencing Taylor Swift! The kids must love it! 

It's not just Republicans who've upped their pop-culture reference game.

The White House released a video today featuring the cast of The West Wing to promote the second annual Big Block of Cheese Day. It's even got Martin Sheen, who played the President!

The video also contains multiple puns using the word Feta, which is a kind of cheese. 

The White House blog post on the event says "we thought it'd be a gouda idea to brie-unite a certain cast of characters [hint! hint!] to help us bring back a tradition that dates back to the days of President Andrew Jackson." (Gouda and brie are also kinds of cheese.)

I love puns! 

Okay, The West Wing isn't quite the pop charts. But honestly, who doesn't appreciate The West Wing? I know it's just a TV show, but that's what politics should really be like. 

The West Wing is still pretty cool, at least here in Washington. 

But it's even gone beyond Washington. 

You can't forget John Kerry's heartwarming message to the French: "You've Got a Friend," performed by none other than James Taylor, who actually went to France. I have to say, it was very emotional. 

I just can't get over it. It's easy to think politics is stuffy and stale and out of touch and lame and clueless, but then I look at all of this and think, these days it's actually pretty hip.

Comments

[MJGreen]

I mean, I can't even.

[Lady Bertrum]

You'd better not be talking shit about my girl Taylor, Suderman.

[LynchPin1477]

Every time I see her on TV she is lip syncing, horribly, and looking terrible disinterested. But she's hot, and I don't care.

[Xajow]

Big Block of Cheese day? Was there an actual 1400 pound block of cheese involved? Or, better idea, was this was a photographic art display with giant photos of the heads of The President and the members of the U.S. Congress?

[kinnath]

Was the fucking blonde bimbo gif really necessary

[UnCivilServant]

No, it was not.

Animated .gifs are an affront to humanity, and one of the lesser scourges of the internet (there are so many scourges of the internet that it got pushed down the ranking some)

[kinnath]

I have seen a handful of amusing gifs, but overall they are a travesty.

[Crusty Juggler]

The only gif worth giffing

probably nsfw...

[LynchPin1477]

There are so many great gifs out there. here are two of my favorites.

http://cdn1.sbnation.com/impor.....UNTER1.gif

http://cdn2.sbnation.com/impor.....9/2009.gif

[lap83]

I think the red panda one is probably my favorite
http://i.imgur.com/KMgBnzI.gif

[NealAppeal]

GIFs of all the troubles that ail the infomercial actors is pretty good.
Infomercial GIFs

[Jordan]

Ignore the curmudgeons, Reason. MOAR GIFS!

[Ted S.]

The tiny drawn emoticons are one thing. GIFs substituting for video are the affront to humanity. Rarely funny, and almost always a huge waste of bandwidth.

[lap83]

I've never thought of her as a "bimbo", but that gif isn't doing her perceived IQ any favors.

[kinnath]

bimbo self-absorbed twat

[flye]

You suggesting there's nothing in her brain? That's what people say, mmm hmm, that's what people say.

[Crusty Juggler]

Taylor will just shake-shake-shake-shake-shake off that hate.

[Swiss Servator, CHF... genug!]

I hope all the parties and people involved those examples get painful and lingering hemorrhoids.

I'd come up with a stronger curse, but they have not yet earned it with this particular rubbish.

[LynchPin1477]

Wow, former president James Taylor

[BiMonSciFiCon]

This might be my favorite Suderman post ever.

Politics! So hip!

[Jerryskids]

I know these dudes are trying to be, like, all hep cats, daddy-o, but it's all pretty lame-o-rama if you ask me. Can you dig it?

[UnCivilServant]

I have no idea what the hell you just said.

[kinnath]

No alive during the 60s then?

[UnCivilServant]

I was first documented as existing during the 80s.

[kinnath]

Hep Cat:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5voM2HExV_Q

[Xajow]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBB9mi-CTXs

[kinnath]

Much Better

[sarcasmic]

I don't get it.

[flye]

I love puns!

"He who would pun would pick a pocket, sir."

[J Mann]

I assume Suderman's post is satire, but it's washed out by the fact that "Big Block of Cheese" day is a real thing. How is this possibly happening?

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog.....-feta-ever

1) The White House spin "Here at the White House, we're dedicated to making President Obama's administration the most open and accessible in history."

2) Are they calling Obama's responses cheesy, or are they making some kind of pun about him being the "Big Cheese?" Has anyone in the last 30 years used the phrase "Big Cheese" to refer to the boss?

[Crusty Juggler]

I frequently cut the cheese, if that helps.

[Crusty Juggler]

What is the saddest cheese?

Blue cheese!

[LynchPin1477]

I acknowledge only one Big Cheese

[Fist of Etiquette]

I enjoyed The West Wing as much as the next guy, but that's not the way politics should be. That world revolved around that building.

[H. Protagonist]

I'm the next guy, and I think that Aaron Sorkin should have hung it up after Sports Night.

(BTW, Kayla Blake, who played Kim on Sports Night, used to be a bartender at our local pub in El Segundo. Hotness.)

[Ted S.]

I always hated the right-on politics of Sports Night.

Not that it's necessarily inaccurate, since sports reporters are some of the biggest bien pensant bigots out there.

[Crusty Juggler]

I thought the show became tough to watch after Josh munched on Donna's caboose. I mean, c'mon!

[Mike M.]

But honestly, who doesn't appreciate The West Wing?

I, for one. I'm proud that I never watched it once, not even during its heyday.