Jon Stewart on Beck's remark to Keith Ellison: "Finally, a guy who says what people who aren't thinking are thinking"
On the November 16 edition of Comedy Central's The Daily Show, host Jon Stewart addressed a recent remark that CNN Headline News host Glenn Beck made to Rep.-elect Keith Ellison (D-MN), the first Muslim ever elected to Congress. As noted by Media Matters for America, Beck said: "I have been nervous about this interview with you, because what I feel like saying is, 'Sir, prove to me that you are not working with our enemies.' " After airing Beck's comment, Stewart declared: "Finally, a guy who says what people who aren't thinking are thinking."
On the previous day's program, Stewart addressed a report from Fox News' On the Record with Greta Van Susteren, in which, as Media Matters also noted, Fox News correspondent Steve Harrigan underwent what he described as three "phase[s]" of the controversial interrogation technique known as "waterboarding" on camera. Harrigan concluded that the technique is "a pretty efficient mechanism to get someone to talk and then still have them alive and healthy within minutes." After airing Harrigan's conclusion, Stewart stated: "You know, it's nice to see a reporter discussing waterboarding with the same enthusiasm Ron Popeil uses for his oven roaster."
From the November 16 edition of Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart:
STEWART: But enough about the war in Iraq. There's also a battle being waged to protect our homeland. Because the Army can't be everywhere, it's up to concerned citizens like CNN's Glenn Beck to spot possible enemy combatants, like Keith Ellison, a newly minted Minnesota representative and the first Muslim ever elected to U.S. Congress.
BECK [video clip]: No offense, and I know Muslims. I like Muslims. I've been to mosques.
STEWART: This, uh, is not going to end well.
BECK [video clip]: I have to tell you, I have been nervous about this interview with you, because what I feel like saying is, "Sir, prove to me that you are not working with our enemies."
And I know you're not. I'm not accusing you of being an enemy, but that's the way I feel, and I think a lot of Americans will feel that way.
STEWART: Finally, a guy who says what people who aren't thinking are thinking.
[laughter]
The congressman stuck -- the congressman --
[applause]
The congressman stuck to his guns -- not that he has guns!
[begin video clip]
ELLIS: There's no one who is more patriotic than I am. And so, you know, I don't need to -- need to prove my patriotic stripes.
BECK: I understand that. And I'm not asking you to.
[end video clip]
STEWART: I'm just asking you to.
[laughter]
Just like as a conservative white guy, the burden is on me to prove to you I've neither blown up a federal building with a fertilizer bomb, nor sucked off a gay hooker in the men's room of a Denny's.
From the November 15 edition of Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart:
STEWART: But my hunger for seeing what's almost definitely torture isn't satisfied. I want -- nay, demand -- waterboarding!
Yeah! That's the snuff! That's Fox News' Steve Harrigan cutting right to the chase.
HARRIGAN [video clip]: So many people have been talking about waterboarding over the past couple of weeks -- is it torture, should the U.S. use it -- we left those questions on the side.
STEWART: On the side! Is it torture? Should the U.S. use it? You know, the ethical debate is a dish best served like ranch dressing.
[laughter]
I'm sorry, Steve, you were drowning?
[begin video clip]
MAN: Ready to talk?
HARRIGAN: No.
MAN: Come on.
HARRIGAN: I'm starting not to like these guys in the black masks.
[end video clip]
STEWART: Yes, you know, I find that often if I see someone wearing a black mask and I'm not sitting on a ski lift, something bad is about to happen. So rarely do you see someone in a black mask bring you something you like.
[laughter]
So if you're not saying waterboarding is or is not inhumane, what is it exactly?
HARRIGAN [video clip]: To me, this seemed like a pretty efficient mechanism to get someone to talk and then still have them alive and healthy within minutes.
STEWART: You know, it's nice to see a reporter discussing waterboarding with the same enthusiasm Ron Popeil uses for his oven roaster.
The other right-wing media mogul you should worry about
Palin's book and Obama's bow: a media week to forget
Media Matters: The Palin chronicles
Jon rocks! One thing I am confused about though is how this has anything to do with misinformation by conservatives. I knew they posted KO's WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD segments every now and then but they are adding Jon as well? Oh well still cool to hear how Jon burned that idiot Beck.
