When Elon Musk sauntered onstage at Donald Trump’s latest Pennsylvania rally, sporting an “Occupy Mars” T-shirt and an all-black “Make America Nice Once more” hat, he declared himself not solely a Trump supporter, however a heavy for “darkish MAGA.”
“Ooh, darkish MAGA?” Jon Stewart quipped on Monday’s episode of The Every day Present. “I didn’t comprehend it got here in flavors! I’m wondering if for the vacations they’ll come out with peppermint bark MAGA. Or pumpkin spice MAGA.” After taking some swipes at Musk’s overly enthusiastic presence on the rally—“He’s appearing like a man who received a radio contest”—the late-night host grew severe in regards to the tech billionaire’s assertion that Democrats are the anti-free-speech occasion.
“Now, you may suppose one of many world’s richest males controlling one of many world’s most influential platforms might be a recipe for what some could take into account election interference,” Stewart started. “You silly, silly individuals. You disgust me. Election interference is what Mark Zuckerberg did.” Stewart then reminded viewers that Trump has threatened the Fb cofounder about participating in election interference this election cycle, with the previous president having accused him of doing so again in 2020. Nonetheless, the ex-president seemingly has no problem this cycle with Musk offering his followers money to register swing voters.
Stewart additionally famous that Trump’s marketing campaign has referred to as the brand new film The Apprentice a fictionalized depiction of Trump’s early rise to energy and “election interference by Hollywood elites,” including that it has threatened authorized motion over the movie’s launch. Stated Stewart, “Oh, come on! That’s election interference? Possibly it’s election interference, however you gotta be a little bit bit flattered that you just’re being performed by Sebastian Stan.”
The section later lower to a clip of Musk claiming that Democrats are coming after free speech. “Elon, had been you not watching the remainder of the present?” Stewart requested. “A film Trump doesn’t like is gonna get sued. A tech mogul he doesn’t like, he desires to place in jail. It’s not free speech if solely Trump’s admirers get to do it with out consequence.”
Stewart’s commentary turned much more contentious after he performed one other clip of Musk on the rally. “However no less than the Structure stays intact and is there to make sure that we’ve got the First Modification,” Stewart stated earlier than displaying a clip by which Musk stated: “The Second Modification is there to make sure that we’ve got the First Modification.”
“Weapons don’t defend our free speech!” Stewart replied. “Our free speech is protected by the consent of the ruled, laid out by the Structure. It’s not based mostly on the specter of violence. It’s based mostly on elections, organizing referendums, a judicial system. Our social contract gives many, many avenues to treatment these points and permits sides to be heard and adjudicated. Weapons, from what I can inform, appear to principally defend the speech of the individuals holding the gun.”
Stewart didn’t cease there. Musk’s phrases, he stated, are “a device of intimidation, and one which I believe is definitely being irresponsibly and recklessly invoked. As a result of some individuals in your crowd thought they may have been shadow banned by Fb. I imply, for God’s sakes: You guys are in Butler, Pennsylvania. The entire motive you’re there may be as a result of some fucking asshole with an AR-15 tried to completely litigate his imaginative and prescient of this nation’s free speech. That’s why you’re there. The entire level of a society is, weapons don’t determine it. I would favor at this second to not commerce in a authorities that provides me many cures for my issues, respectable or illegitimate, for a scenario the place my rights are decided by what number of militia members agree with me.”
