Jon Stewart on Who Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill Really Helps — and Hurts | The Daily Show

Jon Stewart on Who Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill Really Helps — and Hurts | The Daily Show

Welcome to the news. [APPLAUSE, CHEERING] # # We– welcome to
The Daily Show. My name is Jon Stewart. And we have started
to staple my scripts so that it doesn’t fly away. We have an unbelievable
show for you tonight. We’re back. We’ve been off for a week now. We’re ready to go. By the way, our guest
tonight, former 60 Minutes correspondent,
Steve Kroft, will be joining me later. [APPLAUSE, CHEERING] Why? Why? Why, you ask? [LAUGHTER] To discuss our parent
company, Paramount’s, shameful settlement– [ELEVATOR MUSIC] That’s why it’s so wrong! [LAUGHTER] Wait. Did they– son of a bitch! [LAUGHTER] Let’s get right into the
big news of the weekend. We celebrated our
nation’s independence with fireworks and drugs– hidden in peanut butter– to get our dogs
through the fireworks. [LAUGHTER] Trazodone, it’s
like a ThunderShirt you wear on the inside. [LAUGHTER] But most notably, this
weekend marked the passage of the legislative
coup that was Trump’s big tax and spending bill. Now, I’m gonna let you
know, there were some cuts. REPORTER 1 (ON
TAPE): The Medicaid cuts alone could total
roughly $930 billion, with at least 11.8 million
people at risk of losing their health coverage. REPORTER 2 (ON TAPE): It also
cuts another $285 billion in food assistance. REPORTER 3 (ON TAPE):
–an end to clean energy credits from the Biden era. REPORTER 4 (ON
TAPE): –new caps on the amount that students
can borrow in federal loans. 3 million poor
people and kids will lose school lunch help. I think that last
one is supposed to read, 3 million
poor people and kids will lose school lunch. Help! [LAUGHTER] Just an intonation. It’s a lot of painful cuts on a
lot of vulnerable populations. But to be fair, at least
America will finally make a dent on the deficit. This mega bill will increase
the deficit by $3.4 trillion. What the [BLEEP]. [LAUGHTER] Holy shit! You what? You somehow managed to
severely cut the safety net and expand the deficit. That’s impressive. That’s one of
those, hey, man, how did you gain all that weight? Ozempic. That’s something
that’s hard to do. [LAUGHTER] I’m on Ozempic, and now
I’m really [BLEEP] fat. [LAUGHTER] So even though some
of our nation’s most vulnerable are taking
a pay cut, fear not. Other people are
getting a raise. REPORTER (ON TAPE):
There is $157 billion in new spending
for the military, and another $150
billion for immigration and border enforcement. [JON STAMMERS] $150 billion for immigration
and border enforcement? Are you telling me, all
this crazy shit that has been happening is broke ICE? Is that what you’re saying? [LAUGHTER] What is ICE gonna do when
they have real money? Oh. Oh, that’s nice. [LAUGHTER] They’re gonna do the
Kanye diamond masks. [LAUGHTER] Classy. But America’s military
and paramilitary weren’t the only winners in this bill. REPORTER 1 (ON TAPE):
Changes to the tax code could benefit corporate
America and manufacturers. REPORTER 2 (ON TAPE): The bill
features roughly $4 trillion in tax cuts for the
wealthiest Americans. REPORTER 3 (ON TAPE):
The estate tax becomes permanent and more generous. The Holy Grail
of this tax plan, the best part of
it for businesses, is bonus depreciation. And all the private jet
makers have been salivating over this possibility. I’m not sure that
liquid is saliva. [LAUGHTER] But OK, the winners
continue to be the winners. Either way, this bill was
a big victory for MAGA. And Republicans were turnt up. [THE VILLAGE PEOPLE, “YMCA”] # It’s fun to
stay at the YMCA # # It’s fun to
stay at the YMCA # [LAUGHTER] I’m sorry. That was the party they had
for the Epstein list not being released. [LAUGHTER] No. [APPLAUSE, CHEERING] I’m kidding. I’m kidding. I’m kidding. That’s not what that was. There was no list. [LAUGHTER] There never was a list. The DOJ may be
releasing the list of Jeffrey Epstein’s clients? Will that really happen? It’s sitting on my desk
right now, to review. Is it really? [LAUGHTER] The list is on my desk. But then I looked at the
