Before becoming president, Donald Trump was widely viewed as a walking caricature of American excess—flamboyantly wealthy, loud, shallow, and relentlessly fame-obsessed. He embodied a uniquely garish version of the American Dream, where success was measured by gold-plated skyscrapers, tabloid marriages, and a constant presence in the media spotlight. For decades, satirists across genres—from children's television to late-night comedy, comic strips, and animated sitcoms—used Trump as a shorthand for corporate greed, unchecked ego, and the absurdities of celebrity capitalism. His persona became a cultural symbol: the brash billionaire who said the quiet part out loud, who branded everything he touched, and who seemed impervious to embarrassment. Whether through Sesame Street’s trash-loving Grouch parodies, Doonesbury’s sardonic comic-strip skewering, or The Simpsons’ eerily prescient vision of a Trump presidency, he was portrayed as both laughable and menacing. This decades-long portrayal laid the groundwork for how comedians and commentators would respond to his political rise—not with surprise, but with a grim sense of continuity. To many observers, Trump didn't transform into a political figure; he simply took his long-running performance to a new stage, blurring the lines between satire and reality.