I agree, though I assumed (shame on me) these were in reference to events more current than 4 years ago. But, I’m not always completely in touch with US news or politics either.
Yeah, I first saw it in the mid 2010s, then a short time later when I first watched LEXX, the episode "Girltown" surprised me by mocking some of the things I thought were new - but it aired in 2000.