list, and said, no list. [LAUGHTER] Now, there’s a lot of ways that
we can walk through this tax and spending bill, and
how this bill encapsulates a ton of general
Washington bullshittery, for instance,
political hypocrisy. This bill was 970 pages. They jammed it through with
barely any time to read it. How did Republicans feel about
that when Democrats did it? This thing is
moving too fast. People aren’t even gonna
be able to read this bill. They hope that nobody’s gonna
take the time to read the bill overnight, between–
between right now and 8 o’clock in
the morning, when we’re supposed to vote on it. The determination
of the White House and the Democratic majority
to shove this down the throat of the American people– Ooh. When it happens to them, it’s
shoving it down their throat. It’s an outrage. But when it’s for Republicans,
it’s just, come on, America. Relax the glottis. Breathe through your nose. [LAUGHTER] It’ll all be over soon. And then we’ll get brunch. Is it the glottis? I don’t know. That was– it was the funniest
throat organ I could think of. Another way we could
talk about this bill is Democratic fecklessness. They were utterly powerless to
stop this turd of a bill, which makes them look terrible. The only thing that could
make Democrats look even worse was bragging about the
nothing they could do. Schumer tweeted this,
“News, I just got the name struck
off this bill with a move on the Senate floor.” Oh, shit. No, you didn’t. [LAUGHTER] Seriously, tell
me you didn’t just brag about changing nothing
about the bill but its name. This is not a “big,
beautiful bill” at all. That is why I moved on the
floor to strike the title. It is now called “the act.” [LAUGHTER] Are you trying to suck? Is that what this is? [LAUGHTER] That’s your move. We– we worked hard and took
out the dumb name of the bill, and named the bill after
a prestige drama on Hulu. [LAUGHTER] But at least Democrats
still have Hakeem Jeffries, over in the House. He’s a younger leader. And he decided not to answer
with words, but with imagery. Hakeem Jeffries,
on Instagram, he’s got a baseball
bat, and he says, House Democrats will
keep the pressure on Trump’s one big, ugly bill. [LAUGHTER] Hakeem Jeffries answered with
imagery, imagery that sends a clear message to
Republicans, that Hakeem Jeffries and the Democrats– are waiting for their moms
to pick them up from T-ball. [LAUGHTER] They may– [APPLAUSE, CHEERING] The Democrats may not
have made the team, but they’re ready to step
in if a body is needed. Does anybody understand that
intimidating, menacing photos are generally taken from below,
to make the subject appear larger, not from above, to
make the subject appear, I don’t know, eight years old? [LAUGHTER] The photo has to
be intimidating. Make sure you get
the upholstery in my leather love seat. [LAUGHTER] They gotta know
I have furniture. Or we could talk about
the media’s narrative, dramatizing the fragility
of Trump’s ruling coalition, and what that
fragility could mean. President Trump’s
agenda is in trouble. REPORTER 1 (ON
TAPE): Big trouble for Trump’s beautiful bill. President Trump’s signature
legislation on a knife’s edge– –hangs in the balance. –hitting a major roadblock. The margins are so
tight here, that anything could throw it into jeopardy. It will be a nail biter. There’s no question about that. REPORTER 2 (ON TAPE):
The dramatic moment of Vice President Vance,
breaking a tie vote. [GASP] Ooh! It surprisingly got through,
like every other [BLEEP] thing Trump has wanted,
from Qatari jet bribes to Epstein file secrecy
to extorted media conglomerate protection money. I can’t believe ABC paid that. That was so [BLEEP] up. [LAUGHTER] I’ll let myself out. [LAUGHTER] [APPLAUSE] Sure, I wouldn’t
want to be ABC. But every time a new “Trump’s
never getting that” comes up, the media is blown away when
he actually does get it, without ever acknowledging that
the no votes from Republicans are scripted to allow
certain senators plausible deniability without putting
any part of that agenda, actually at risk. It reminds me of the way every
professional wrestling match gets the announcer slack jawed
with shock at the stunning turn of events. If Jon Stewart
