The other comments are talking about the American-ness of the firing, so I will also say that this is (in my mind) a particularly American brand of humor. It's

The other comments are talking about the American-ness of the firing, so I will also say that this is (in my mind) a particularly American brand of humor. It's very, very standard for people to make sarcastic/ironic/teasing jokes in this vein as a way of trying to break tension or lighten the mood. Not really what you asked, but maybe relevant.