NBC’s Seth Meyers celebrated ten years of being the host of Late Night on Monday, not only by wearing a suit and tie for a change, but also by welcoming President Joe Biden to the program, where the two, along with Meyers’s former SNL colleague Amy Poehler, gushed over Biden’s alleged acting skills and Dark Brandon memes.
Before all that, Meyers criticized Sen. John Fetterman for claiming that Democrats criticizing Biden might as well put on their MAGA hats, “No, that's not how it works. Criticizing or mocking our leaders is a healthy thing in a democracy. I mean, Joe Biden seems to be able to take a joke. We here at Late Night make jokes about him all the time and I think if we ever invited him, he'd come on the show unfortunately, we have no way of knowing.”
According to a 2023 NewsBusters study, Seth Meyers told over three times as many jokes about Donald Trump as Joe Biden.
Later, Biden would join Meyers and Poehler as the trio would recall Biden’s appearance on Poehler’s Parks and Rec, “How was, Amy, how was the president as a scene partner?”
Poehler gushed that it was “an awesome time to go to D.C., because we met with then Mr. Vice President - Mr. President Vice President, President.”
She then hyped Biden’s acting abilities, “we met people from both sides of the aisle and then if you remember, we did that scene together and then you said to me, ‘How should I act?’ and I said, ‘Just act like what is this lady doing here?’ And you nailed it.
Switching gears, Meyers wondered how much joy Biden—more accurately, his social media team—gets out of trolling people on the internet, “There's something that I've been very -- it just speaks to the era we live in now. There's a Dark Brandon conspiracy meme and this is something that you seem to have a lot of fun with. You've co-opted -- you've co-opted Dark Brandon. This is a yard sign. Do you enjoy playing around with the Dark Brandon meme?”
Pulling out a pair of aviators, a sarcastic Biden replied, “No, I resent the hell out of it.”
Continuing with that theme, Meyers added, “my favorite one recently is there are 18 percent of Americans, according to recent polling, have-- believe that you and Taylor Swift actually are working in cahoots. And after the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl, you posted this on social media, you wrote -- you wrote, ‘Just like we drew it up,’ Now, can you -- I have you on the hot spot here. Can you confirm or deny that there is an active conspiracy between you and Miss Swift?”
Biden, still trying to be cool, answered, “Where are you getting this information? It's classified.”
After a commercial break, Poehler departed and Meyers asked a more serious question about the Hur Report, “You mentioned some classified materials, some documents recently leaked, some classified documents. And this isn't a gotcha show, but I do want to ask about it, that says you're currently 81-years old.”
Biden tried to dodge the question, “Who the hell told you that? That’s classified,” but Meyers persisted, “All jokes aside, according to recent polling, this is a real concern for American voters. How do you address that concern going forward as you come up to the 2024 election?”
That allowed Biden to turn the show into Late Night DNC, “Well, a couple things. Number one, you gotta take a look at the other guy. He's about as old as I am, but he can't remember his wife's name… Look, I mean, this is a guy who wants to take us back. He wants to take us back in Roe v. Wade, he wants to take us back on a whole range of issues.”
And now we know why Team Biden chose Late Night for his rare interview.
Here is a transcript for the February 26-taped show:
NBC Late Night with Seth Meyers
2/27/2024
12:44 AM ET
SETH MEYERS: No, that's not how it works. Criticizing or mocking our leaders is a healthy thing in a democracy. I mean, Joe Biden seems to be able to take a joke. We here at Late Night make jokes about him all the time and I think if we ever invited him, he'd come on the show unfortunately, we have no way of knowing.
…
1:06 AM ET
MEYERS: How was, Amy, how was the president as a scene partner?
AMY POEHLER: Well, it was an awesome time to go to D.C., because we met with then Mr. Vice President - Mr. President Vice President, President.
MEYERS: That is right.
JOE BIDEN: Joe. Joe.
POEHLER: I don’t want to get it wrong, but we met people from both sides of the aisle and then if you remember, we did that scene together and then you said to me, “How should I act?” and I said, "Just act like what is this lady doing here? And you nailed it.
MEYERS: There's something that I've been very -- it just speaks to the era we live in now. There's a Dark Brandon conspiracy meme and this is something that you seem to have a lot of fun with. You've co-opted -- you've co-opted Dark Brandon. This is a yard sign. Do you enjoy playing around with the Dark Brandon meme?
BIDEN: No, I resent the hell out of it.
MEYERS: Now, my favorite one recently is there are 18 percent of Americans, according to recent polling, have-- believe that you and Taylor Swift actually are working in cahoots. And after the Kansas City Chiefs won the Super Bowl, you posted this on social media. you wrote -- you wrote, "Just like we drew it up”
Now, can you -- I have you on the hot spot here. Can you confirm or deny that there is an active conspiracy between you and Miss Swift?
BIDEN: Where are you getting this information? It's classified.
…
MEYERS: You mentioned some classified materials, some documents recently leaked, some classified documents. And this isn't a gotcha show, but I do want to ask about it, that says you're currently 81-years old.
BIDEN: Who the hell told you that?
MEYERS: Yeah.
BIDEN: That's classified.
MEYERS: That's classified. All jokes aside, according to recent polling, this is a real concern for American voters. How do you address that concern going forward as you come up to the 2024 election?
BIDEN: Well, a couple things. Number one, you gotta take a look at the other guy. He's about as old as I am, but he can't remember his wife's name.
MEYERS: Yeah.
BIDEN: Number one. Number two, it's about how old your ideas are. Look, I mean, this is a guy who wants to take us back. He wants to take us back in Roe v. Wade, he wants to take us back on a whole range of issues that are 50, 60 years they've been solid American positions and -- and I really mean this sincerely they-- I think it's about -- about the future and everything -- every single thing we've done, and I think we've gotten some good things done. Everything -- and they told us we couldn't get them done because things are so divided and, but I think everything we've gotten done, he -- has friendly stated, he wants to do away with if he gets elected and I really think his views on where to take America are older than – anyway, I don't wanna get going.
