L&T Publisher Earl Watt

It’s been years since I’ve heard a complaint about a political cartoon, and last week I received two.

The cartoon took a jab at the No Kings protesters, claiming they either really didn’t know what they were protesting, or that the signs being held by the cartoon characters were insulting and “vulgar.”

Political cartoons are, by design, meant to be offensive. They are used to persuade one political viewpoint over another, or one position on a public issue as better or worse than another.

One of the earliest American political cartoons was the split snake with each segment representing one of the colonies. The slogan was “Join or Die.” This was later made into a flag called the Gadsden flag, but it was intended to pressure reluctant colonies to join the fight for independence against England.

Political cartoons and protests are both protected forms of free speech, and we defend them both. One of our reporters participated in a “No Kings” event last year and shared her experience on the Opinion page.

The most recent cartoon raised questions about protesters being paid, or some just showing up looking for a date.

Some are going to laugh and others are going to scoff.

Plenty of cartoonists take shots and Donald Trump. That comes with the territory. Presidents have log been targets of political cartoonists, and depending on the cartoonists’ slant, they either support the position of the president or degrade it.

I covered the first “No Kings” protest, and I was offended by some of the signs being displayed which called Trump supporters racists and other derogatory, immoral slogans.

Calling for civility is good, but it can’t be to silence one side’s opinion when both sides are equally offensive.

Was everyone who participated in the most recent “No Kings” protest was paid or looking for a date? Of course not. But the artist was trying to make the point that some are.

Some have pointed out that it was Barack Obama that required people to purchase health insurance or pay a fine. That sounds very imperialistic, perhaps “kinglike.”

Joe Biden required people to get an experimental vaccination to lose their federal jobs or even private sector jobs if they worked with the government. Sounds a bit like a royal edict, doesn’t it?

And yet each of these men were elected, just like Trump.

And even though I don’t agree with “No Kings,” I defend their right to protest and make their biased pubic statements just as much as I defend a political cartoonist for his biased public statements.

I’m not a fan of executive orders by any president, but that doesn’t change the fact that they are allowed. Using them doesn’t make one a king.

And protesters know we don’t have kings in the United States and never will. Their statement is much like a political cartoon, using hyperbole and overkill to make their point — they do not approve of Trump.

They have every right to protest, and political cartoonists have every right to take a jab at it.

Candidates are already being named for the 2028 election, and Trump isn’t one of them. Conservatives are strong Constitutionalists, and term limits matter. I don’t know of many kings that are term limited.

We will receive complaints from one side or the other. What we don’t do is print opinion as news. It is my hope our readers respect the difference between viewpoints of a protest or political cartoon and news.

We can all be more civil, for sure, but cartoons and protests are offensive on purpose.