By Emily Cutler | Last Week Tonight | August 1, 2016 |
By Emily Cutler | Last Week Tonight | August 1, 2016 |
On Last Week Tonight this week, John Oliver revisited both the DNC and RNC, and specifically singled out Trump’s response to the Khizr Khan speech over the weekend, calling Donald Trump a “f**king asshole” and taking him to task for suggesting that he has made “sacrifices.”
“No. No they absolutely are not. They are half-truths from a self-serving half-man who has somehow convinced half the country that sacrifice is the same thing as success.”
He continued:
“Honestly, the main take-away from these two weeks is that, incredibly, we may be on the brink of electing such a damaged, sociopathic narcissist, that the simple presidential duty of comforting the families of fallen soldiers may actually be beyond his capabilities. And I genuinely did not think that was the part of the job that someone could be bad at.”
Oliver’s Trump rant begins around the 14 minute mark.
If you watched the entire clip above, however, Oliver also zeroes in on the DNC’s problems, as well. Leave it to Last Week Tonight to go screw up the good thing we had going.
As of last week, I was feeling pretty good about both the DNC and Hillary Clinton. Not great, mind you, but good. And I continued feeling that way until about 18 minutes ago.
Yeah, turns out if I watch only the highlights from the DNC (specifically the Obamas, the Clintons, and the Khans), there’s a lot for me to love. The rest of the convention? Not so much. And unlike Oliver, I don’t think this was a disaster because of the first day Bernie supporter protests or the booing of Debbie Wasserman Schultz. I think it was a disaster because in small subtle ways, the Democratic Party is filling the vacuum left by the GOP’s focus on Trump.
Take Vice President Biden’s speech. The first 90 percent was a beautiful tribute to the losses he’s suffered personally, his ability to overcome those losses, and how they eventually made him stronger. And like him, the U.S. can overcome past difficulties to become a better nation. We should be optimistic. What we shouldn’t do is think this:
Because we lead by not only by the example of our power, but by the power of our example. That is the history of the journey of America. And God willing, God willing, Hillary Clinton will write the next chapter in that journey. We are America, second to none. And we own the finish line. Don’t forget it.
We own the finish line, Joe? Really? I think one or two other nations would like to have a word with us about that.
And it’s not just that the rhetoric seems self-congratulatory. It’s that it’s simply untrue. And it’s not true both in reality and in perception. Or as David Sedaris brilliantly penned:
Every day we’re told that we live in the greatest country on earth. And it’s always stated as an undeniable fact: Leos are born between July 23 and August 22, fitted queen-size sheets measure sixty by eighty inches, and America is the greatest country on earth. Having grown up with this in our ears, it’s startling to realize that other countries have nationalistic slogans of their own, none of which are ‘We’re number two!’
Blind patriotism wasn’t a good thing when the GOP did it, and it’s not a good thing to do now. There are plenty of reasons why the U.S. should be proud of itself and parts of its history. We shouldn’t make ourselves looked blind in pursuit of becoming better.