Jon Stewart and Pete Buttigieg Discuss Fox News and the Harris Campaign
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Hey, this is Roy Chang. The Daily Show is off this week, but don't worry. We put together some of our favorite moments from the show in case you missed them. We'll be back with brand new shows on September 10th. Until then, enjoy today's episode. Welcome back to The Daily Show. My guest tonight, he is the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, ran for president in 2020. Please welcome to the program, Pete Buttigieg. Yeah!

I'm going to tell you something. So, everyone's crazy. Let me tell you a story. That is all the time we have. Great.

I got to tell you, so I was coming out. I come out earlier just to talk to the audience, have some words. There was a lovely woman in the audience. She said she stood up and she said, is the future Madam President here tonight? And I said, I'm not sure what you're saying. And she said, Kamala Harris. And I said, oh, you thought Kamala Harris is here tonight. And she's not. And there was a sadness that crept over her face. But you just healed it.

I swear to God, though, you are, for liberals, watching you go on Fox News and discuss things in a rational manner. It is for liberals. It's like when Gosling hosts SNL. It's just that. It's just like, oh, he's so good at this. Oh, man.

Is that an uncomfortable thing to do? Is it something you enjoy? A little. I mean, I never thought that Fox News would be like a specialty of mine. Yes. It's not something I watched a ton of before I found myself going on it. You ain't missing much, sir. You ain't missing much. You know, what I found is it is important to reach people where they are. And even if I'm skeptical sometimes that the

network is covering things in good faith. I know lots of people who are tuning in in good faith. And so in the same way that, you know, back when I was running for president, I kind of specialized in counties that had voted for Obama and then for Trump. That's how I won Iowa, really, was partly through that kind of outreach and finding people who are not hardcore partisans, but

but do usually get their information in a very certain and I would argue very narrow way. I have a chance to, as long as they'll have me on, I have a chance to pop that, you know, puncture that bubble. Do you find anecdotal feedback that it's heard other than, you know, a clip going viral or something like that? Will you be at home in Michigan? Will you be somewhere and someone that you know is more red partisan will say to you, hey, I caught you on...

Yeah, I mean, it literally happened to me today. And to be clear, it's not like somebody says, you know, I was a rock-ribbed Republican and I saw your four-minute Fox News segment and I've seen the light and now I'm a Democrat. But, you know, I do hear from people I know who are more conservative or probably don't usually vote the way I do. But they'll say, you know, I saw the way you laid things out. I think, you know, I understand where you're coming from or I think the way you laid it out could make sense. Right. You know, I'm under no illusion that you can just, you know, on the strength of a witty argument or a

Man, are you preaching to him? Yep, you're right. Doesn't do jack. But I get it. I get the smartness. What is the point of having a conversation if you're not speaking to people who don't already agree with you? Son of a bitch. That's so smart, and it's exactly the way it should be. Are you right now, by the way...

unbelievably tumultuous, I mean, week, like eight days. Has it felt that way inside the administration? How did you find out about it? Is it in that situation? Does the president call everybody together and go, hey, everybody,

got some news like how does that how does it work no i mean that would be a very long list of everybody to you know to talk to so i found out the way everybody did i was i was actually on a plane fittingly enough uh taxiing in and and uh chastin was sitting next to me checking twitter and and and saw the post and uh so we found out that the same way everybody else did and yeah ever since i think a lot of us you know our heads are spinning so much has changed but um

Part of what's changed is this incredible energy that we have now. You know, I was home over the weekend, stopped by the field office for the Now Harris campaign next to where we live in. Did they literally just take the poster down and slap another one up there? Is that like it's the same office with the same people? Pretty much. And that's OK, because it's it's because it's the same values and it's the same effort. Yeah, no, I mean, they literally went like.

