Jon Stewart Knocks It Out of the Park

[Red Five 40667]

2 minutes ago, Hookah Horns said:

I think most people are concerned less about Biden's numerical age or even his gaffes than the way he looks and sounds. It's very concerning to me when considering how the average dumbass in this country views the potus election horse race. Of course Dotard is almost as old and says even more senile shit, but it's hard to deny that he comes across as more vigorous right now. 

It's OK to acknowledge that this situation sucks balls. Refusing to talk about it isn't going to make the issue go away. Neither Stewart nor any other serious commentator on the age issue is saying that it makes Dotard the superior choice. 

I think the biggest issue is that when you look at Biden, do you see someone who will still be capable of Presidenting for five more years? Until he's four years shy of 90? You're essentially asking for votes for someone who, in all likelihood, won't finish the term. That's tough. 

(but of course I'd still vote for him over Dotard even if he were 100, but that's not the point)

[wildcat09 29266]

11 hours ago, Hermanator said:

A question I have is how have the Democrats not cultivated a better candidate than an 80 year old for this election? Biden himself said he planned to be a one term president before the last election. He knew then he was a stop gap to defeat trump. He's an absolutely terrible candidate to be running at his age and that's just a fact. The way Stewart ended that first show told me he's disappointed the Democrats didn't do better to ensure the savior of the republic isn't an 80 yr old looking older and more senile by the day. 

Because there's not a smoke-filled back room full of people pulling the strings for the party? Because Biden never actually said he planned to be a one term President? Because nobody with serious career aspirations of their own wanted to primary him and risk tearing the party apart? Because Biden beat Trump before and it very quickly became obvious that Trump was going to run again, so Biden with an incumbency advantage seemed to most Democrats like the safe bet?

Why do people keep asking this question like the answers aren't obvious?

[Hermanator 6947]

2 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

And who is that?

Both of them. 

Republican's excuse is they're a cult of complete idiots who want fascism. 

What's the Democrat's excuse? Biden himself planned to be a 1 term president due to his age:

https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/11/biden-single-term-082129

What changed? Why didn't the Democrats cultivate a challenger against the most unpopular presidential candidate in modern history over the last 3 years? Regardless of political affiliation it's insane to think the country isn't in horrific shape with this situation. 

[Brian Fantana 6668]

1 hour ago, Dnaguy said:

This came across my feed.

Go to minute 19.

Whooo boy do I bet that J-Stew wants some take-backsies on that take.

 

I think just about everyone felt this way prior to Trump's presidency.

[BehoId, The Underminer! 11668]

13 minutes ago, Brian Fantana said:

I think just about everyone felt this way prior to Trump's presidency.

i was very tuned out of politics at the time.  thought it was funny that one party was in such chaos that trump somehow got the nomination.  so i was getting lulz about him being in it too.  never even occurred to me that he could win.  i know that just says how small my circle was, given 60MM voted for him, but i never came across folks that liked him.

i had a lawyer in my firm saying he was going to vote for him.  i was recall thinking "well, i've always tagged him as the dumbest guy here, so this scans."

[aggie08 21436]

5 minutes ago, BehoId, The Underminer! said:

i know that just says how small my circle was, given 60MM voted for him, but i never came across folks that liked him.

You absolutely did. They're just the ones with enough sense not to admit it.

[Nice Guy Eddie 13416]

1 hour ago, Hermanator said:

Both of them. 

Republican's excuse is they're a cult of complete idiots who want fascism. 

What's the Democrat's excuse? Biden himself planned to be a 1 term president due to his age:

https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/11/biden-single-term-082129

What changed? Why didn't the Democrats cultivate a challenger against the most unpopular presidential candidate in modern history over the last 3 years? Regardless of political affiliation it's insane to think the country isn't in horrific shape with this situation. 

I would bet that the people around Biden don't want to lose their power by encouraging another candidate. And they talk themselves into thinking that its best for the country if Biden, and therefore themselves, remain in power. 

The obvious choice would have been for the WH to put Harris out there more. Now maybe she proved to be ineffective in that role or she was set up to fail. Who knows. If you leave it up to the Dem party, think about their recent picks leading up to Biden:  Gore, Kerry, Obama and Hillary Clinton. 1 out of 4 was a quality campaigner and candidate.

