A high-profile Simpsons writer is hoping his prophetic chops can change America.
Dan Greaney, best known for the 2000 episode “Bart to the Future,” which features a dressed-up Lisa speaking about cleaning up the mess from a then-theoretical Trump presidency, is running for president.
And not of the fictional Springfield. The United States of America.
The Los Angeles-based Greaney says he will fix America if he wins in 2028 with a “progressive Republican” agenda akin to classic politicians like former Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt.
Greaney, clad in a Nostradamus-esque gray beard, announced his half-serious campaign in a video slamming both parties, the Trump administration, and billionaires.
“Trump, Vance, the billionaires, careerists, and cowards in both parties have turned their backs on [the United States,” he said. “It’s money, power, and security for them, but not for you.”
He says the government must work for all people, and that he’d love to help, “but I’m not a lawyer.”
“I’m just a self-proclaimed prophet…” he says, before adding, “who went to law school, graduated, passed the bar. Wait! I am a lawyer!”
Greaney then transforms from his prophet costume, tossing his beard and outfit off to reveal his suit and shaven face.
“Screw it, I can be a politician,” he declares. “I’m running for president. My platform: America for all. Let’s do this.”
The Harvard-educated comedy writer is tossing aside his predictions to run for president on a progressive platform, some ways away from the Republican Party platform of today. He’s advocating for universal healthcare and the progressive Green New Deal.
A press release says Greaney, an occasional Republican voter, “has framed his candidacy as an attempt to bridge entrenched divisions and to speak to a broader sense of shared national purpose.”
Greaney said he once considered his iconic 2000 episode a parody, but now says it feels more like a warning as a direction for the country. Lisa is seen in the episode stressing in the Oval Office about “quite a budget crunch” from the prior Trump presidency.
Online speculation around the Simpsons’ predictions has permeated the internet for years. A 1997 episode allegedly predicted the 9/11 terror attacks, as the towers were prominently featured. Another 1998 episode predicted Disney would acquire 21st Century Fox, which would happen in 2017/
One small advantage for the prophetic Greaney is his very early candidacy.
Very few candidates have declared for the 2028 cycle, and he’s likely to get more exposure now before political heavyweights join in. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have seen presidential speculation on the Republican side, while figures like former Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gavin Newsom have seen Democratic nomination talk.
Greaney suggests he already knows how his campaign, which he characterized as “rejecting the counsels of despair,” will end.
“As to what happens next…we’ll just have to wait and see. You will, at least. I actually do know how it turns out.”