I will say they got those yard signs ready really quick. Yeah, it's not. But there's got to be a kink goes almost everywhere. You know, obviously, you know, she represents a lot of continuity with the values of the Biden-Harris campaign and the Biden-Harris administration, but also a different messenger, a different style, a different approach. And people are clearly really fired up and excited about it. I know I am. Do you think is it this is such a strange question? And I don't know if you've spoken to him or not, but like, do you think

President Biden sees that and is like, "Oh, fine." Like, or is he -- Like, does that -- I would imagine it would hurt your feelings. If that were me, it would hurt my feelings. -I don't know. I think part of what he achieved with what's a really extraordinary thing -- I think even now we might be underselling how world-historically rare it is to be literally the most powerful person in the world... -And just be like, "Yeah, it's fine." -...and lay power aside, right, just 'cause it's the right thing to do.

But in doing so, I also think he's consolidated his own standing as one of America's great presidents. And I also think he's very conscious that that means springing through the tape and continuing to deliver for the next six months. What are the narrative about, like, they bullied him? He was bullied. Is that even, can you do that to a president? Can you be like, get out? And then the president would be like, stop, you're

No, I mean, that's the thing, right? It was his call. And he made that call. And people may second guess. Because those delegates were his. Right, yeah. I mean, and people may second guess, you know, the manner of it or the timing of it. But at the end of the day, it was his choice. He made that choice. And that must have been an extraordinarily difficult choice, but also the right choice.

Now, are you being so now it's she is on a vice presidential search. Are you being vetted right now? Would you know if you're being vetted right now when they vet you? Do you feel it? Is it a physical sensation? You're being vetted. You know. Yeah. You know. You know when you're being vetted. Yeah. I may bet you I'm going to bet you right now. Please don't. Please don't. Pretty, pretty good.

Hey everybody, Jon Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, The Weekly Show. It's going to be coming out

Every Thursday. So exciting. You'll be saying to yourself, TGIT. Thank God it's Thursday. We're going to be talking about all the things that hopefully obsess you in the same way that they obsess me. The election, economics, earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches.

And I know that I listed that fourth, but in importance, it's probably second. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? I mean, talk about innovative. Listen to The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart wherever you get your podcasts.

What does it require? Is there, like, is there literally a physical exam that goes along with being vetted? Not that I'm aware of. But, I mean, look, all I should say about it is that, you know, she is going to make this decision. She's got a process to help her make the decision. Oh, my God, you're being vetted. Everything you say, even that, is being vetted. Probably. It's so uncomfortable because don't, aren't you...

Do you think the vetting process is different? To be in the administration, you probably have to go through a process. Yeah. In fact, I was thinking about it because I was vetted to be part of the cabinet. And then pretty soon after that, Chastin and I were going through the process of adoption. And, you know, it was kind of the same thing, but with a social worker instead of a white shoe law firm. Really, I mean, there's a lot of, you know, the law firm is like, OK, now, you know, tell me about your finances.

And, you know, a year or two later, there's a social worker who's like, tell me about your finances. And you go through step by step. And one of the things you think about is the journey that an adoptive, that adoptive parents go through. Right. It does involve that kind of, you feel like you're under a microscope. It's that, the bar of adoption is that high. It's similar to like getting a high level security clearance position in government. Yeah. I mean, not the exact same, obviously, but, you know, a surprising amount of overlap. Right. Were there questions about,

Was there certain parts of the vetting process for government where you were like, you're going to let me get away with that? Like, was there anything like, you know what I mean? If there was not, but if there was, would I describe it on television? Of course. This is cable. See, that's my problem is...

The vetting process, because being vetted to be a road comic is, the bar is, don't die. But like for public service, I've got pictures in a shoebox that would disqualify me for working for the post office. Like it's, it's bad. But you, you know, you were in the military, did things, like pretty clean. Yeah, I think so, yeah. I don't want to say anything, but it sounded to me right there like you're hiding something. Thanks a lot.

When will they tell you, do they come to you afterwards and say, hey, we're about to announce it and you made it to the quarterfinals and you were great, but do they, like, will they announce that or do you find out, like, on Twitter like everybody else? I don't know. What I know is that there's a flying formation. You're going to talk values again, aren't you?