I've enjoyed a few of Stewart's clips and have watched a few on YouTube, but this one convinced me to Tivo him ;)
"Gay hookers"... priceless.
Every exhalation from that foetid pile is worthy of mention under "Conservative mis-information", as well as all the related headings of "idiocy", "virulent", "potentially communicable disease". Just happens that we get an example of Stewart skewering him as a bonus.
but ,as has been pointed out here countless times, exposing conservative media isn't always " He said Saddam Hussein was behind 9/11"
Sometimes it's just giving a job to somebody who reinforces the kind of zombie thinking that makes a person ask a Muslim to prove he's not working for the enemy.
Thank you thank you thank you!
-nt-
The wit with which Jon disects the idiocy of Beck is pretty much a media matters post writing itself.
Glenn beck plays his "dumb-guy with common sense" routine all the time and hides behind the shield of being "anti-political correctness." People like him are what inspired Stephen Colbert's character.
And Beck wins the idiot sweepstakes ladies and gentlemen.
That was hillarious. I am still waiting for a conservative poster to scold MMFA for having thread...
Conservatives I am still waiting...
Are you the same MBB who went to Kenyon? Just curious!
it is the same MBB from kenyon yeah. i know he works for media matters. and i mean how many people have that last name? it is pretty distinctive. i went to kenyon too and graduated with him. did or do you go to kenyon?
I'm part of Kenyon's staff. Met MBB a few times. Nice guy, but we lost touch.
yeah, he is doing political writing now. here is another article of his: [link to www.inthesetimes.com] what department do you work in there?
Who is better than Jon Stewart?
But Colbert is pretty good
Not many. But Keith Olbermann rocks.
Are both great, and right to the point.
...more and more these cretins need to be called out by Colbert, Stewart, Olbermann...hopefully, more will join the fight to expose the stupidity that is current state of the daily news...
"What people who aren't thinking are thinking."
Jon Stewart has been putting right-wing nut jobs like Beck in their place consistenly for some time now, yet noone here seens to acknowledge anyone other than Olbermann. I think Stewart, KO, Colbert, and Maher all do a great job of correcting and mocking conservative misinformation on their respective shows.
You know, muslims don't want to kill Americans just for fun. They have a darn good reason for it: they're political system is extorting their entire livelihood. The world is running out of water, out of oil, out of clean air and all Bush does is tokeep the course of Western Global-Kolonization, not by democracy but by the undemocratic systems in the UN, the world bank and any institution you can think of. Muslims want the greed for money and power out of this world, together with materialism, but those are the ONLY things the majority of Americans care for.
Well, a good portion of why they are attacking us is because our our Middle East policies.
We overthrew the democratically elected Prime Minister of Iran and replaced him with a brutal dictator.
We gave weapons to Saddam, encouraged Kurds to rebel against him, and they got killed using the weapons we gave him, and stood by and did nothing about it.
Brutal sanctions were placed on Iraq after the Gulf War, as well as the fact that daily air strikes took place and destroyed civilian infrastructures which killed many innocent Iraqis.
Then, we invaded Iraq because of WMDs that weren't there, abused their prisoners, etc.
And last but not least: our country is basically the only supporter of Israel, a country that kills Palestinians on a daily basis and destroys their homes, etc. What Israel does to the Palestinians is evil. Almost no Palestinians lives a normal, peaceful life.
Let us not forget that Jon will take Democrats to task when they need it--I am fervantly hoping that progressive radio does so as well when it is appropriate--if you are an idiot, con, liar or thief I don't care which way it swings, I want it brought up and the proper spotlight brought to bear on bad politics.
To be fair, Limbaugh took Conservatives to task, too.
Okay, it was AFTER the election. And after getting on his knees for them for years. And after... well, never mind. I guess it wasn't a good comparison after all. =)
OK, I was close, I should have said Jon Stuart. This below is from a prior MMFA post of mine on Glenn Beck's "proof of..." statement.
Goose and Gander
Maybe Stephen Colbert should ask a newly elected Republican guest "sir prove to me that your not a pedophile or closet homosexual".
- Indy / Wednesday November 15, 2006 (Prior to Daily Show brodcast)