showed up here tonight, I would force him to
retire immediately, because it is quite
difficult to do a phony news show with your jaw wired shut. [THE DAILY SHOW THEME MUSIC] COMMENTATOR 1 (ON TAPE): Uh-oh. COMMENTATOR 2 (ON
TAPE): No way. COMMENTATOR 1 (ON
TAPE): Oh, yes, way. COMMENTATOR 2 (ON TAPE):
That’s Jon Stewart. He did show. [LAUGHTER] [APPLAUSE, CHEERING] Look at old tubs. [LAUGHTER] What a surprise! I can’t believe he
showed up there– like we rehearsed. [LAUGHTER] It should have been
clear that this bill, like everything else, was going
to pass on the day they said it was going to pass, that the
nos for the bill were for show, like Senator Josh
Hawley’s “deep concerns.” This is real
Medicaid benefit cuts. I can’t support that. No Republican
should support that. We’re the party of
the working-class, and we need to act like it. Mm. Do you need to act like it? Did you act like it, Josh? Did you? Hawley ended up
voting for the bill. He put it in a
statement, quote, “I will continue
to do everything in my power to reverse
future cuts to Medicaid.” Oh, yes, future
cuts, everything in my power for future
cuts, except voting no in the present. Or how about
Senator Ron Johnson. You’ve got deficit
concerns for the children. I’m concerned
about my children, my grandchildren, and the fact
that we are stealing from them. We are stealing from our
children and grandchildren, $37 trillion in debt. And we’re gonna add
to it as Republicans? That– that is unacceptable. You’ll never guess
who accepted it. REPORTER (ON TAPE): Senator
Ron Johnson flipped from a no to a yes. Sorry, children
and grandchildren. [LAUGHTER] Maybe next future. Any other Republican
who initially said, this is terrible,
I’m not voting for this, and had an even dumber
reason for flipping to yes? Tim Burchett, from Tennessee,
I’m looking at your dumb ass. Was– was it cool? [LAUGHTER] He signed a bunch
of stuff for you? It was cool? Was that your class’s
first trip to Washington? [LAUGHTER] He gave us M&Ms.
I’ll vote whatever you want me to vote for. He signed my tits. [LAUGHTER] Whatever you want, I’ll do it. [APPLAUSE] By the way, nothing
makes me distrust Donald Trump more than saying
that guy is good on TV. [LAUGHTER] It’s all pro wrestling. The only difference between
that vote and wrestling is that wrestling is fun,
and takes actual courage. And they didn’t even get
concessions to flip their vote. Only one senator, apparently,
got meaningful concessions. And that’s Lisa
Murkowski of Alaska. And those concessions
really wouldn’t work anywhere else, but Alaska. Senator Paul said
that this was– that your vote was
a bailout for Alaska at the expense of the
rest of the country. Oh, my God. That’s what
Senator Paul said. MAN 1: This one was easy. MAN 2: Senator, we’ve got the– I didn’t say it, Ma’am. I’m just asking
for your response. [LAUGHTER] That’s my favorite clip ever. She stares him down, and the
reporter goes, I didn’t say it. [STAMMERS] I– I didn’t– I don’t know– I’m just– look, I
don’t even like this. [STAMMERS] I wanted to work in the
control room, but I’m handsome. So they put me out
here cause they didn’t want this
moneymaker to go to waste. But excluding all the
fake narrative shenanigans and hypocrisies
and fecklessness is the central
truth of this bill. Once again, it’s the bullshit
gospel of austerity, the gospel they preach any
time the country’s finances are in shambles
and out of control. Our problem isn’t
excess at the top, it’s the sloth at the bottom. We don’t pay people in
this country to be lazy. If somebody’s able-bodied
and they can go get a job, and they’re living in
their mom’s basement, playing video games, I’m
sorry, you gotta go get a job. Get off the couch,
stop eating the Cheetos, stop buying the
medical marijuana, and watching television. First of all, nobody talks
about my audience like that! [LAUGHTER] Nobody! [APPLAUSE, CHEERING] Yeah! You hear those
[BLEEP] Cheetos, man? Second of all, it is such a
[BLEEP] lazy and wrong trope. I don’t know if you’ve noticed,
but those people smoking dope, sitting around,
playing video games, they’re all [BLEEP]
Twitch millionaires now. And it’s this lazy,
bullshit narrative, that our finances are screwed
