As Jon Stewart wraps up his final week as host of the Daily Show, he used his Monday night show to attack a recent Koch brothers event that featured numerous Republican presidential candidates in attendance.
Stewart opened up his broadcast by making a crude sexual joke at the expense of the GOPers in attendance who “worked the talking points and cradled the special interests in the hopes of one of them after a period of 45 minutes to an hour would induce the money shot. And really, they didn't care which Koch went off.”
Later in the segment, the Daily Show host reacted to Scott Walker’s praise of David Koch by using his hands to imitate a sex act being performed by the Wisconsin governor on the GOP donor. Stewart also complained that the Koch event wasn’t completely filmed and open to the public:
Ooh, yes, nothing says Freedom Partners like occasionally, partially pulling back the veil of secret presidential forums. You know, I felt the same way when I was invited to cover last year’s American liberty patriot conference. I just said-- yeah, there you go. It was dark, it was quiet and they fed me through my anus. Of course we all know freedom has its limits. When one of the actual Koch brothers spoke at the forum, that was embargoed and not allowed to be filmed because freedom.
Stewart concluded the segment by distorting the Koch brothers’ criticism of corporate welfare and the Daily Show host insisted that the GOP donors love taking advantage of the “disadvantaged”:
Wait, the billionaire leader of a secret political machine warned a two-tiered society where we're-- I get it. She's reading the wrong tone. It actually went like this. People, we're headed to a two-tiered society! That's destroying opportunities for the disadvantaged and creating welfare for the rip! Congratulations! You did it! We did it! We did it!
See relevant transcript below.
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
August 3, 2015
JON STEWART: Let's begin tonight, we're very excited because we've got good news. The California drought is over because last weekend a special group in California made it rain.
GRETCHEN CARLSON: Big stop on the money trail in the race for the White House.
UNKNOWN PERSON: The Koch brothers hosted five candidates over the weekend at a business conference in southern California.
JOHN DICKERSON: They're spending their time pitching to what's been called the Koch primary.
STEWART: The Koch primary? The Koch brothers have pledged to give almost a billion dollars to buy the next election. Meaning five of the top Republican candidates were happy to come on down for a chance to gobble some Koch. No, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina, Scott Walker, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio worked the talking points and cradled the special interests in the hopes of one of them after a period of 45 minutes to an hour would induce the money shot. And really, they didn't care which Koch went off. To be fair though, that's not really why they were there.
SCOTT WALKER: In the end, money doesn't win elections. Ideas do. I wish the whole world could see what goes on here.
STEWART: Oh, I think we see it. And I think it looks a little something like this. You know, I wonder, I wonder what wry commentary the spider who lives above the pig would have of this rather corrupting picture-- oh my God she hung, oh, she couldn't take it. Charlotte! Oh sweet Charlotte! You were supposed to die of natural causes, you know, under a shoe or-- at the business end of a rolled up news magazine. But the governor from Wisconsin makes a good point. Though the world should see what goes on at these conferences, why hasn't the world been more aware of what goes on at Koch events?
UNKNOWN PERSON: Freedom Partners founded by the Koch brothers normally conducts its summer conference in secrecy. This year though it's a little bit different. They are letting us listen to some of the GOP candidates.
STEWART: Ooh, yes, nothing says Freedom Partners like occasionally, partially pulling back the veil of secret presidential forums. You know, I felt the same way when I was invited to cover last year’s American liberty patriot conference. I just said-- yeah, there you go. It was dark, it was quiet and they fed me through my anus. Of course we all know freedom has its limits. When one of the actual Koch brothers spoke at the forum, that was embargoed and not allowed to be filmed because freedom.
POPPY HARLOW: Charles Koch one of the Koch brothers said and I want to read you the quote here talking about the direction of this country “We're headed towards a two-tiered society, a society that’s destroying opportunities for the disadvantaged and creating welfare for the rich.”
STEWART: Wait, the billionaire leader of a secret political machine warned a two-tiered society where we're-- I get it. She's reading the wrong tone. It actually went like this. People, we're headed to a two-tiered society! That's destroying opportunities for the disadvantaged and creating welfare for the rip!
Congratulations! You did it! We did it! We did it!
So a tiny number of people have a disproportionate say in who governs the rest of us. I may not like it, you may in the like it but at this point the billionaire patronage selection process is an accepted picture of our electoral procedure.
LELAND VITTERT: Almost every one of the primary candidates has a billionaire at his back, which means the life of their candidacies is now divorced from their ability to directly raise money for voters.
STEWART: Finally! A democratic system that removes a connection between elections and voters. Our politicians will no longer be beholden to big citizens. Simple time management. You can spend all your time collecting $2 from millions of people or a little bit of time collecting billions of dollars from one guy. And by the way, these are very -- times
CARLY FIORINA: This organization is supported by people of great accomplishment, and intellect.
SCOTT WALKER: David and Charles have kind of harnessed that frustration and said instead of just being angry about it, let's do something about it.
JEB BUSH: I'm honored to be here, I’m truly honored to be here, I really appreciated the invitation.
TED CRUZ: The men and women in this room spilled gallons of blood, spent their fortunes retaking the Senate.
MIKE ALLEN: You since have met the real David Koch, what is he like
WALKER: Well, he’s sitting right there. But even David, if you weren't there, I would say good things.
STEWART: You see, these candidate goes out to a billionaire conference begging for money. They wind up looking like a bunch of puppies. Try finding a Republican candidate who will tell you that.
TAMRON HALL: Donald Trump tweeting out “I wish good luck to all of the Republican candidates that traveled to California to beg for money, et cetera, from the Koch brothers. Puppets?”
STEWART: Who is this Trump fella? I like the cut of his jib. We'll have to look into that.
