Joe Rogan hosts one of the most successful podcasts in the country. On it, he talks about his passions for comedy and mixed martial arts, and about conspiracy theories. He also talks about male self-improvement and self-experimentation. Working out, doing drugs, fasting, meditation, sensory deprivation, etc., etc. He’s the kind of guy in Hollywood who will debate religion with Milo Yiannopolis in one episode, talk comedy with Dave Foley in the next, and then he’ll schedule Edward Snowden to come on.
He also recently gave a Roganesque endorsement for Bernie Sanders. And progressives are mad about it.
Why? Because Joe Rogan, like other comedians, rails against political correctness. He also makes jokes about transgenderism, opposes the participation of “trans women” in women’s sports, and has entertained and ventured the usual arguments about bone density, lung capacity, and strength when arguing for the unfairness of this practice.
Personally, I think progressives are nuts to reject endorsements for the most progressive candidate in history from generally centrist and enormously popular media figures. I would bet anything that Rogan’s audience is full of the Obama-Trump voters across the industrial Midwest and north.
But, maybe I don’t think like a progressive. Perhaps rejections like this reflect a serene confidence that progressives don’t need political power to continue consolidating culture-war wins. Four more years of President Trump just means a few more executive orders to overturn. Meanwhile, taking a hard line encourages corporations, universities, and entertainment to enforce the newer cultural norms.