Liberals, including the establishment media, try to police language in part because they cannot take a joke themselves.
Indeed, what evidence do we have that those woke scolds would even recognize humor if they heard it?
In a parody-worthy conclusion to a lengthy story about White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles‘ controversial interview with Vanity Fair, The New York Times characterized an obvious joke by Vice President J.D. Vance as a sign of “underlying tension” in President Donald Trump’s administration.
Specifically, The New York Times cited a comment Vance directed toward Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Vance and Rubio’s names often come up in conversations about who might win the 2028 Republican presidential nomination. Thus, one might easily, albeit lazily, imagine them as rivals.
The New York Times chose the lazy route.
“I’ll give you $100 for every person you make look really sh**ty compared to me,” Vance reportedly said to the Vanity Fair photographer. “And $1,000 if it’s Marco.”
To an establishment journalist, that qualifies as “tension.”
Must we explain to The New York Times how men interact when they consider each other friends? Do we really have to break down the jocular element, sometimes known as “ribbing”?
One wonders how liberals managed to alienate so many male voters.
More broadly, Wiles did give an ill-advised interview with Vanity Fair. In fact, she said so many shockingly derogatory things about her colleagues in the Trump administration that she has since posted a statement on the social media platform X accusing the magazine of writing a hit piece and excluding crucial context.
For his part, Vance has already defused the situation’s awkwardness. He did so, however, while sending a subtle message that Wiles, often associated with the Republican establishment, should remember that the Republican base elected Trump to enact a populist, America First agenda.
The New York Times, of course, may analyze the Trump administration’s internal dynamics to its heart’s content. But describing Vance’s comment as a sign of “tension” really does qualify as an egg-on-the-face moment for the establishment outlet.
After all, one would struggle to name a political figure who takes himself less seriously than the vice president does.
Here is Vance on X at Halloween, playing along with some viral memes of himself:
Happy Halloween! pic.twitter.com/0JOOwlCn8J
— JD Vance (@JDVance) October 31, 2025
— JD Vance (@JDVance) October 31, 2025
Likewise, last week Vance made a hilarious comment about the viral “6-7” trend.
“Yesterday at church the Bible readings started on page 66-67 of the missal, and my 5-year-old went absolutely nuts repeating ‘six seven’ like 10 times,” the vice president wrote. “And now I think we need to make this narrow exception to the first amendment and ban these numbers forever.”
Yesterday at church the Bible readings started on page 66-67 of the missal, and my 5-year-old went absolutely nuts repeating “six seven” like 10 times. And now I think we need to make this narrow exception to the first amendment and ban these numbers forever.
— JD Vance (@JDVance) December 10, 2025
Cue the headline: “Vance Attacks Free Speech.”
In any event, one could spend years trying to understand why so many liberals take humor out of context.
Some, like Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, qualify as pathological liars.
Who can forget, for instance, in August, when Newsom interpreted receipt of a “Trump 2028” hat not as an act of trolling but as proof of Trump’s “authoritarian tendencies”? Readers may view that classic moment for themselves in the video below posted to X.
TROLLED. Gavin Newsom says he received a “Trump 2028” hat in the mail and now he’s having a TDS meltdown 🤣 pic.twitter.com/nHg19gPfhQ
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) August 14, 2025
One senses, however, that liberals of the kind who embrace cancel culture are little more than humorless scolds. They turn a joke into “tension” because they literally do not get the joke.
Either way, kudos to The New York Times for its latest contribution to unintentional comedy.
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