Jon Stewart mocked both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump during his return to “The Daily Show,” saying both 2024 candidates are “stretching the limits of being able to handle the toughest job in the world.”
After a more than eight-year absence, the 61-year-old comedian returned to hosting duties on the Comedy Central show to raucous applause Monday. The cable network announced last month that Stewart would sit at the anchor desk on Monday nights, with a rotating lineup of other hosts on other weekdays.
Stewart took aim early in his monologue at Biden and his response to special counsel Robert Hur’s classified records report that drew attention to the president’s age and cognitive ability.
“This guy couldn’t remember stuff during his deposition. Do you understand what that means? He had no ability to recall very basic things under questioning,” Stewart said, before then zinging Trump and playing footage of him being unable to recall facts during depositions.
“Biden’s lost a step, but Trump regularly says things at rallies that would warrant a wellness check,” Stewart said to laughs.
“The question then becomes, what the f—k are we doing here, people?” said a seemingly exasperated Stewart.
“We have two candidates who are chronologically outside the norm of anyone who has run for the presidency in this country, in the history of this country,” Stewart said of 81-year-old Biden and Trump, 77. “They are the oldest people ever to run for president — breaking by only four years the record that they set the last time they ran!” Stewart exclaimed.
“We’re not suggesting neither man is vibrant, productive or even capable,” Stewart said.
Striking a more sober tone, Stewart said, “What’s crazy is thinking that we are the ones as voters who must silence concerns and criticisms. It is the candidates’ job to assuage concerns — not the voters’ job, not to mention them.”
While Biden “isn’t Donald Trump,” Stewart said, mentioning the 45th president’s multiple indictments and legal cases against him, “The stakes of this election don’t make Donald Trump’s opponent less subject to scrutiny.”
“It actually makes him more subject to scrutiny,” Stewart said.
Come Election Day, Stewart said, “If your guy loses, bad things might happen, but the country is not over. And if your guy wins, the country is in no way saved.”
“So the good news is: I’m not saying you don’t have to worry about who wins the election,” Stewart concluded.
“I’m saying you have to worry about every day before it, and every day after, forever.”