A Poem on Cocaine in the White House: ‘Crackpot Clown’ by Susan Jarvis Bryant The Society July 26, 2023 Poetry, Satire, Villanelle 39 Comments . Crackpot Clown a villanelle “Clowns are the pegs on which the circus is hung” —P. T. Barnum The blue moons wax and steely spirits wane As brown-nosed asses bloviate and bray. The crackpot clown grows ever more insane. The White House walls are smeared with stale cocaine. The yellow-bellied press evades the fray As blue moons wax and steely spirits wane. While dog-faced pony soldiers search in vain For reason in a world that’s lost its way, The crackpot clown grows ever more insane. This toad of twisted tongue and addled brain Peddles poppycock to pump his pay. The blue moons wax as steely spirits wane. He steams in on the global gravy train To sniff the hair of terror-stricken prey. The crackpot clown grows ever more insane. The fiercest dreams of liberty lie slain— Clobbered by a puckered popinjay. As blue moons wax and steely spirits wane The crackpot clown grows ever more insane. . . Susan Jarvis Bryant has poetry published on Lighten Up Online, Snakeskin, Light, Sparks of Calliope, and Expansive Poetry Online. She also has poetry published in TRINACRIA, Beth Houston’s Extreme Formal Poems anthology, and in Openings (anthologies of poems by Open University Poets in the UK). Susan is the winner of the 2020 International SCP Poetry Competition, and has been nominated for the 2022 Pushcart Prize. NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. Trending now: 39 Responses Paddy Raghunathan July 26, 2023 Enjoy your poetry as always, Susan. I came to the US in 1995 and have felt that way about all the Presidents. We seem to have a remarkable ability to only elect puckered popinjays. Best regards, Paddy Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Thank you very much, Paddy. I think that is the same the world over… there are many leaders of the puckered popinjay variety… I have come to the point where I have lost all trust in the government, the voting system, the science, and the world in general. I think I’m entering my curmudgeonly-cow phase and have a greater understanding for all those get-off-my-lawn gits I used to laugh at! 😉 Reply Sally Cook July 26, 2023 I like the way you are fleshing out your descriptions, and adding cp;pr tp tje ,ox. A fine poem. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Thank you very much, dear Sally. It’s always lovely to hear from you! Reply Cynthia Erlandson July 26, 2023 Oh, Susan — you have not only taught me marvelous new words: popinjay (“a strutting, supercilious person”,) and bloviate (“to speak at length bombastically or rhetorically”); but you’ve entertained me with an interweaving of colors; absurd presidentially-invented phrases (dog-faced pony soldiers, indeed!); and hair-sniffing villains that, if they weren’t villains, would be hilarious clowns. Thank you for the laughs! Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Cynthia, you are most welcome. And thank you for your appreciation of all the finer details of this wacky villanelle. When life hurled this poet puckered popinjays – a poem simply had to be written! Reply Rohini July 26, 2023 Biting satire at its best! And all impeccably dressed in a villanelle. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Rohini, what a wonderful comment – thank you!! Reply Joshua C. Frank July 26, 2023 Love this! You are clearly the master of the villanelle—all the alliteration, internal rhyme, etc., you’ve pulled out all the stops on this one. I especially love the puns, such as “brown-nosed asses,” referring to the donkey that symbolizes the Democratic Party and the origin of “brown-noser.” I remember when Biden was running, I saw an ad for him showing a man having a hard time choosing whether to have surgery from a clown who has killed many with his incompetence and an actual surgeon. I said at the time, before anyone knew anything about Biden being far worse than Trump, “In reality, it’s a choice between a clown in red and a clown in blue.” Like every election in recent years. I thought I’d share this bit from Michael Knowles: “The Left wants a very weak president. A weak president means that the power goes elsewhere. Where? The power goes to the bureaucracy, specifically the kind that doesn’t have a lot of presidential supervision. The president gives up power and it goes to completely unaccountable, unelected bureaucrats who are overwhelmingly liberal.” I think I’d rather have Biden in his weakened mental state actually try to run the country. He couldn’t do worse than the people trying to run it into the ground and succeeding more every day. My eyes stung reading stanza 3 because it’s exactly how I feel. Looking for reason in modern culture is like looking for the sun when you’re underground. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Josh, thank you very much for your encouraging words on my poem, and thank you too for your interesting observations, many of which I agree with. As for stanza 3, I believe the ironfisted control of our global overlords is growing increasingly obvious to many, which means that shining the light on their criminality is ever more important. