I didn’t see the episode, but it sounds like pretty entertaining dialog. On a recent episode of NBC’s “Law & Order: Criminal Intent,” officers were searching for the fictional killer of two judges. Police believed right-wing extremists were involved. Frustrated by a lack of clues, one officer joked, “Maybe we should put out an APB for somebody in a Tom DeLay T-shirt.”
DeLay, however, was not amused.
“This manipulation of my name and trivialization of the sensitive issue of judicial security represents a reckless disregard for the suffering initiated by recent tragedies and a great disservice to public discourse,” DeLay wrote in a letter to NBC President Jeff Zucker.
“I can only assume last night’s slur was in response to comments I have made in the past about the need for Congress to closely monitor the federal judiciary, as prescribed in our constitutional system of checks and balances.”
I can appreciate the fact that DeLay doesn’t enjoy being the butt of jokes, but when the House Majority Leader publicly threatens federal judges, he shouldn’t be terribly surprised when it draws ridicule.
To its credit, NBC isn’t backing down or apologizing.
Responding to DeLay’s attack on “Law & Order,” Dick Wolf, the show’s executive producer and creator, made no apologies.
“Every week, approximately 100 million people see an episode of the branded ‘Law & Order’ series. Up until today, it was my impression that all of our viewers understood that these shows are works of fiction as is stated in each episode.
“But I do congratulate Congressman DeLay for switching the spotlight from his own problems to an episode of a TV show.”
Touché.
There are two aspects of this mini-flap — which, if we’re really lucky, could become a real controversy — aside from the fact that NBC is sticking to its guns.
One, it’s proof that DeLay’s notoriety has grown to the point that it’s infiltrating pop culture. He’s not an obscure politician whose lunacy is going unnoticed; it’s an infamous politician who foibles are being mocked on “Law & Order.”
Two, DeLay is helping his critics enormously by raising a fuss over this. It not only continues to help increase his visibility and name recognition, it also helps remind people of why “Law & Order” made the joke in the first place — DeLay’s veiled threats against the judiciary.
With this in mind, the ideal scenario would be for DeLay to get so upset about this, he’ll threaten a lawsuit, or maybe introduce some kind of resolution in the House. In fact, we should encourage this as much as possible.
Note to DeLay: Are you going to take this mockery laying down? From a spin-off? NBC doesn’t know who they’re dealing with. Go get ’em.