Having no official religion, and claiming no divine right of kings to rule, the American republic and its democratic processes nonetheless rest on veneration of cherished symbols and national heroes. But reverence has its flip side in these United States. Satirists, game designers, toymakers, and propagandists can’t resist playing with politics and political figures. Sometimes, political amusements celebrate and, just as often, they aim to repudiate. And so comedians and partisans poke fun at the trappings of office, the pretentions to celebrity, and the games politicians play.