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for doing just that, Josh, on a site that allows you to shine poetic light on the heinous atrocities of this world. Your words make a difference. Reply Yael July 26, 2023 The situation you describe reminds me of a romp through Alice in Wonder Land, after one has become inebriated at the Mad Hatter’s tea party, and while searching for the vanished Cheshire Cat accidentally stepped on the Queen of Hearts’ toes, and apologetically backed into a corner is now having to face off with her rabid 10 foot tall crackpot clown boyfriend who looks down his long donkey nose to ponder how he can best stomp you into toadstool fertilizer. I love the imagery and the villanelle structure too, great job. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Yael, if there were an award on this site for the most inspirational and imaginative comment, this would win it! Your comment rocks and has me grinning from ear to ear. It is a work of art in its own right and shines an ever-brighter light on my wacky villanelle… thank you, thank you, thank you!! I have a feeling a fair ode of Yael flair will ignite these pages… soon! 🙂 Reply Mark Stellinga July 27, 2023 Excellent piece, Susan. When I consider Joe Biden’s personality in its totality, and thoroughly contemplate both Hunter & Ashley Bidens’ personal circumstances — his countless self-deprecating laptop images & her sickening diary entries — I clearly see 2 sexually abused children blindsided by a seriously perverted father who is struggling – but failing – to atone for his treachery. His guilt for what he did to his 2 kids is so obvious, and yet, even with he and his family’s blatant disregard for Hunter’s daughter, he’s governing our country. In an “either or situation”, I’d take Trump over Biden in a heartbeat. Reply Paul Freeman July 27, 2023 Is that the same Trump who said he would date Ivanka if she weren’t his daughter, and who has been filmed casually patting her ass when he greets her? Reply Joseph S. Salemi July 27, 2023 It’s the Trump who is being politically prosecuted and harassed by a corrupt DOJ, with the full support and encouragement of left-liberal lemmings like yourself. Paul Freeman July 27, 2023 So that would be ‘yes’ on both pervy counts rather than trying to deflect from the issue and childishy name call. Joseph S. Salemi July 28, 2023 A father calls his daughter attractive and pats her on the bottom? Big swiving deal. And you actually think that these are “perversions,” comparable to the moral dumpster-fire that is the Biden family? As for you being a left-liberal lemming, that is description, not name-calling. Paul Freeman July 28, 2023 You still don’t get it. Unlike you, I’m not a lockstep sheeple parrotting whatever rightwing pundit’s in vogue. Neither do I parrot whatever leftwing pundit’s in vogue. Freedom of thought is just as important as freedom of speech. Try it some time. Joseph S. Salemi July 28, 2023 I think whatever the hell I want to think. You think whatever Mainstream Media tells you that you ought to think. Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Mark, thank you very much for your appreciation and your support in this cruel and crazy era of the unenlightened lemming. Reply Roy Eugene Peterson July 27, 2023 Another admirable assemblage of wit and satire replete with barbs and pointed spears that impale both the perpetrator and those supposedly in charge of the search for ownership of the package. The picture of an insane clown is both appropriate and sadly meaningful in the circus that has become the white house. Maybe it is because they all are inhaling the same substance. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Roy, thank you for your kind words and your perspicacious eye… there is many a true word spoken in jest… I believe your closing sentence holds great weight. Reply Cheryl Corey July 27, 2023 Love the line “Peddles poppycock to pump his pay.” and your use of “popinjay”, which I don’t recall ever seeing in a poem. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Cheryl, I’m thrilled you like these terms – I stole them from the Crackpot Clown’s P dossier. Reply Joseph S. Salemi July 27, 2023 We actually have a Crime Family sitting in the White House, just as corrupt as the Corleone family, but without the dignity and class. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Joe, yes… swap the horse head for that of a gender-fluid, rainbow-maned, coke-snorting unicorn, and the similarities are chilling. Reply Russel Winick July 28, 2023 Susan – Once again, you have written an epic poem, which also served to remind me of how limited my vocabulary is! Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Never Russel… I’ve seen your way with words! Thank you for your kind ones on all my poems. Reply Shaun C. Duncan July 28, 2023 It had never occurred to me that the phrase “dog-faced pony soldier” was iambic! Maybe there’s more to Biden than I thought. I may have said this before, but the balance of outrage and humour in your work makes you the ideal poet to offer a running commentary on this appalling era. Wonderful as always, Susan. