No one is safe from Jon Stewart's State of the Union jabs, not President Joe Biden and certainly not Alabama Senator Katie Britt's bone-chilling rebuttal, which has garnered endless memes and sparked concern about the GOP's "performative patriotism"
On Monday evening's episode of "The Daily Show," Stewart tackled Biden's State of the Union address but mostly focused on the GOP response to the president's speech.
The comedian opened the show with a segment on Biden's address highlighting the growing division in Congress, playing a clip of Biden's most rousing lines, including, "When America gets knocked down we get back up." Stewart with his fists up, mimicked Biden, "Which one of you pricks wants to fight? Put up your dukes."
Stewart continued and made a dig at himself, "Biden's back baby! I know all the haters been out there talking their s***t. 'He's too old' 'He's too weak' 'He won't make it' 'He won't be able to stand' I see you haters I know who you are." He then pulled up a personal handheld mirror and looked at himself.
After the criticism surrounding Biden's age and cognition, Stewart pivoted to the Republican response to Biden's speech. He described Britt's rebuttal as “objectively terrible” and was visibly terrified by Britt’s telling people at home that the Republican Party “sees you, we hear you, and we stand with you.”
“If you’re going to stand with me, could you stand a little bit further away?” Stewart asked. Then the comedian imagined that one of her kids came down for a bowl of cereal during the unsettling video to say “I realize you were losing your f*****g mind. I’ll come back when the Zannies kick in.”
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But the show highlighted one specific instance in her chilling speech that Stewart thought was overlooked. Britt told all the Republican parents to "get into the arena," and urged them to "never forget: we are steeped in the blood of patriots who overthrew the most powerful empire in the world."
"Two things," Stewart replied. "One: Who smiles when they say the line ‘steeped in the blood of patriots’? And number two: This is just one more entry in the Republican mythology that they are the inheritors of the American revolutionary tradition. That they are somehow more American-y than non-Republican Americans."
Then the show played various clips of Republicans on Fox News, who declare themselves as "real" Americans and the "real America." Stewart then asked the audience, "what is it about the Republican party that makes it American-ier than the rest of us?"
Through a long montage of Republicans declaring their love for the Constitution, Stewart showcased the juxtaposition of Republicans claiming to be staunch constitutionalists but having no issue with Trump's statements saying that as a president he should be given full immunity, shoot his political rivals and not face the consequences of the law.
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“If you want to love Trump, love him,” said Stewart. “Go to the rallies, buy the sneakers. You want to give him absolute power? You want him to be the leader über alles? You want him to have the right of kings? You do you."
He continued, "But stop framing it as patriotism. Because the one thing you cannot say is that Donald Trump is following the tradition of the Founders. He is advocating for complete and total presidential immunity… that is monarchy s**t. And it’s your right to support it.
"But just do me a favor for historical accuracy: Next time you want to dress up at the rallies, wear the right f******g colored coats,” he concluded.
"I want you to you know, we see you, we hear you, and we stand with you,” Stewart said with a creepy smile on his face.
"The Daily Show" airs Monday through Thursday at 11 p.m. on Comedy Central and streams on Paramount+.
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