Actor Liam Neeson ranted against New York City's ultra-liberal Mayor Bill DeBlasio on Wednesday's Daily Show, citing his ban on horse-drawn carriages and keeping city schools open during a recent snow storm.
"I'm a little bit pissed off at our elected new mayor," Neeson revealed to host Jon Stewart. "He made my kids go to school in all that snow." Neeson added later that despite poll numbers supporting the contrary, "He [DeBlasio] wants to close this horse and carriage industry in New York." [Video below the break. Audio here.]
From there, Neeson and the liberal Stewart sparred a bit over the horses:
STEWART: Well I hope that the sides can work it out, because quite frankly, from my perspective, it does not seem to be – and this may be just an emotional reaction – a particularly fulfilling life for an animal. I'd love to see that –
NEESON: It is, Jon. It is a fulfilling life.
STEWART: Well, we don't know.
NEESON: They are. They're trained for this.
Mayor DeBlasio was a welcome guest on the Daily Show back on February 3rd. Stewart sympathetically asked him if the job was "overwhelming" and had DeBlasio eat a pizza with his hands, a friendly jab at the Mayor's eating a New York-style pizza with a fork and knife. Stewart also asked him a question from the left, about DeBlasio's dismantling of Stop and Frisk.
Stewart also asked the liberal mayor was if he would meet New York's Governor Cuomo halfway on tax policy.
Below is a transcript of Wednesday's segment:
COMEDY CENTRAL
THE DAILY SHOW
2/27/14
11:24 p.m. EST
JON STEWART: And things are good otherwise? Is there –
LIAM NEESON: I can't complain, Jon. Everything's good. Everything's good. I'm a little bit pissed off at our elected new mayor.
STEWART: Did he not shovel your snow appropriately? Because that –
(Laughter)
STEWART: Are you on the Upper East Side?
NEESON: He made my kids go to school in all that snow.
STEWART: Do you remember that in the snow storm?
NEESON: Yeah.
STEWART: You know what I did? I drove to the school and let all the kids out.
(Laughter)
NEESON: I hope you did, Jon.
STEWART: Let them all go. But he's upset you somehow?
NEESON: He wants to close this horse and carriage industry in New York. And there was a poll last week, over 60 percent of New Yorkers want to keep the horse carriage industry in Central Park.
STEWART: Maybe if they put it in the park. I feel bad – we actually live right next door to them. And I always feel bad for them on the streets. It seems like they and a lot of the van traffic don't get along. The horses –
NEESON: The horse carriage industry, they made the roads in New York. I just want that to rest there.
STEWART: They made the roads? What, are the roads made out of horse (bleep)? What do you mean they made the roads? Construction made the roads. What if they moved it into the park, so the horses wouldn't have to walk the streets? Maybe that would be the –
NEESON: But you know, these organizations, they want to put out this – all this false information about how these horses are treated. And these guys treat these horses like their children. Have you been in the stables, Jon? Seriously.
STEWART: If DYFS – if the Division of Youth and Family Services ever found out that they are keeping their children in 60 square foot stalls and feeding them twice a day buckets of grain, that is not good parenting as far as I'm concerned. No, you feel passionate about this. But it's – I think there probably is – I think the two sides do not trust each other at all. And unfortunately the horses –
NEESON: He won't even take a meeting with the horse carriage industry. He is supposed to be representing the New York people.
STEWART: You're –
NEESON: Dammit!
(Laughter)
STEWART: Is this a job you've done? Have you been in that industry before?
NEESON: I know a couple of the guys. I've been in the stables quite a few times eating.
(Laughter)
STEWART: I think you may have pulled my wife and I around Central Park one day. Well I hope that the sides can work it out, because quite frankly, from my perspective, it does not seem to be – and this may be just an emotional reaction – a particularly fulfilling life for an animal. I'd love to see that –
NEESON: It is, Jon. It is a fulfilling life.
STEWART: Well, we don't know.
NEESON: They are. They're trained for this.
STEWART: Unless it's Mr. Ed, you really don't know. They may look at you and say "neigh."
NEESON: They're trained to do this.
STEWART: Well, they could be trained to sit in a field and eat fermented oats
NEESON: Stand up. Stand up. I've had enough.
STEWART: Let's do this.
NEESON: Give me your nose.
STEWART: Non-Stop is in the theaters on Friday. But I will not be able to walk away from this.