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Shaun, I’m laughing… I hope the Crackpot Clown keeps throwing me poetic gems in iambic pentameter… there may be a chink of light behind the glazed eyes of gormlessness… one can but hope. Thank you too for your continued support of my satirical poems. You are very talented in that area yourself, and your words mean a lot. Reply Mike Bryant July 28, 2023 I don’t say it often enough, but your mastery of form, poetic device and sheer joyful brilliance leaves me breathless. Your voice is unmistakable and comes straight from your caring and straightforward heart. I was smitten when I first read your poetic series to parts of speech for schoolchildren some fifteen years ago. Your wickedly joyful (and hilarious) way with words made me beam with joy then, and now. I’m hooked on you… Reply Mark Stellinga July 28, 2023 Mike, I really think you should tell her how you feel about her! 🙂 Hug her for me and Connie, she’s a true dandy. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Aww shucks, Mike and Mark… I’m lost for words and that rarely happens. Thank you very much indeed! Reply Brian A Yapko July 28, 2023 Susan, what a fun yet frightening poem for a subject which is as morally outrageous as it is degrading to our country! Your use of poetic devices is in overdrive like a politician speeding on cocaine. And your use of the villanelle form is perfect because the repetitions reflect something of a clown’s juggling act. I especially like the lines :The fiercest dreams of liberty lie slain/Clobbered by a puckered popinjay.” A juxtaposition of horror and absurdity which carries great power. By the way, I happen to be one of those people who suffer from coulrophobia. Clowns frighten me. Now I know why. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Brian, it’s always lovely to receive the benefit of your fine eye, and I love your punny smile of a simile. I’m glad you liked ‘puckered popinjay’ – I laughed out loud when I thought of it… there are so many of them about these days! I am especially thrilled with this observation – “A juxtaposition of horror and absurdity which carries great power.” That is just the sort of marvelous phrase that lets me know I’ve achieved exactly what I set out to do. Brian – thank you!! I will admit to having developed coulrophobia over the last few years… my anxiety levels are alleviated by switching off the nightly news. Reply Paul Martin Freeman July 29, 2023 A lot in this I don’t get as a Brit unfamiliar with the US scene. But there’s no mistaking the sheer brilliance and mastery of form you demonstrate, Susan. Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant August 2, 2023 Thank you very much, Paul. I’m thrilled you appreciate all the technicalities… as for the subject matter, politics is much the same both sides of the pond… where MPs lurk… trouble looms. Reply Carey Jobe August 1, 2023 What an enjoyable, well-wrought villanelle! And it sounds wonderful, when read aloud. I read poems I like–the aural quality is the essence of poetry, I think and goes back to its origins. Your rich vocabulary, end-rhymes and well-crafted phrases (not to mention verve with the subject!) give your poem a voice and contour, that makes it come alive off the printed page. A work worthy of study–well done! Reply Susan Jarvis Bryant August 2, 2023 Thank you very much, Carey. I know you’re quite the master of the villanelle yourself, so it’s wonderful to hear your opinion… a great one that will spur me on to write more… many more! The aural quality of a poem is important to me, so I’m glad this poem doesn’t disappoint on that front. I thoroughly appreciate your welcome take on my poem. Reply Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Paddy Raghunathan July 26, 2023 Enjoy your poetry as always, Susan. I came to the US in 1995 and have felt that way about all the Presidents. We seem to have a remarkable ability to only elect puckered popinjays. Best regards, Paddy Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Thank you very much, Paddy. I think that is the same the world over… there are many leaders of the puckered popinjay variety… I have come to the point where I have lost all trust in the government, the voting system, the science, and the world in general. I think I’m entering my curmudgeonly-cow phase and have a greater understanding for all those get-off-my-lawn gits I used to laugh at! 😉 Reply
Sally Cook July 26, 2023 I like the way you are fleshing out your descriptions, and adding cp;pr tp tje ,ox. A fine poem. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Thank you very much, dear Sally. It’s always lovely to hear from you! Reply
Cynthia Erlandson July 26, 2023 Oh, Susan — you have not only taught me marvelous new words: popinjay (“a strutting, supercilious person”,) and bloviate (“to speak at length bombastically or rhetorically”); but you’ve entertained me with an interweaving of colors; absurd presidentially-invented phrases (dog-faced pony soldiers, indeed!); and hair-sniffing villains that, if they weren’t villains, would be hilarious clowns. Thank you for the laughs! Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Cynthia, you are most welcome. And thank you for your appreciation of all the finer details of this wacky villanelle. When life hurled this poet puckered popinjays – a poem simply had to be written! Reply