because of how comfortable we have made it for the poor,
a mindset, perhaps perfectly encapsulated by this
human editorial cartoon, Congressman Troy Nehls. REPORTER (ON TAPE):
Can I ask you, though, about the CBO
score, and the idea that 11 million, 12
million Americans may lose health insurance? –any confidence in the CBO. Their scoring, they’re
wrong half the damn time. I don’t give any– Nah. A Congressman who just voted
to force people off of Medicaid and food assistance,
just smoking a fatty with both hands bandaged– [LAUGHTER] –from what I can only assume
is a friction burn from too much celebratory masturbation. [LAUGHTER] There’s no other way around it. Oh, Medicaid and food stamps. [LAUGHTER] I– I got blisters
on me fingers. The [BLEEP]? The problem in our
country isn’t the sliver of able-bodied people
that are somehow coasting on the unearned medical
coverage they may or may not use, but the millions
and millions of people in this country who work
[BLEEP] full-time jobs, and still need food
and medical assistance. That’s the system
that’s broken. Fix that system. [APPLAUSE, CHEERING] What are we talking about? And yet, oh, we’re always
gaslit into the framework of “the deserving poor.” And I gotta tell you,
the deserving poor, they have very
much disappointed the deserving rich. REPORTER (ON TAPE): OpenAI
founder, Sam Altman, said he was politically
homeless in a July 4th message, he posted to X. Excuse me, not to be that
guy, I believe the term is “politically unhoused.” [LAUGHTER] But go on. How have the Democrats
let you down? REPORTER (ON TAPE): “I’d rather
hear from candidates about how they are going to make everyone
have the stuff billionaires have, instead of
how they are going to eliminate billionaires.” That’s the pitch,
everyone should be. Wouldn’t we all just
run out of foam? Wouldn’t that– [LAUGHTER] I wasn’t invited. [LAUGHTER] But that’s the pitch. Somehow, it is
fiscally irresponsible to build a stronger
floor for everyone to stand on if it
may, in any way, lower the already
astronomical ceiling height experienced by the rare few. This bill is the
most [BLEEP] up performance review our
country could ever deliver. It’s the government
sitting us all down and telling us where
we’ve been irresponsible with the spending. We start with the wealthy. [LAUGHTER] Thank you for coming in. I know it’s hard when you
only work one day a week, but thank you for
making the time. It’s been a tough year,
but as always, wealthy, you’re killing it. In the words of a place
you probably never eat at, we’re loving it. [LAUGHTER] And so, once again,
for the, I’m gonna say, 80th year in a row,
you’re getting a raise. Now, if you’ll excuse
me, I have a busy day, another review to deliver. You freeloading
mother-[BLEEP], it has come to my
attention that some of you are having breakfast– [LAUGHTER] — lunch. Maybe you haven’t heard, our
deficit is out of control. We need that lunch
money for more important things, which reminds me– [LAUGHTER] –what if I gave
you a tax deduction for taking a private
jet to your private jet? If time permits,
perhaps we could take it to that
nonexistent island I’ve heard so much about. [LAUGHTER] Excuse me! Who ate the porridge
that was here? Who ate the porridge? You, boy, what day is it, boy? Christmas Day? Take this doubloon,
buy the biggest Christmas goose you can find,
and take it to the heliport. I have a pilot. Look, blaming migrants
and the able-bodied poor is why Trump won this election. But a system where working
people struggle so much is why Mamdani
won his election. And for all– [APPLAUSE, CHEERING] –and for all the
people who are worried about Mamdani’s
socialist tendencies, guess what? He’s the best-case
scenario cause this system is not sustainable. And if this doesn’t
change, there’s gonna be more drastic action. Really? [GROANS] We’re gonna need a bigger bat!

Jon Stewart covers the passage of Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill: Republicans bashing then endorsing the megabill, trading tax cuts to sway senators, giving a $40 billion infusion to ICE, boosting billionaires at the expense of Medicaid and SNAP, and more. #DailyShow #JonStewart #Trump

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