Federal Highway Administration Declares: Thou Shalt Not Smile

We have all been stuck in traffic somewhere when a clever sign catches our eye that brings a smile to our face. In those moments, if you were frustrated by the traffic, those signs help you to decompress and take a breath. At other times when traffic isn’t an issue, just seeing a clever sign during your travels is never a bad thing. The point is that humor under any circumstances is always welcomed. Smiling is never a bad thing.

As we all know, in way too many situations that involves any type of happiness, there is also a kill joy. In this particular case, the downer is the U.S. Federal Highway Administration. One would think that a government department as large as this one would have better things to do. However, the Biden administration now is coming after your ability to smile.

So as of 2026, federal regulators have decided that cute slogans and jokes will no longer be allowed to appear on highway signs.

The irony of this decision is mind boggling. The administration that seems to care nothing about the invasion taking place at the border, nothing about the poisoning of our children’s minds in public schools, nothing about our weakening of the military through DEI ridiculousness, and nothing about our shrinking global respect, has instead turned their attention to clever highway signs as an issue that needs to be dealt with.

This has the radical left’s fingerprints all over it. Important issues are ignored, but something as trivial as pleasant road signs are suddenly a crucial issue.

Under the new guidelines, that were spelled out in an 1,100-page report, signs cannot display messages intended to be humorous or with pop culture references, or anything that could “diminish respect for the sign”.

Respect for the sign? Respect for the sign? This sounds like a parody about the incompetence of the federal government. This administration has no respect for anything, and disrespect for everything that is based in American values. Yet here they are meddling in something as trivial as clever road signs. If this wasn’t so sad and weak, it would actually be funny.

The agency says that such messages can be misunderstood or distracting to drivers and that signs should be “simple, direct, brief, legible and clear”. The signs should be used only for important information such as warning drivers of crashes, weather conditions and traffic delays. Seatbelt reminders and warnings about the dangers of speeding or driving impaired are also allowed. Translation, in the eyes of the government we can’t even interpret a road sign by ourselves. There can be no levity, otherwise we may become confused and disoriented. It is an insult to our intelligence, and frankly a slap in the face of every American.

This is nothing more than another subtle intrusion on individual states. This is the way it begins. The federal government gets their foot in the door over something trivial and it snowballs from there.

State laws are again being breeched, and once again our intelligence as Americans is being questioned. Perhaps this administration should realize that the real joke is on them because they themselves ARE the joke.