Washington Post Trots Out Literal Clown To Rip On Trump

The Washington Post on Thursday released an op-ed by Tim Cunningham, board president of Clowns Without Borders, arguing that President Donald Trump is not worthy of the title of “clown.”

The piece claims that being a clown is “a sacred art form,” and that “several ancient Indigenous cultures revere a sacred clown figure.” Cunningham, in his op-ed, notes that his organization is involved in an “area of Clown” called “humanitarian clowning,” that shares “the common values of healing, empathy and reflection.”

Cunningham also describes the “years, if not a lifetime, of study” that clowning “demands.” He says that while prominent media figures such Democratic strategist James Carville or MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell have called the president a “clown,” their jabs do not qualify “Trump for such a title.”

The clown also states that political commentators should find a better metaphor than his “art form” to “despise and depose fascism,” admonishing readers to “keep Clown out of Trumpian comparisons, and for that matter, all politics.” Cunningham’s suggested alternative for a description of Trump is “buffoon.”

The Post came under fire for a late May headline purporting a “mysterious” drop in fentanyl seizures at the U.S.-Mexico border in 2025. Additionally, the outlet had to offer an apology in June for publishing an article that many found to be biased in favor of the terrorist group, Hamas. The Post, like other corporate media outlets, has also repeatedly used the “unauthorized immigrants” to refer to migrants in the United States illegally.

The Washington Post recently launched the feature “From The Source” as an attempt to gain readership after losing $100 million in 2024.