Due to popular demand and political savvy, Showtime’s three-ring Circus is back with a new ringmaster who is participating and avidly watching.
The second season of the engaging real-time political documentary series premiered Sunday, March 19 with a new full name, “The Circus: Inside the Biggest Story on Earth,” a.k.a., the presidency of Donald J. Trump.
The 2017 season title differs slightly, but significantly from the show’s January 2016 premiere title, “The Circus: Inside the Greatest Political Show on Earth” which documented the 2016 presidential campaign in a groundbreaking fashion.
The genius of The Circus concept is how it captivates viewers’ attention — many of whom don’t even follow politics — into watching 30 minutes of politically-based entertainment. (The reason the show airs on Showtime.)
The “secret sauce” used to make politics entertaining is two-pronged. First, political leaders grant total behind-the-scenes access to its three highly-regarded hosts, Mark Halperin, John Heilemann, and Mark McKinnon. Second, the engaging personalities of the trio, mixed with their knowledge, experience, total confidence and “we have seen it all” cynical attitudes, infuses the show with something akin to a sophisticated “buddy-movie” vibe that’s fun to watch.
All of these ingredients are on display in Sunday’s premiere.
Halperin’s political clout is showcased when President Trump calls on him to open the press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Even John Heilemann is impressed as he watches the presser on television while drinking beer at a nearby bar.
In an earlier scene, Halperin and McKinnon engaged in some levity with Washington’s first “stake-out” of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) while waiting for the “score” of the Republican’s proposed healthcare bill.
Another highlight of the first episode is when Mark Halperin takes us along for a ride on Air Force One to Nashville, where President Trump gives a campaign-style arena speech promoting the health care bill. The scene is a quintessential all-access Circus act for which the show is famous.
Such all-access style is exactly what co-producer and co-host Mark McKinnon initially conceived and started pitching 12 years ago. His idea was to offer Americans the opportunity to watch a presidential campaign from the front row — a place where he once stood as the successful chief media strategist for George W. Bush in 2000 and again in 2004 with President Bush’s reelection campaign.
Then in 2016, after over a decade of fits and starts, the show morphed into an overnight success beyond McKinnon’s (and Showtime’s) wildest dreams. Last April, Showtime President and CEO David Nevins told me in an interview:
“No one could have known how prescient that title ended up becoming. Now “the circus” has become a widely used catchphrase for the 2016 election as a whole.”
In November, the presidential campaign circus ended, but now Trump’s presidential high-wire act is just warming up. To quote Mark Halperin’s final words from the first episode as he describes Trump’s presidency, “every week ends with a cliffhanger.” With that thought in mind, Mark McKinnon told Washington Examiner:
“The Ringmaster is still at it, he’s just moved the big top to Washington, DC. So, the head of Showtime called us a couple of months ago and said, ‘The show must go on!'”
McKinnon further explained the goal of The Circus’ new season:
“There is so much going on with the Trump presidency. And so much is unprecedented, surprising, and dramatic. People across the political spectrum are transfixed. But they want help sorting it all out. So, for six to eight episodes we are going to dial ‘The Circus’ back up on Sunday nights to try and break it all down.”
I asked McKinnon if The Circus is concerned about incurring the wrath of President Trump, perhaps someday even being called a “fake show.” He responded:
“We’ve never worried about how anyone we cover is going to react. We just try to call em like we see em, but also work very hard to be balanced and honestly represent the view of all sides.”
The odds of success for The Circus’ second season will increase as Halperin and Heilemann subtly promote the show on MSNBC, where both frequently appear as news analysts on the popular “Morning Joe.”
Then from the right, this past Friday night, Fox News host Martha McCallum aired the humorous “stake-out the CBO” clip with McKinnon as her guest. And, if the second Circus season proves as popular as the first, McKinnon will be back often with more clips for McCallum to air.
It appears that The Circus will mirror its 2016 season’s ability to generate free airtime, but the show’s 2017 content is far more important than the follies of a presidential campaign.
The new Circus has the potential to greatly impact or even make news because if President Trump wishes to do so, he can create or manipulate scenes especially for The Circus audience. For example, as we saw in the first episode, Trump can favor Halperin in a press conference – or even feed Heilemann and Halperin scoops to drop on news shows that will later air as segments on The Circus. The weekly show gives the former reality TV star “Apprentice” president with no prior elective experience, the opportunity to star in his own unpredictable political reality show, and THAT is unprecedented.
So why is Showtime’s new Circus season must-see TV?
Trump will be starring and watching, giving the show even more power and influence, precisely why the rest of us should watch.
Myra Adams is a media producer and political writer. She was on the 2004 Bush campaign’s creative team and the 2008 McCain campaign’s ad council.
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