Joshua C. Frank July 26, 2023 Love this! You are clearly the master of the villanelle—all the alliteration, internal rhyme, etc., you’ve pulled out all the stops on this one. I especially love the puns, such as “brown-nosed asses,” referring to the donkey that symbolizes the Democratic Party and the origin of “brown-noser.” I remember when Biden was running, I saw an ad for him showing a man having a hard time choosing whether to have surgery from a clown who has killed many with his incompetence and an actual surgeon. I said at the time, before anyone knew anything about Biden being far worse than Trump, “In reality, it’s a choice between a clown in red and a clown in blue.” Like every election in recent years. I thought I’d share this bit from Michael Knowles: “The Left wants a very weak president. A weak president means that the power goes elsewhere. Where? The power goes to the bureaucracy, specifically the kind that doesn’t have a lot of presidential supervision. The president gives up power and it goes to completely unaccountable, unelected bureaucrats who are overwhelmingly liberal.” I think I’d rather have Biden in his weakened mental state actually try to run the country. He couldn’t do worse than the people trying to run it into the ground and succeeding more every day. My eyes stung reading stanza 3 because it’s exactly how I feel. Looking for reason in modern culture is like looking for the sun when you’re underground. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Josh, thank you very much for your encouraging words on my poem, and thank you too for your interesting observations, many of which I agree with. As for stanza 3, I believe the ironfisted control of our global overlords is growing increasingly obvious to many, which means that shining the light on their criminality is ever more important. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for doing just that, Josh, on a site that allows you to shine poetic light on the heinous atrocities of this world. Your words make a difference. Reply
Yael July 26, 2023 The situation you describe reminds me of a romp through Alice in Wonder Land, after one has become inebriated at the Mad Hatter’s tea party, and while searching for the vanished Cheshire Cat accidentally stepped on the Queen of Hearts’ toes, and apologetically backed into a corner is now having to face off with her rabid 10 foot tall crackpot clown boyfriend who looks down his long donkey nose to ponder how he can best stomp you into toadstool fertilizer. I love the imagery and the villanelle structure too, great job. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Yael, if there were an award on this site for the most inspirational and imaginative comment, this would win it! Your comment rocks and has me grinning from ear to ear. It is a work of art in its own right and shines an ever-brighter light on my wacky villanelle… thank you, thank you, thank you!! I have a feeling a fair ode of Yael flair will ignite these pages… soon! 🙂 Reply
Mark Stellinga July 27, 2023 Excellent piece, Susan. When I consider Joe Biden’s personality in its totality, and thoroughly contemplate both Hunter & Ashley Bidens’ personal circumstances — his countless self-deprecating laptop images & her sickening diary entries — I clearly see 2 sexually abused children blindsided by a seriously perverted father who is struggling – but failing – to atone for his treachery. His guilt for what he did to his 2 kids is so obvious, and yet, even with he and his family’s blatant disregard for Hunter’s daughter, he’s governing our country. In an “either or situation”, I’d take Trump over Biden in a heartbeat. Reply
Paul Freeman July 27, 2023 Is that the same Trump who said he would date Ivanka if she weren’t his daughter, and who has been filmed casually patting her ass when he greets her? Reply
Joseph S. Salemi July 27, 2023 It’s the Trump who is being politically prosecuted and harassed by a corrupt DOJ, with the full support and encouragement of left-liberal lemmings like yourself.
Paul Freeman July 27, 2023 So that would be ‘yes’ on both pervy counts rather than trying to deflect from the issue and childishy name call.
Joseph S. Salemi July 28, 2023 A father calls his daughter attractive and pats her on the bottom? Big swiving deal. And you actually think that these are “perversions,” comparable to the moral dumpster-fire that is the Biden family? As for you being a left-liberal lemming, that is description, not name-calling.
Paul Freeman July 28, 2023 You still don’t get it. Unlike you, I’m not a lockstep sheeple parrotting whatever rightwing pundit’s in vogue. Neither do I parrot whatever leftwing pundit’s in vogue. Freedom of thought is just as important as freedom of speech. Try it some time.
Joseph S. Salemi July 28, 2023 I think whatever the hell I want to think. You think whatever Mainstream Media tells you that you ought to think.
