'Sesame Street' Disapproves of Obama Ad

Uh oh. It looks like with all the attention focused on Mitt Romney’s decision to cut funding to PBS, the Obama campaign has overstepped its boundaries.

Although the new campaign video they’ve released is pretty hilarious, it features Big Bird, a character from “Sesame Street,” and that’s not okay with the show’s head honchos.

“Sesame Street” released a statement shortly after the video hit the world.

“Sesame Workshop is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization and we do not endorse candidates or participate in political campaigns. We have approved no campaign ads, and as is our general practice, have requested that both campaigns remove ‘Sesame Street’ characters and trademarks from their campaign materials.”

Whoops. And Melvin Ming, the Sesame Workshop CEO, added that using the bird’s image is a “violation” of their ethics, and makes it clear that Obama campaign members “did not have permission.”

“Big. Yellow. A menace to our economy. Mitt Romney knows it’s not Wall Street you have to worry about… It’s ‘Sesame Street.’” Notes the ad in a melodramatic voice. “Mitt Romney… taking on our enemies, no matter where they nest.”

Does the campaign legally have to remove the ad? Not really. Political ads are generally allowed to bypass general copyright infringement charges by the fair use doctrine. But, as a show of good faith, they probably should. No one want to rile any feathers, amiright?

Romney’s issue started when he responded to a question about deficit during the debates. His answer?

"I'm going to stop the subsidy to PBS. I'm going to stop other things. I like PBS. I love Big Bird. I actually like you, too. But I'm not going to -- I'm not going to keep on spending money on things to borrow money from China to pay for it."

The problem with the plan, aside from the fact that it only would salvage .012 percent of the federal budget, is that people have rallied in serious force behind the network. Look for the Million Muppet March to tromp around the National Mall November 3^rd.