2012-04-23
Explanation
In this comic, the President of the United States addresses the nation, openly acknowledging that the presidency has little actual effect on the economy but receives most of the blame or credit for it. He admits that this dynamic has led to presidents lying to the public and saying things that embarrass them in front of their own staff economists. To solve this problem, he announces the creation of a new cabinet position: the "Economic Whipping Boy."
The President explains that whenever a bad economic report comes in, he will publicly flog the Whipping Boy as a proxy for the public'''s fear and anger toward a system nobody fully comprehends. He demonstrates by reading a confusing jobs report and then physically assaulting the Whipping Boy, who wears a jester-like hat. The President adds that floggings will also occur whenever the stock market dips, and canings will happen every tax day.
After the speech, an aide tells the President it went great: now that nobody thinks he is in charge of the economy, his approval rating is at 19% and people want to hear about other domestic issues. The President then tries to get Congress to sign a "Fix Our Economy Now" bill, but when asked what it does, he admits he does not see how that is relevant. The comic satirizes how politicians exploit public ignorance about economics, using scapegoats and performative gestures rather than substantive policy.
The votey panel shows a politician declaring "The economy has improved because of whatever our bill did or prevented," further mocking the vague, unfalsifiable way politicians take credit for economic outcomes regardless of what actually happened.