Jon Stewart on Bill Moyers Journal Friday evening.
JON STEWART: For instance, Alberto Gonzales, and you’ve been watching the hearings. He is either a perjurer, or a low-functioning pinhead. And he allowed himself to be portrayed in those hearings as a low-functioning pinhead, rather than give the Congressional Committee charged with oversight, any information as to his decision-making process at the Department of Justice.
And I used to think, “They’re doing this based on a certain arrogance.” And now, I realize that it’s because they believe there is one accountability moment for a President, and that is the four year election. And once you get that election, you’re done.
BILL MOYERS: They’re right, are they not?
JON STEWART: They’re completely not right. The election moment is merely the American public saying, “We’d rather you be President than that guy.” That’s it. The next four years, though, you still have to abide by the oversight process that is there to prevent this kind of bizarre sort of cult-like atmosphere that falls along. I mean, I accept that kind of veil of secrecy around Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, but I don’t accept that around our government.
. . .
JON STEWART: And for the President to come out after that and say, “Everything I saw there gave me more confidence in him,” that solidified my notion that, “Oh, it’s because what he expected of Gonzalez was” it’s sort of like, do you remember in GOODFELLAS? When Henry Hill got arrested for the first time and Robert DeNiro met him at the courthouse and Henry Hill was really upset, ’cause he thought Robert DeNiro would be really mad at him. And DeNiro comes up to him and he gives him a $100 and he goes, “You got pinched. We all get pinched, but you did it right, you didn’t say nothing.”
Video excerpt that includes the segment above.
Moyers asked Stewart over and over again if Stewart’s show is ‘political’. Stewart always answered “no, it’s a comedy show’.
Finding funny-isms in politician’s utterings is a slam dunk.
Stewart goes for the laugh, not for the truth.
Asking Stewart about Iraq policy is like asking Bozo the clown about nuclear physics.
Jon Stewart’s father is a college physicist. His mother also worked in education. Stewart received his degree (with two majors, political science and psychology) from the sixth-best public university in the country as ranked by U.S. News and World Report. He has two Peabody Awards, nine Emmy Awards, an Orwell Award and has written two books that appeared on the New York Times Best Seller List.
Mr. Moya’s alma mater? “Third tier,” according to the rankings.
Hmmm…I think I’ll listen to Stewart.