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Mark, thank you very much for your appreciation and your support in this cruel and crazy era of the unenlightened lemming. Reply
Roy Eugene Peterson July 27, 2023 Another admirable assemblage of wit and satire replete with barbs and pointed spears that impale both the perpetrator and those supposedly in charge of the search for ownership of the package. The picture of an insane clown is both appropriate and sadly meaningful in the circus that has become the white house. Maybe it is because they all are inhaling the same substance. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Roy, thank you for your kind words and your perspicacious eye… there is many a true word spoken in jest… I believe your closing sentence holds great weight. Reply
Cheryl Corey July 27, 2023 Love the line “Peddles poppycock to pump his pay.” and your use of “popinjay”, which I don’t recall ever seeing in a poem. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Cheryl, I’m thrilled you like these terms – I stole them from the Crackpot Clown’s P dossier. Reply
Joseph S. Salemi July 27, 2023 We actually have a Crime Family sitting in the White House, just as corrupt as the Corleone family, but without the dignity and class. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Joe, yes… swap the horse head for that of a gender-fluid, rainbow-maned, coke-snorting unicorn, and the similarities are chilling. Reply
Russel Winick July 28, 2023 Susan – Once again, you have written an epic poem, which also served to remind me of how limited my vocabulary is! Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Never Russel… I’ve seen your way with words! Thank you for your kind ones on all my poems. Reply
Shaun C. Duncan July 28, 2023 It had never occurred to me that the phrase “dog-faced pony soldier” was iambic! Maybe there’s more to Biden than I thought. I may have said this before, but the balance of outrage and humour in your work makes you the ideal poet to offer a running commentary on this appalling era. Wonderful as always, Susan. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Shaun, I’m laughing… I hope the Crackpot Clown keeps throwing me poetic gems in iambic pentameter… there may be a chink of light behind the glazed eyes of gormlessness… one can but hope. Thank you too for your continued support of my satirical poems. You are very talented in that area yourself, and your words mean a lot. Reply
Mike Bryant July 28, 2023 I don’t say it often enough, but your mastery of form, poetic device and sheer joyful brilliance leaves me breathless. Your voice is unmistakable and comes straight from your caring and straightforward heart. I was smitten when I first read your poetic series to parts of speech for schoolchildren some fifteen years ago. Your wickedly joyful (and hilarious) way with words made me beam with joy then, and now. I’m hooked on you… Reply
Mark Stellinga July 28, 2023 Mike, I really think you should tell her how you feel about her! 🙂 Hug her for me and Connie, she’s a true dandy. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Aww shucks, Mike and Mark… I’m lost for words and that rarely happens. Thank you very much indeed! Reply
Brian A Yapko July 28, 2023 Susan, what a fun yet frightening poem for a subject which is as morally outrageous as it is degrading to our country! Your use of poetic devices is in overdrive like a politician speeding on cocaine. And your use of the villanelle form is perfect because the repetitions reflect something of a clown’s juggling act. I especially like the lines :The fiercest dreams of liberty lie slain/Clobbered by a puckered popinjay.” A juxtaposition of horror and absurdity which carries great power. By the way, I happen to be one of those people who suffer from coulrophobia. Clowns frighten me. Now I know why. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant July 28, 2023 Brian, it’s always lovely to receive the benefit of your fine eye, and I love your punny smile of a simile. I’m glad you liked ‘puckered popinjay’ – I laughed out loud when I thought of it… there are so many of them about these days! I am especially thrilled with this observation – “A juxtaposition of horror and absurdity which carries great power.” That is just the sort of marvelous phrase that lets me know I’ve achieved exactly what I set out to do. Brian – thank you!! I will admit to having developed coulrophobia over the last few years… my anxiety levels are alleviated by switching off the nightly news. Reply
Paul Martin Freeman July 29, 2023 A lot in this I don’t get as a Brit unfamiliar with the US scene. But there’s no mistaking the sheer brilliance and mastery of form you demonstrate, Susan. Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant August 2, 2023 Thank you very much, Paul. I’m thrilled you appreciate all the technicalities… as for the subject matter, politics is much the same both sides of the pond… where MPs lurk… trouble looms. Reply
Carey Jobe August 1, 2023 What an enjoyable, well-wrought villanelle! And it sounds wonderful, when read aloud. I read poems I like–the aural quality is the essence of poetry, I think and goes back to its origins. Your rich vocabulary, end-rhymes and well-crafted phrases (not to mention verve with the subject!) give your poem a voice and contour, that makes it come alive off the printed page. A work worthy of study–well done! Reply
Susan Jarvis Bryant August 2, 2023 Thank you very much, Carey. I know you’re quite the master of the villanelle yourself, so it’s wonderful to hear your opinion… a great one that will spur me on to write more… many more! The aural quality of a poem is important to me, so I’m glad this poem doesn’t disappoint on that front. I thoroughly appreciate your welcome take on my poem. Reply