The Dem party didn't really want Biden in 2020 but the Dem voters spoke in that he was the best option to beat Trump.

[aggie08 21436]

I'm going to push back on "the obvious choice" being to promote a black, female, progressive candidate from California to run this year, even if she had proved herself as super capable (whatever that actually means in terms of being a VP). That's one hell of a gamble with today's electorate.

Edited February 21 by aggie08

[LCHorn 2585]

4 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

I would bet that the people around Biden don't want to lose their power by encouraging another candidate.

While this may be true, I think elites within in the party have concluded that Harris versus the field is very messy and they want to kick that can down the road.  
 

In four years Trump is likely dead, in jail, or has lost the hold on the party as he gets bludgeoned financially and it’s a safer contest between whoever survives the Dem primary and who captures what’s left of the MAGA base.

[LCHorn 2585]

9 minutes ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

The obvious choice would have been for the WH to put Harris out there more.

When they do this she inevitably gets negative media coverage.  She’s just not well liked because she’s weird, guarded, and more useful as a prop.  

[Red Five 40667]

1 minute ago, LCHorn said:

When they do this she inevitably gets negative media coverage.  She’s just not well liked because she’s weird, guarded, and more useful as a prop.  

I have seen her spew what is basically nonsense in interviews when she gets off track. Pretty much what Biden is accused of doing but never does. 

[Brisketexan 104653]

1 hour ago, Brian Fantana said:

I think just about everyone felt this way prior to Trump's presidency.

Yeah, if you had asked me in 2011, I'd have agreed with that take.  I suffered from a lack of imagination: at that time, at least, I didn't imagine that Trump could ever be a serious candidate.

But by 2015, I sure as fuck realized he was a serious candidate.  By then, it was too fucking late.

[Chuckie Finster 22600]

7 minutes ago, aggie08 said:

I'm going to push back on "the obvious choice" being to promote a black, female, progressive candidate from California to run this year, even if she had proved herself as super capable (whatever that actually means in terms of being a VP). That's one hell of a gamble with today's electorate.

Additionally, I remain convinced that the first woman president will have to be a Republican.  The right-wing media megaphone is a well-oiled machine at tearing down women.

[Fudge Nuggets 19151]

2 hours ago, Hermanator said:

What's the Democrat's excuse? Biden himself planned to be a 1 term president due to his age:

https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/11/biden-single-term-082129

That article never says Biden himself planned to be a 1-term president.  The article says "unnamed insiders speaking on the condition of anonymity" were certain he would only be a 1 term president.  Kind of a big difference.

[BehoId, The Underminer! 11668]

as i recall, everyone was like "this is the deal, right? one term it is, right?" and the campaign just sort of allowed that idea to fester and not address it so that people could believe what they wanted.

[Hermanator 6947]

2 minutes ago, Fudge Nuggets said:

That article never says Biden himself planned to be a 1-term president.  The article says "unnamed insiders speaking on the condition of anonymity" were certain he would only be a 1 term president.  Kind of a big difference.

Quote

with Biden himself signaling to aides that he would serve only a single term.

It's right there in the first paragraph.

[BehoId, The Underminer! 11668]

i challenge you to find a quote from him that is along those lines.

[Fudge Nuggets 19151]

13 minutes ago, Hermanator said:

It's right there in the first paragraph.

Even as a non lawyer I still understand the idea of hearsay. 

[BehoId, The Underminer! 11668]

and for the exact reason that hearsay isn't allowed.  it's subject to not just outright fabrication, but optimistic swaying.  his "signaling to his aides" are the aides' interpretations of the words (or, in my personal belief here, intentionally seeding news stories with innuendo that they think will help them win in november but not solid enough that they can't pivot if that is the choice later).

[hobbes2702 12850]

2 hours ago, Hookah Horns said:

I think most people are concerned less about Biden's numerical age or even his gaffes than the way he looks and sounds. It's very concerning to me when considering how the average dumbass in this country views the potus election horse race. Of course Dotard is almost as old and says even more senile shit, but it's hard to deny that he comes across as more vigorous right now. 