Yeah, probably. I probably should. No, look, what I'll say is no matter what the flying formation is going to be, I'm really excited to be part of this. I'm excited to be part of this campaign.

campaign because I really believe in it. And I feel that energy. I felt it on the ground over the weekend. You've been back out on the road since this happened? Yeah, yeah. I kicked off a canvas in the Traverse City field office and it felt amazing. Just it was an energy I hadn't felt since I was campaigning in Michigan in 2022 for the midterms, which went really well. So, you know, but

As you memorably pointed out, three or four months is forever. So a lot of things are going to happen. There's going to be a lot of ups and downs. It's going to be a roller coaster. But I think we're ready for that, largely because we're

I think now we're kind of, we have a renewed awareness, not just of what we're against, but what we're for. Right. And I think that's really important. Well, the message before was literally, it doesn't matter what you see. That's worse. Which is not, you know, it's not so compelling. You know what I mean? And people were thirsty. And I don't say that...

I don't see that to be disrespectful. It just seemed like what people were experiencing. Yeah, and I think, look, there is a temptation to have our message be entirely about Donald Trump because we're so disturbed by what his return would mean. And maybe a little more also about J.D. Vance because of how odd he's turned out to be. I've got to tell you, boy, did that dude drop a turd on launch. I've never seen anything like that where they were like...

One day they were like, the heir to the MAGA fortune and the MAGA, the Prince JD shall march. And he comes out and he's like, I hate cat ladies. And, you know, just like systematically insulted so many people. It's not just the kind of things he said, but the policy ideas behind them. Like he has this idea that you should get extra votes if you have kids. Extra votes? Yeah. He suggested that you should have extra votes if you're a parent.

Really? I think there's lots of things. You don't even get that in your own house. I'm a parent. You don't get anything. It's true. I'm starting to find that. I mean, ours are not yet three, but...

And it's rooted in this strange idea that it's not just, he doesn't just say that being a parent gives you an important role as a citizen, which I agree with, that it gives you unique perspective on the future. It's that not being a parent makes you less. I think that's absolutely how they feel. He said people who don't have children, this is a quote, have no physical commitment to the future of this country.

Wow. And I just think about how, like, no physical commitment to the future. Like, when I was deployed to Afghanistan, I didn't have kids back then. But I will tell you, especially when there was a rocket attack going on, my commitment to this country felt pretty physical. Can I tell you something? This is why...

This is why people love seeing you go on shows, because that framing is perfect. Because it does, it points to that idea that who are you to tell what's in someone else's heart about what they feel about the future or what they feel about this country? And the sacrifices that you made, as you said, without having had children, were tremendous. So it's shocking. And I also have to address this sort of strange, I think, false populism on the right, economic populism.

THE ROBERTS COURT HAS BEEN THE LEAST WORKER FRIENDLY COURT IN GOD KNOWS HOW LONG. THEIR POLICIES, THEY COMPLAIN ABOUT GLOBALIZATION HURTING WORKERS. I DO THINK THAT'S A CORRECT FORMULATION.

in that moment. But I don't think they realize what right to work states, you know, what they think Mexico is to the United States, Texas is to New York. Like, it's a race to the bottom. And there's all kinds of studies that show right to work states depress wages. They depress worker safety. They do all kinds of terrible. So what is this economic populism based on? Well, it's not based on policy. It's just body language. It's this idea that if you just

act like you are populist, that that counts. Look, I'm under no illusions that elections are just a policy exercise. A lot of it is vibes. A lot of it is style. But if your party has been systematically against unions, against a higher minimum wage, against things like paid family leave, against overtime, then just because you found Hulk Hogan and Kid Rock and put them on stage doesn't make you a friend of the working man, right?

Like, the substance actually matters. Well, I would only say it does make you a friend of the working man in the 80s. So I think that was helpful. Do you, in terms of that, I wonder, you know, ever since Reagan, and I think Democratic administrations have gone along with it too much as well.

