By Tim Graham | February 3, 2014 | 7:57 AM EST

New York magazine interviewed Saturday Night Live executive producer Lorne Michaels about his show and political humor. Michaels seemed to suggest that Republicans can take a joke, and Democrats can't. Or perhaps Republicans are used to being mocked by Manhattan liberals, and Democrats expect to be pampered.

The magazine’s Lane Brown asked: "Are there any basic rules for what works and what doesn’t politically?"