It's OK to acknowledge that this situation sucks balls. Refusing to talk about it isn't going to make the issue go away. Neither Stewart nor any other serious commentator on the age issue is saying that it makes Dotard the superior choice. 

It doesn’t suck balls.
Biden has been the most effective president of my lifetime by far. His age hasn’t limited his ability to do the job as evidenced by his performance. We would be lucky to have him in office for another term, especially with a real Congress.

[hobbes2702 12850]

2 hours ago, Hermanator said:

Both of them. 

Republican's excuse is they're a cult of complete idiots who want fascism. 

What's the Democrat's excuse? Biden himself planned to be a 1 term president due to his age:

https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/11/biden-single-term-082129

What changed? Why didn't the Democrats cultivate a challenger against the most unpopular presidential candidate in modern history over the last 3 years? Regardless of political affiliation it's insane to think the country isn't in horrific shape with this situation. 

Because they aren’t morons who would try to throw away incumbency and proven track record because people think he’s too old.

Edited February 21 by hobbes2702

[immamac 42532]

Joe Biden is on record saying he wouldn't have run either time if Trump wasn't running. That's not some insane fantasy, he knows he's the best shot to keep DJT out of office.

Back to Jon Stewart, it's like some of you forgot what made him so great. He points out ALL of the absurdity and doesn't care what party it's from or what the "spin" is or how the votes will change because he reports it. He is there to shine a light on the absurdity of the truth of our situation. It's real journalism, unlike what you see from the major networks. 

[hobbes2702 12850]

Making the argument that Joe Biden is too old to be president is absurd. We have seen the results when he’s in office. 
Would I like someone younger. Yea for sure but the results are the results and the old guy seems to be pretty good at the job 

[BehoId, The Underminer! 11668]

6 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

Making the argument that Joe Biden is too old to be president is absurd. We have seen the results when he’s in office. 
Would I like someone younger. Yea for sure but the results are the results and the old guy seems to be pretty good at the job 

an 81 year old male has a median of 7 years left.  

[hobbes2702 12850]

3 minutes ago, BehoId, The Underminer! said:

an 81 year old male has a median of 7 years left.  

Ok. I agree that if he dies he won’t be capable of doing the job. But he isn’t dead so… 

Has he been capable of being president thus far?

Edited February 21 by hobbes2702

[BehoId, The Underminer! 11668]

7 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

Ok. I agree that if he dies he won’t be capable of doing the job. But he isn’t dead so… 

Has he been capable of being president thus far?

this is kindergarten stuff.  the country isn't voting in the 2020 election.  they're voting in the 2024 election this time for the next four year period.  i feel like arguing this just getting engaged in trolling techniques, so i won't any more.

[hobbes2702 12850]

9 minutes ago, BehoId, The Underminer! said:

this is kindergarten stuff.  the country isn't voting in the 2020 election.  they're voting in the 2024 election this time for the next four year period.  i feel like arguing this just getting engaged in trolling techniques, so i won't any more.

What do you think our best indicator is of how someone will perform as president? 
Do you think Joe is incapable of doing the job because of his age?

This is the same tired argument we heard in 2020 and guess what? He’s good at the job. 
I’m not trolling. I’m asking for an explanation of why we should just ignore his performance up to this point.

[Longhorn_Fan68 33844]

5 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

What do you think our best indicator is of how someone will perform as president? 
Do you think Joe is incapable of doing the job because of his age?

This is the same tired argument we heard in 2020 and guess what? He’s good at the job. 
I’m not trolling. I’m asking for an explanation of why we should just ignore his performance up to this point.

you're arguing with someone who has a kids' movie villain as a username, I don't think you're gonna get Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey here

[Dutchrudder 11117]

Biden just has to stick around for a few years before Gavin Newsome takes over in 2028 as he handily beats a ticket of Don Junior/Sarah Huckabee for the Presidency. Kamala ain't winning that primary much less the general election, and she never should have been the VP pick to begin with. 

[Brian Fantana 6668]

48 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

Making the argument that Joe Biden is too old to be president is absurd. We have seen the results when he’s in office. 
Would I like someone younger. Yea for sure but the results are the results and the old guy seems to be pretty good at the job 

 

35 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

Ok. I agree that if he dies he won’t be capable of doing the job. But he isn’t dead so… 

Has he been capable of being president thus far?