The shift from a labor economy to an investment economy and the penalties that labor faces versus, you know, there's no question that equities and the investment market have done unbelievably well since, you know, the 80s. Right. And that labor has, you know, wallowed much further behind. Yeah. It's a shareholder economy. Why is it so difficult to get workers? Forget about even unions.

a place at the table at the companies, if these companies have done so well for their shareholders, why can't the workers...

share in that prosperity in the same way as why can't they be shareholders? Yeah, I think that's right. Although I will say one thing that unions are increasingly doing is getting employees a chance to participate in that profit sharing for exactly that reason and getting that seat at the table. But that's exactly why it matters, not just kind of what your style or your affect is, but what you're actually proposing to do. And I would say part of what we can be really proud of

from the Biden-Harris years, and I think in future, a future Harris administration too, is a real focus on returning a little more to a worker-led economy or worker-oriented economy that includes- Rebalancing. Yes, the financialization, a lot of those trends have been very powerful. Yeah. The role of the information economy, which is merged in some ways with manufacturing because even a,

A CAR IS INCREASINGLY, YOU KNOW, PART CAR, PART COMPUTER. BUT IT'S STILL REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE MAKE THE CARS HERE. AND THAT'S PART OF WHAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING TO MAKE HAPPEN. THERE WAS A MANUFACTURING RECESSION DURING TRUMP, EVEN BEFORE COVID. RIGHT. THERE WAS A MANUFACTURING BOOM NOW. YOU HAVE TO GO BACK DECADES TO FIND ANYTHING LIKE THIS MUCH INVESTMENT IN TERMS OF THE AMOUNT OF PLACES AROUND THE COUNTRY RIGHT NOW WHERE FACTORIES ARE BEING BUILT. THERE WAS JUST A GUY, I THINK IT WAS THE MAYOR, IT WAS A CITY IN ARIZONA. MIGHT HAVE BEEN MESA.

wrote an op-ed almost saying exactly that. He's a Republican, and he's in a border town, and he was saying, I'm supporting Harris because of the Investment Act of Infrastructure, because of the Chips Act, because of what they've tried to do. And maybe that is the key, is to get that out in those sorts of places where people might not normally hear. Yeah, because I remember being a mayor in the industrial Midwest, and actually the one time that Trump fooled me, I'll admit it, something he said he would do that I believed him.

was when he said he was going to pass this big infrastructure law. I thought he would do it because it's good politically and why not? And, of course, he failed to do it. Joe Biden did, by the way, with a lot of involvement from Kamala Harris. And now it's something that I wish back when I was mayor that we had that kind of wind at our back as a city. No, it's terribly hard. You know, it's funny. I went to his college. I thought for sure...

I saw the ad, and I went to it, and it turned out I'm not a doctor. But I'll say this. I think the really important thing to watch with him isn't the promises that he broke. Like, yeah, he broke the promise about infrastructure. He broke the promise about 6% growth. He even broke the promise he made to that January 6th mob when he said he was going to be right there with them when they marched on the Capitol. Sure.

But actually, the promises he kept are the really interesting ones, because I think they tell you what the next Trump administration, if he got one, would be like. And he really kept two. One was the promise he made to the Christian right to eliminate the right to choose. Sure. And the other was the promise he made to corporate America to cut taxes for corporations and the wealthy. Those are the promises he followed through on. That's what he's about, Hulk Hogan or not. I think every... That's great. Keep moving, Ted. From now on...

Every political conversation in this country has to end with Hulk Hogan or not.

Welcome to the Cooper residence. Cooper McAllister. I'm surprised you put my name first. Come on in. From the brains behind the Big Bang Theory and Young Sheldon, CBS is excited to welcome back some beloved, familiar folks. I am so glad that you and Cece are here. And Georgie. Atta girl. It's a whole new chapter. Georgie and Mandy's first marriage premieres CBS Thursday, 8, 7 Central and streaming on Paramount+.

Hey everybody, Jon Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, The Weekly Show, coming out every Thursday. We're going to be talking about the election, earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? Listen to The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart wherever you get your podcasts.