Roseanne Barr returns with a new Trump conspiracy theory
Roseanne Barr Image by Getty/VALERIE MACON/Contributor
By PJ Grisar June 25, 2020
It feels like a century has passed since Roseanne Barr blamed a racist Twitter tirade on Ambien. Now, the comedian is back to send an altogether different — if no less puzzling — message about the leader of the free world.
In a video posted to Twitter, Barr, from her home, launched into a one-minute musing:
— {you have the plague} (@lanadeljj) June 25, 2020
“You know what I think? Y’know, discuss amongst yourselves — if you don’t agree you don’t really have to burn me at the stake,” Barr says. Given her penchant for saying heinous things, there seems to be no way this will end well.
Many watching who once held fond feelings for the “Roseanne” star might bury their head in their hands, rock into a fetal position or cover their ears for fear of what’s next. Those who don’t care for Barr may perk up in anticipation of whatever reprehensible insight she is about to unload on us. (Around this time, an out of frame cigar makes an appearance.)
After a long, paranoid windup, Barr finally hits us with her truth: “Trump is, in my opinion, the first woman president of the United States.”
Is it a joke? It can be read as some form of commentary on policing free speech and her own reputation for being labelled a fringe bigot for referring to a Black Obama official as a hybrid of the Muslim Brotherhood and the “Planet of the Apes.” But that reputation is so strong and her online presence so rife with conspiracy theories that this may be something Barr actually believes. In any event, her comedic timing is still right on if discomfort is the ultimate end game. She may have been killed off of “The Connors,” but she still seems to be working on some new material.
Whatever Barr’s fear of blowback, she can rest assured she’s safer than her namesake in the administration, who may face a protracted legal cancellation known as impeachment. But at least, as far as Roseanne is concerned, Bill Barr will have had the honor of serving under the first female commander in chief.
PJ Grisar is the Forward’s culture fellow. He can be reached at [email protected].
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