 

14 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

What do you think our best indicator is of how someone will perform as president? 
Do you think Joe is incapable of doing the job because of his age?

This is the same tired argument we heard in 2020 and guess what? He’s good at the job. 
I’m not trolling. I’m asking for an explanation of why we should just ignore his performance up to this point.

You are literally arguing with/trolling yourself. I fucking hate having to explain comedy in this way. People think social media only broke right wing brains, but the way this thread has turned illustrates just how wrong that is.

The fact that we have an octogenarian and a soon-to-be octogenarian likely running against each other in the 2024 election is a PERFECTLY VALID THING TO JOKE ABOUT and/or bring up in the context of American society/politics. Or anything, really.

Do you think Jon Stewart is arguing you shouldn't vote for Biden because he's old? He's not. Do you think voters are going to be swayed by Jon Stewart making a joke about Biden being old? They're not.

Please stop, this is just absolutely insufferable nonsense.

[hobbes2702 12850]

9 minutes ago, BeardIP said:

 

Truly sinister stuff there lol

[DDD Dad 14258]

1 hour ago, immamac said:

Joe Biden is on record saying he wouldn't have run either time if Trump wasn't running. That's not some insane fantasy, he knows he's the best shot to keep DJT out of office.

Back to Jon Stewart, it's like some of you forgot what made him so great. He points out ALL of the absurdity and doesn't care what party it's from or what the "spin" is or how the votes will change because he reports it. He is there to shine a light on the absurdity of the truth of our situation. It's real journalism, unlike what you see from the major networks. 

One need only listen to the Crossfire interview for this. He commented that he didn't care who won (between GWB and Kerry) since his material is based on the absurdity of the system.

[Underdog 28457]

Health Ledger? 

[Chuckie Finster 22600]

It is still insane to me that there is infinitely more discourse around the need for Democrats to soul search and replace a sitting fucking President on the ticket than Republicans with Trump.

"Democrats are the only ones we expect to take this shit seriously" should be the subtitle to the book that could be written about the current state of our country.

[Longhorn_Fan68 33844]

9 minutes ago, Underdog said:

Health Ledger? 

the step before Death Panels.

[Red Five 40667]

4 minutes ago, Chuckie Finster said:

It is still insane to me that there is infinitely more discourse around the need for Democrats to soul search and replace a sitting fucking President on the ticket than Republicans with Trump.

"Democrats are the only ones we expect to take this shit seriously" should be the subtitle to the book that could be written about the current state of our country.

Imagine Biden sitting in courtrooms every day. Owing half a billion in fines. Sicking Russia on our allies. And 80-90% of dems being all "Hell yeah, that's our guy!". 

[safe sex 11686]

Like most things now, the absurdity is so far skewed in one direction that I don't think it's particularly helpful to treat things as business as usual, because it's not business as usual.

[Dnaguy 11777]

19 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

Truly sinister stuff there lol

[Captainant 27471]

14 minutes ago, safe sex said:

Like most things now, the absurdity is so far skewed in one direction that I don't think it's particularly helpful to treat things as business as usual, because it's not business as usual.

I think this is the core criticism that Stewart is gonna have to face before he really wins his audience over

[Hookah Horns 3082]

2 hours ago, hobbes2702 said:

It doesn’t suck balls.
Biden has been the most effective president of my lifetime by far. His age hasn’t limited his ability to do the job as evidenced by his performance. We would be lucky to have him in office for another term, especially with a real Congress.

Not sure how you apparently took me to mean that Biden or the prospect of his reelection sucks balls. I'm saying that - between his inexplicably poor approval ratings, widespread concern about his age with calls for him to step aside, and the existential threat posed by Cult 45 - the circumstances of this election sucks balls. 

[Brian Fantana 6668]

26 minutes ago, Chuckie Finster said:

It is still insane to me that there is infinitely more discourse around the need for Democrats to soul search and replace a sitting fucking President on the ticket than Republicans with Trump.

"Democrats are the only ones we expect to take this shit seriously" should be the subtitle to the book that could be written about the current state of our country.

