‘I LIKE YOU, BUT I DON’T UNDERSTAND HOW YOUR BRAIN WORKS’…. When I first heard that Elizabeth “Betsy” McCaughey was going to be on “The Daily Show,” I was a little concerned. McCaughey doesn’t need the publicity, and she has a nasty habit of making demonstrably ridiculous claims about health care reform. Indeed, much of the widely-believed right-wing nonsense about reform can be traced back to McCaughey.
She started lying about the administration’s health policies in February, and she’s been on a tear since.
But my concerns were unfounded. Jon Stewart didn’t invite McCaughey on to offer a platform for her nonsense; he invited her on to make her appear ridiculous. As David Kurtz noted, “As funny as he is, Jon Stewart is often at his best when he drops the comedian schtick and just goes with his whip-smart 40-something Jew routine, like he did last night with GOP whackadoodle Betsy McCaughey.”
As Alex Koppelman added:
McCaughey’s latest falsehoods have taken hold with a disturbingly large portion of the American public. But she couldn’t get them past “Daily Show” host Jon Stewart, who had her on his show Thursday night and subjected her to one of his better interviews, meticulously picking her points apart and demonstrating their inaccuracy, leaving her stumbling and stammering in an attempt to defend her position. By the end of it, he told her, “I like you — but I don’t understand how your brain works.”
McCaughey tried, repeatedly, to ingratiate herself to Stewart and his audience. She talked about how much she loved the show, how much she enjoys Stewart, and that she actually loves the idea of health care reform.
Stewart was unmoved, calling her ridiculous rhetoric “hyperbolic” and “dangerous,” and mocking her and other “doomsayers.” Under the circumstances, the criticism was mild compared to the extent of the damage McCaughey has done to the national discourse.
The interview went way over the allotted time, and ran online in multiple parts. I’ve included them below, though I should note that the clips are uncensored and include some language that may be NSFW.
Part I:
Part II:
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||||
| Exclusive – Betsy McCaughey Extended Interview Pt. 1 | ||||||
| www.thedailyshow.com | ||||||
| Daily Show Full Episodes | Political Humor | Healthcare Protests | |||
| Daily Show Full Episodes | Political Humor | Healthcare Protests |
Part III:
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||||
| Exclusive – Betsy McCaughey Extended Interview Pt. 2 | ||||||
| www.thedailyshow.com | ||||||
| Daily Show Full Episodes | Political Humor | Healthcare Protests | |||
| Daily Show Full Episodes | Political Humor | Healthcare Protests |
