When Trevor Noah eventually leaves Comedy Central’s The Daily Show, Democrats will lose a reliable ally in their attempts to scare people into voting for them over the issue of abortion. On Tuesday, Noah spoke out in favor of an ad from Rep. Eric Swalwell depicting a woman getting arrested for an abortion, suggesting it is a very real possibility.
Noah teed up a video of the ad by declaring that “the main issue Democrats are running on is reproductive rights and California Congressman Eric Swalwell just put out one of the most hard-core campaign ads you've ever seen.”
The ad consists of two police officers showing up at the home of a family of four. When the woman declares her abortion “is my personal business,” an officer replies, “That's for the courts to decide, ma'am. Your medical records have been subpoenaed and Dr. Landrieu’s already in custody.”
The officer further explains “We will have to submit you to a physical examination.” When the woman’s husband steps up to proclaim “no one’s touching wife!” the two officers draw their guns and begin the process of arresting the woman, taking her away from her two children.
The ad concludes with a narrator warning “Elections have consequences. Vote Democrat on November 8th.”
With the ad over, Noah returned to marvel at its effectiveness, “Holy shit. That was intense. You don't usually expect a campaign to turn into an episode of Black Mirror.”
Neither Noah nor Swalwell can cite one pro-life law that says women will be arrested or forced to undergo physical examinations, but Noah still claimed, “and yes, this ad is exaggerating things to make point but it's true that in many states in America, cops could drop to your door if you had an abortion. They could arrest you and they could force you to have a physical examination. I mean, ironically, it’s probably the only free health care you'll ever get in America.”
Meanwhile, PolitiFact has not fact-checked Swalwell since May 2019 and the last, and only, time it checked Noah was in 2015.
This segment was sponsored by Olive Garden.
Here is a transcript for the October 18 show:
Comedy Central The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
10/19/2022
11:07 PM ET
TREVOR NOAH: But the main issue Democrats are running on is reproductive rights and California Congressman Eric Swalwell just put out one of the most hard-core campaign ads you've ever seen.
POLICE OFFICER: Mary Anderson?
MARY ANDERSON: Yes?
POLICE OFFICER: I have a warrant for your arrest.
HUSBAND: Arrest for what?
POLICE OFFICER: Unlawful termination of her pregnancy.
HUSBAND: You've got to be kidding me.
ANDERSON: That is my personal business.
POLICE OFFICER: That's for the courts to decide, ma'am. Your medical records have been subpoenaed and Dr. Landrieu’s already in custody.
ANDERSON: No. My god, you can't just –
POLICE OFFICER: We will have to submit you to a physical examination.
ANDERSON: What? By who?
HUSBAND: No, no one’s touching my wife! [Screaming]
POLICE OFFICER: Sir! Get back!
[commotion]
[baby screaming]
POLICE OFFICER: Ma’am, turn around!
ANDERSON: Oh, god. Okay.
POLICE OFFICER: Put your hands behind your back now!
DAUGHTER: Why is this happening?
ANDERSON: Love you, honey bear.
POLICE OFFICER: We’re just enforcing the law here.
NARRATOR: Elections have consequences. Vote Democrat on November 8th.
NOAH: Holy shit. That was intense. You don't usually expect a campaign to turn into an episode of Black Mirror. What was that? Like, I feel bad for the shows that had to come back from that ad break. “Did you see that? Why is this happening? Mom.”
You’ll never see her mother again!”
“Nooooooooo!
"And now, back to Young Sheldon.”
Look, it is wild, it is wild how overturning Roe has offended society so much where white women can be as scared of the police as black people are. And yes, and yes, this ad is exaggerating things to make point but it's true that in many states in America, cops could drop to your door if you had an abortion. They could arrest you and they could force you to have a physical examination. I mean, ironically, it’s probably the only free health care you'll ever get in America.