But who is earnestly doing this? The subject of this thread certainly isn't.

9 minutes ago, Captainant said:

I think this is the core criticism that Stewart is gonna have to face before he really wins his audience over

He doesn't need to win the left wingers that wag their fingers and say "no no no" every time a joke is made. They're not part of his audience in the first place and he doesn't need them to be. A handful of reactionaries (and yes, if you're in this thread screeching about how unacceptable it is for this comedian on television to make a joke about Biden's age, this includes you as well) don't indicate an audience worth "winning over", simply ignoring.

[safe sex 11686]

🙄 Screeching 

[Brian Fantana 6668]

31 minutes ago, safe sex said:

Like most things now, the absurdity is so far skewed in one direction that I don't think it's particularly helpful to treat things as business as usual, because it's not business as usual.

You're not wrong, but does this mean it's unacceptable for a demonstrably left-wing comedian to make a joke about Joe Biden? Seriously.

[safe sex 11686]

Just now, Brian Fantana said:

You're not wrong, but does this mean it's unacceptable for a demonstrably left-wing comedian to make a joke about Joe Biden? Seriously.

Or course not, and nowhere have I said that. But his joke on the first show about Biden's age was gratuitous and so far out of the realm of what we can actually see with POTUS that I thought it was a bad choice to go with it. Combined with the timing of the SC report release, it felt like an even shittier decision to lean into portraying Biden as a demented crypt keeper. 

Second episode was better

 

[hobbes2702 12850]

4 minutes ago, Brian Fantana said:

But who is earnestly doing this? The subject of this thread certainly isn't.

He doesn't need to win the left wingers that wag their fingers and say "no no no" every time a joke is made. They're not part of his audience in the first place and he doesn't need them to be. A handful of reactionaries (and yes, if you're in this thread screeching about how unacceptable it is for this comedian on television to make a joke about Biden's age, this includes you as well) don't indicate an audience worth "winning over", simply ignoring.

It’s a tired joke that simply ignores the reality of Biden’s performance and feeds into the right wings bullshit about how both sides suck. 
 

[Brian Fantana 6668]

Just now, safe sex said:

Or course not, and nowhere have I said that. But his joke on the first show about Biden's age was gratuitous and so far out of the realm of what we can actually see with POTUS that I thought it was a bad choice to go with it. Combined with the timing of the SC report release, it felt like an even shittier decision to lean into portraying Biden as a demented crypt keeper. 

Second episode was better

 

If it was anyone else (like Stephen Colbert, for example, who has turned into the most annoying and milquetoast centrist liberal "comedian" in existence), I would maybe agree. Personally, I think Stewart has spent enough time shitting on the GOP and the right that he's earned the right to roast Biden about probably the least controversial thing about him. Trying to twist that into some weird notion about him making a false equivalence is just bizarre to me.

What specifically did he say that was so gratuitous and out of the realm?

[safe sex 11686]

It was the feeble impersonation of a demented person that I thought was too much

[Red Five 40667]

"Man, hearing all week about how old Biden is, considering who he's running against, sure is infuriating and exhausting. But at least we have Jon Stewart to watch for the first time in nine years...."

(30 minutes later)

"oh" 

[Brian Fantana 6668]

15 minutes ago, hobbes2702 said:

It’s a tired joke that simply ignores the reality of Biden’s performance and feeds into the right wings bullshit about how both sides suck.

I'm not sure that it does any of that. I think you're seeing monsters under the bed. It's pure delusion to be afraid that this kind of joke is going to sway anyone away from voting for Biden. He's not out there arguing for a replacement, he's throwing his hands up and wondering how we got to the point where we have two 900 year old dinosaurs running for office.

As a left-wing person, the "no jokes" arm of the left is honestly the most annoying to deal with, I swear to god.

Edited February 21 by Brian Fantana

[Red Five 40667]

1 minute ago, Brian Fantana said:

he's throwing his hands up and wondering how we got to the point where we have two 900 year old dinosaurs running for office.

This is the whole point. One of those dinosaurs has actually been a good president, and the other is an absolute fucking monster who attempted a coup on his way out the door last time. So we don't really have a lot of patience with the whole "just a couple of old guys" thing.