Bruce and Donald, Cut from the Same Cloth

Andy Kessler in the WSJ writes with the voice of authority while discussing the kerfuffle between Bruce Springsteen and Donald Trump. Andy, you see, at Springsteen’s 35th birthday celebration, was doing shots of Old Grand Dad with the Boss. And no, Kessler wasn’t invited. He just happened to be there. Happenstance? Ok, Kessler, if you say so.

Who’s the Boss

Donald and Bruce both claim to be muckamucks, who play to the other’s audience. Add 50 years to the Springsteen crowd, and the focus sharpens.

Think downtrodden, desperate, struggling, working class—though Springsteen fans are more likely middle-aged folks absolving their guilt through music, thankful they didn’t grow up that way. “Workin’ in the field / Till you get your back burned / Workin’ ’neath the wheels / Till you get your facts learned.”

… No wonder these guys are feuding.

In the 1970s and 1980s, America began its metamorphism from an industrial age to a digital era. Bruce’s music, that of an “endearing Jersey wharf rat” (according to Slate), was exciting, rebellious, and nonconformist.

Andy Kessler, a fan of Springsteen’s, has many BS concerts under his belt. Why did Kessler stop going? Springsteen added a rock violinist along with a teleprompter. Yes, Kessler admits to readers: You can call him a purist.

So are Bruce and Donald playing to the same “tramps” hoping to rise from “these badlands?”
Not so fast. The cheapest tickets to this Saturday’s Springsteen concert in working-class beetle-infested Liverpool, England, cost $130 on StubHub. Front Field Standing ones are up to $1,300.

Yeah sure, this is nothing compared to buying $TRUMP coin to win a bad meal with the president, but if you’re going to mix entertainment and politics, really, what’s the difference?

Undocumented Campaign Contributions

Not surprisingly, fans show up to a free Springsteen concert. Are they showing their political stripes? Probably not. Wasn’t “free” mentioned?

The Trump/Springsteen feud is based on Springsteen’s campaigning for Kamala Harris and singing at Barack Obama rallies in 2012.

And no, Andy Kessler is not advising that Bruce “shut up and sing.”

Write and perform protest songs all you want, but c’mon Bruce, read the room and know your audience. Stop preaching—we’re there to be entertained. Disney and other entertainment outfits are finally figuring this out. To paraphrase Michael Jordan, Republicans yell “Bruuuce” too.

Get Real

To make things fair, resist the temptation to tell Trump to “shut up and govern.” Punching down is unbecoming.

Hate Taylor Swift? Who cares?

Both Bruce and Donald are from a time passed, laments Mr. Kesser.

There is no question that there is an underclass in America today, though in many ways—Ozempic, iPhones and Netflix for starters—they’re better off than the middle class of the 1970s. But many are stuck. And undereducated from failing schools.

Most are trying to work their way up from low-end jobs that, inexplicably, the Trump administration is trying to create more of, which oddly will allow Mr. Springsteen to write more songs about desperation.

Hmmm, these guys are more partners than adversaries.