Jon Stewart Cuts His Hand in Fiery Bit About DOGE

Few things are as frustrating as watching our government operate from the sidelines. We can vote and protest and make our voices heard, but things are ultimately decided by a group of (mostly) older men who can change their minds depending on how much a lobbyist can slip into their bank account. This imperfect system can make one want to pull out their hair or break something. That is especially the case now that a group of losers collected by a rich Nazi are trying to pull it apart.

Elon Musk and his team of Junior Nazis (known as DOGE, cause lolz) have been attempting to root out government inefficiency by targeting federal employees they deem dispensable. So far, those employees have included people who protect citizens from fraud, run our national parks, and research cures for cancer. Musk could focus on the billions in government subsidies that prop up successful corporations, but then where would he get all his money from?

This issue was at the heart of Jon Stewart’s recent monologue on The Daily Show. The storied host went off on Musk’s attempts to gut the government of everything that actually helps working people. Stewart points out the obvious: how the government could use regulation to help curb waste and useless spending. However, it’s clear that isn’t Musk’s goal. That said, Musk wasn’t the only one who inspired Stewart’s anger, as the wildest part of the bit shows.

At one point, Stewart gets mad that former President Joe Biden celebrated that he lowered the prices of ten pharmaceutical drugs even though many more are still overpriced and that the government had to negotiate to this point despite propping up the companies it’s bargaining with. He ain’t wrong! If we are giving them all of this money, they shouldn’t be able to fleece us for things we need to… survive. The moment crescendoed when Stewart slammed a mug against his desk which shattered and cut his hand.

The moment Stewart realizes what happens is pretty spectacular. I hope he didn’t have to go to the hospital like he said, but he keeps his hand under the table for the remainder of the show. It’s seen a little bit later but it is bandaged and bloody. I can’t think of a better representation of how many of us are feeling right now. We’re angry and bleeding, but we have to grin and hide it so we can make it through our time. Hopefully, more things don’t break in the interim.