Trumpsters blame Biden for Santa shortage in latest GOP 'forever war on Christmas'

On Wednesday, writing for The Bulwark, conservative columnist and Weekly Standard alum Jim Swift mocked the right-wing media's newest attempt to cover the "forever war on Christmas" — a yearly tradition at Fox News.

This year's controversy? The shortage of seasonal Santa actors — which GOP strategists are trying to claim is somehow tied to the Biden administration's policies.

"On Fox News yesterday, Dana Perino and Bill Hemmer were joined by guest Mitch Allen, the founder of a company called HireSanta.com, best known for having been featured on Shark Tank," wrote Swift. "Allen, who was dressed in green like an elf, told the Fox hosts about the dreaded problem of Saint Nick Scarcity. Demand is, according to his figures, up 121 percent compared to pre-pandemic levels." As Swift noted, the RNC clipped the segment on Twitter and linked it to the Biden administration.

The irony, noted Swift, is that it is likely COVID that exacerbated the Santa shortage — which Republicans are continuing to make worse with their opposition to vaccine mandates.

"Why the Santa shortage? Two options seem relatively likely," wrote Swift. "(1) Statistically speaking, COVID has almost certainly reduced the pool of available seasonal Santas. I mean, we’re talking about older men with comorbidities here. And (2), the remaining potential Santa employment base might be a little leery of a part-time hourly gig that involves potentially hundreds of unvaccinated kids hopping on and off the jolly old lap."

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