Never let it be said that America’s Department Of Homeland Security isn’t a multi-tasker: Even as it’s been very busy making life extremely difficult for people just trying to get on with their goddamned lives with its various ICE raids, and constantly spewing out propaganda based on the flicking childhood memories of its leaders’ aging millennial brains, the DHS has also apparently got time to bicker with pop stars on the internet. To no less august a source than TMZ, to whom a Department spokesperson gave a statement this week attacking musician Olivia Rodrigo for being unhappy that her music was being used in the organization’s messaging.
Specifically, Rodrigo was upset that DHS had used her song “All-American Bitch” in one of its social media posts, writing a comment on Instagram in which she demanded “Don’t ever use my songs to promote your racist, hateful propaganda.” Which isn’t all that uncommon—the fact that the Trump White House keeps invoking musicians and other artists who actively hate the administration’s guts is just sort of understood at this point—but which then got a response from a DHS official. (We resisted the urge to write “clapback” there in reference to the governmental statement, because our basic belief in the integrity of reality is really hanging on by a thread at this point as it is.)
“America is grateful all the time for our federal law enforcement officers who keep us safe,” the statement reads. “We suggest Ms. Rodrigo thank them for their service, not belittle their sacrifice.” Which is, yes, a reference to the lyrics of “All-American Bitch,” which someone involved in crafting that statement presumably thought was clever. (Look: We’ve all been behind deadline and desperate for something that just has the cadence of a joke to work as a lede, but c’mon.) In any case, Rodrigo’s comment on the DHS video has now apparently been deleted, so chalk that up as a win, we guess, for a government being run like a low-tier Reddit commenter that also happens to have a huge army of heavily armed goons at its beck and call.
