Highlights from 'The Daily Show' of the Late Senator John McCain

By Kate Hudson | News | August 26, 2018 |

By Kate Hudson | News | August 26, 2018 |

By now you’re probably well aware that John McCain died yesterday. This is not normally the sort of thing I’d choose to write about, but it felt disingenuous to put up another frothy exposé pulled from the headlines of People.com and let someone else cover it tomorrow when it’s already being talked about in the comments on previous posts. So here we are.

As soon as someone dies, there’s usually an impulse to memorialize their best qualities or look back on their body of achievements. However, McCain’s legacy will most likely be remembered as a complicated one once the dust has settled, thanks largely in part of his association with Sarah Palin and the Trump administration.

I believe in practicing kindness and not piling on when someone is in pain. Someone’s family member has died and they are now in mourning; but that doesn’t mean the deceased’s actions while they were here with us is above reproach, especially if their job was to serve the public in an elected office. Like I said, it’s complicated, and far more qualified people are already beginning the memorialization (and dissection) process of McCain’s legacy. I’m glad McCain was able to spend his final days surrounded by his family, and I hope his death was a peaceful one. I’m also glad that he was afforded proper and efficient medical care up until the end. Every human being should have the same dignity in care and in death that was afforded to Senator McCain.

John McCain is no longer with us, and rather than dive deep into his policies, presidential bids, or personal life, which require a more nuanced touch than I can provide on a Sunday morning; I figure sharing some of his best appearances on The Daily Show would be the most fitting acknowledgement to someone who was ingrained in American politics for so long, and who devoted his life to public service.

McCain was a frequent guest of The Daily Show, and the genuine warmth, rapport, and camaraderie he had with Jon Stewart is evident early on, and a pleasure to watch.

Steve Carell Interviews McCain on his Campaign Bus for the 2000 Presidential Election

John McCain Bids Jon Stewart Farewell from the Daily Show

McCain Talks to Stewart about President Bush’s State of the Union (2004)

McCain Talks About His Secret Service Nickname on the 2008 Campaign Trail

Stewart and McCain Sit Down in 2000, Complete with Internal Monologues