Jon Stewart stepped behind the Daily Show desk on Thursday, breaking with the show’s usual schedule of Stewart hosting on Mondays only.
Following news of fellow late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension by ABC, Stewart delivered a stinging glimpse of what a Trump administration-controlled comedy show may look like. Appearing against a fake gold background, no doubt echoing the White House’s new gold-plated office, Stewart played the part of nauseously praiseful and terrified host.
“We have another fun, hilarious, administration-compliant show,” Stewart began the show. “Now, some naysayers may argue that the administration’s [free] speech concerns are merely a cynical ploy, a thin gruel of a ruse, a smoke screen to obscure an unprecedented consolidation of power and unitary intimidation; principle-less and coldly antithetical to any experiment in a constitutional republic governance,” he continued. “Some people would say that. Not me, though, I think it’s great.”
Referencing the ABC suspension, Stewart added, “Even before this ‘Jason Kringle’ situation at ABC, there were plenty of other people in America exercising their free speech incorrectly. So here’s some examples of things you cannot say about your political opponents.”
The host then rolled clips of conservative media denouncing calling political rivals “Nazis and fascists and enemies of the state” and viewing people with “with whom we disagree as somehow being less than human.” Stewart followed up the moral instructions with footage of Donald Trump calling Democrats “fascists,” former President Joe Biden “an enemy of the state” and people “animals.”
Stewart ended his monologue with a song dedicated to lauding the “dear leader” and was joined by the Daily Show‘s rotating hosts and correspondents. The praise ranged from Jordan Klepper assuring Trump “we don’t even notice your cankles or your bruises,” to Ronny Chieng commending his “massive penis, much bigger than normal,” despite what South Park may say about it.
Watch the full Daily Show Clip below.
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On Wednesday, Jimmy Kimmel Live! was suspended by ABC following a pressure campaign from the Trump administration and media conservatives, who twisted Kimmel’s words following last week’s assassination of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.
During his Monday monologue, Kimmel criticized conservatives for attempting to “score political points” off Kirk’s death.
“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said on his show at the time.
After news of Kimmel’s suspension, former President Barack Obama took to social media on Thursday morning to slam the Trump administration, writing: “After years of complaining about cancel culture, the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle or fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like.”
Earlier this summer, CBS announced its abrupt decision to end Stephen Colbert‘s The Late Show in 2026. While the network claimed the cancellation was financial, the decision to yank Colbert’s top-rated show drew harsh criticism, since the announcement came days after Colbert criticized Paramount, CBS’ parent company, over its decision to agree to a settlement with Trump.
At the time, Stewart backed Colbert, joining a chorus of voices torching CBS. “I understand the corporate fear. I understand the fear that you and your advertisers have with $8 billion at stake, but understand this, truly, the shows that you now seek to cancel, censor, and control — a not insignificant portion of that $8 billion value came from those fucking shows,” said Stewart in his fiery tirade. “That’s what made you that money. Shows that say something, shows that take a stand, shows that are unafraid.”
From Rolling Stone US
