Home Cartoonist How cartoonists have been satirizing Trump World since the FBI Mar-a-Lago raid

How cartoonists have been satirizing Trump World since the FBI Mar-a-Lago raid

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For Mike Luckovich, August is often a tough time to find rich satirical fodder. But not this year.

“For cartoonists at least,” says the Atlanta Journal-Constitution political artist, the investigated actions of Donald Trump and the “continuing worship” of his MAGA supporters have been a “pleasant respite.”

Since the FBI’s raid last week of the former president’s Florida home, many visual commentators have found the typical scorching days of summer to be a lively time to create comedy.

Still, all humor is loaded with the weight of Palm Beach news, Luckovich says. On August 8, agents removed “dozens of boxes containing what authorities said were highly classified national secrets” from the Mar-a-Lago estate, according to the Washington Post.

Adam Zyglis, the political cartoonist for the Buffalo News, echoes Luckovich’s assessment.

“Relying on the FBI’s research and the fallout has been rich in targets,” he says. “However, as with covering other historic Trump news like the impeachment or insurrection, it’s been difficult to properly capture the gravity.”

In response, leftist Zyglis and Luckovich drew cartoons ridiculing how some Republican leaders have criticized law enforcement.

“News of the FBI raid was like an arrow piercing the MAGA alternate reality bubble. You could see the cognitive dissonance in real time as GOP members hypocritically attacked the FBI,” Zyglis says.

“The political backlash reaffirmed that the majority of the GOP believe loyalty trumps patriotism and the rule of law.”

Judge signals he’s ready to unseal part of Mar-a-Lago’s affidavit

Steve Breen, the San Diego Union-Tribune cartoonist, was quick to assess the news from Florida and Washington – with Attorney General Merrick Garland saying he himself had cleared to seek court permission for a search warrant .

“I was pretty sure of two things after reading about the raid: that the Justice Department and FBI probably had good reason to visit Mar-a-Lago, and that Trump supporters were going to lose their minds. because of the incident,” he said.

To render such a political reaction, right-wing Breen painted a shocked GOP elephant: “I started playing with the words involved in the story, and ‘search and seizure’ quickly came out.”

In his new art, Tim Campbell, who draws for Counterpoint Media, decided to explain how the GOP could capitalize on the actions of the FBI.

“Mar-a-Lago’s research has provided more questions than answers at this point, but a disturbing twist is that Trump and other Republicans are using it to raise funds. Say what you want about Trump,” says the centrist cartoonist, but the former president knows how to “swindle” his supporters.

Meanwhile, Luckovich is also having fun with Trump’s biggest legal entanglements.

“The news has also focused on Georgia, where I live, as the investigation into Trump’s attempt to nullify the state’s election results continues,” he says. “One of Trump’s top election theft clowns, Rudy Giuliani made an appearance this week before Georgia’s Special Grand Jury – with Sen. Lindsey Graham [R-S.C.] hopefully that will follow soon – so I have a lot to focus on.