In 2009, a “Sesame Street” skit featured Oscar the Grouch deciding that the Grouch News Network (a pastiche of CNN) was “not grouchy enough,” prompting him to change the channel to “Pox News,” which he happily declared to be “a trashy news show.” The ombudsman of PBS, Michael Getler, apologized later, saying that he “didn’t know what was in the head of the producers, […] it should have been resisted. Broadcasters can tell parents whatever they think of Fox or any other network, but you shouldn’t do it through the kids.”

As Sen. Jim DeMint notes, the “Muppet Lobby” has been suckling at the government teat for years.

The “Sesame Street” character Elmo has testified before Congress about the need for government subsidization of the arts, and given lectures with Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genochowski about the need for government to subsidize people’s Internet bills.

First Lady Michelle Obama had a guest appearance on “Sesame” to promote healthier, government-approved menus for kids. In 1996, Bill Clinton made multiple appearances on the “Street,” going so far as to incorporate the show’s characters into his campaign’s paraphernalia .

National Review Online’s Jim Geraghty off-handedly wonders if the Muppet Lobby is a violation of the Hatch Act, which is a provision that prohibits federal employees from ”engaging in political activity while in official uniform”—which, one would think would cover the public employee whose “official uniform” is the “Arthur” costume.

In light of state-run media’s constant shilling for Big Government and bigger spending—even as the federal government stares down the barrel of a budget-induced shutdown—it becomes more obvious every day that public broadcasters should be cut loose and forced to participate in the marketplace of ideas, just like every other media corporation has to do.