John Oliver Criticizes Democrats Over Response to Trump’s Speech to Congress

by

On this past gaming-day, I dove into the latest episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. He focused on President Donald Trump’s address to both houses of Congress a few days back, as well as the Democratic Party’s reaction to it.

To kick off, the HBO host pointed out that earlier, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) had expressed his intention to present his speech in an ornate manner, using the phrase “gilded gold.

Gilding is the process of coating something that isn’t gold with a thin layer of gold to make it resemble gold. However, you wouldn’t gild gold because it already is gold. It would be like J.D. Vance wearing a T-shirt that reads ‘inevitable queen’, which seems unnecessary since he is the Vice President.

Last week’s host of “Last Week Tonight” pointed out that some Democratic representatives were absent during the speech, among them being Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez from New York and Maxine Waters from California.

Looking back, perhaps abstaining could have been the wise choice as it seemed that the Democrats present didn’t have a unified strategy to counter. Some of them were dressed identically while others displayed signs on paddles, with messages such as “Musk swindles,” “Preserve Medicaid,” and “Defend veterans.

Later on, Oliver pointed out that Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) was censured by 10 Democrats due to his outburst during the speech, even though similar protests occurred during Biden’s term without any repercussions. This action aligns with the current centrist Democrats’ tendency to go above and beyond in appeasing conservatives, according to Oliver’s perspective.

In her formal response to the president, Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) expressed disapproval of Donald Trump’s conduct during his encounter with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and she made this critique based on the sentiment she held.

She remarked, ‘I can’t help but think Reagan wouldn’t approve of this situation.’ She expressed a desire for an end to the conflict in Ukraine, but emphasized that Reagan believed genuine strength necessitated America using both its military and economic power alongside ethical principles. … As someone who grew up during the Cold War, I’m grateful we had Reagan instead of Trump leading the country in the 1980s. Trump might have jeopardized our victory in the Cold War.

Oliver jokingly commented: “Indeed, she commended Reagan while criticizing Trump, and I must admit there are some good points about Reagan, such as being our only president to collaborate on a film with a chimpanzee, or – he’s deceased. However, his moral clarity could be shocking to anyone who lived through the 1980s as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. I’m merely suggesting that if we were to resurrect Reagan and inform him about all the racially charged actions Trump has taken in less than two months, he might have such a strong reaction that it would cause his demise once more.

Later, Oliver pointed out that Trump’s approval rating currently ranks as the “lowest ever for a president at this stage of their term, except for his own rating eight years back.

It was indeed pleasing to observe Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau standing up against the Trump administration’s decision to impose tariffs on imports, especially those coming from Canada, as he publicly criticized this move.

Trudeau expressed that Canadians feel hurt and upset. He suggested that instead of traveling to places like Florida, Old Orchard Beach [Maine], or elsewhere, they will opt to stay in Canada. Moreover, he encouraged Canadians to prioritize purchasing Canadian goods over American items such as bourbon, and maybe even continue the tradition of booing the American anthem.

Oliver joked: “There’s quite a bit to discuss there, beginning with the impression that Trudeau seems to have forgotten nearly everything America produces apart from bourbon. Canadians will give up on bourbon and, well, what’s the beer that tastes like a lime has gone bad? Bud Light, correct me if I’m wrong. We won’t be having any of that either.

Read More

2025-03-10 07:54