So we’ve gotten to the point where Oprah running for president is a real thing we are talking about, which doesn’t make a lot of sense. Why would she want to be president? She’s already Oprah. Being a movie star/entertainment mogul/IRL Santa Claus/glamorous gardening cover model sounds a lot better than the Sisyphean burdens of White House life.
Regardless, if you’re willing to believe the sage predictions of cartoon shows, Oprah already has 2020 on lock. In 2006, “The Boondocks” ran an episode that features a future where Oprah is president — in exactly 2020.
“President Oprah” jokes have been around for a while, but this reference gets really interesting when you look at its context. The Oprah scene appears in Season 1, Episode 9 of the series, called “Return of the King.” It’s an alternate reality look at what would have happened if Martin Luther King, Jr. wasn’t assassinated.
It’s far from a roses-and-rainbows revision of history and in fact, features a closing scene that seems to show widespread social unrest in the unspecified future.
“The White House and congress are receiving an unprecedented amount of calls from irate African-Americans,” a newscaster says in the ending montage of the episode, over images of black crowds protesting outside the White House.
“And the revolution finally came,” a voice narrates, as police fire into the crowd.
Finally, the scene fades to the newspaper announcement of Oprah’s presidential victory.
“It’s fun to dream,” the voice concludes.
