Even though this “New Rules” segment by Bill Maher called ‘Suck of the Draw’ initially aired back in May, from time-to-time I still see cartoons featuring Barack Obama with his name clearly labeled somewhere in the cartoon. It also happened with George W. Bush, most often represented with a ‘W’ button pinned to his jacket.
Sometimes, it’s because the cartoonist can’t quite nail the caricature. A lot of the time, it’s an editor demanding the label for complete reader clarity, clearly forgetting that the same readers understand that in the comic strip ‘Doonesbury,’ George W. Bush was clearly represented by first a cowboy hat atop an asterisk (due to the controversy over vote-counting), then later a Roman military helmet representing imperialism.
In every case, it’s unneeded. Obama should never ever need to be labeled in a cartoon. Ever.
The “New Rule” that applies to cartoonists is at about :50 in.

















