March 28, 2016 01:06 PM UTC

"Liar Liar"--Once Taboo, Now Tame

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• by: Colorado Pols

We wanted to revisit the recent flap between the presidential campaigns of Republican Ted Cruz and Donald Trump employing various Jim Carrey movie themes, as FOX News reported last week:

Republican presidential rivals Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are attacking each other… with references to Jim Carrey films.

It started when Trump posted a send-up of the “Liar Liar” poster in Instagram, with Cruz’s head photoshopped on Carrey’s body.

Below the image, Trump asked, “Who should star in a reboot of Liar Liar – Hillary Clinton or Ted Cruz? Let me know.”

Not to be outdone, the Cruz campaign fired back with Jim Carrey meme of its own:

Don’t take a chance on this new release coming to ballot boxes in November 2016… #ChooseCruz pic.twitter.com/srvABnXjYE

— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 17, 2016

In the end, Jim Carrey himself responded with some degree of exasperation:

HEY DUMMIES, LEAVE ME OUT OF IT! ;^P #Americonundrum pic.twitter.com/nI7Amohz5c

— Jim Carrey (@JimCarrey) March 18, 2016

But nationally and locally, the memes just…work:

Locally, Republican U.S. Senate contender Jon Keyser received the “Liar Liar” treatment over his bogus “two ballots” allegations. With Keyser’s candidacy limping along in a crowded field, it’s possible this meme will get recycled for use with a November-bound candidate?

There was a time when politicians–at least the politicians themselves–shied away from outright accusations of “lying,” preferring to couch disagreements in more polite terms. These days, calling somebody a liar is no big deal, especially graded on the curve.

In 2016, brutal honesty is the order of the day. Fletcher Reede would understand.