Jon Stewart

Here at The Ridiculous Report, we do not blame Joe Biden for falling asleep during President Obama's 45-minute budget speech. We used to fall asleep in any class that began before 11 a.m.  Not everyone else is so understanding.  Last night on "The Daily Show," host Jon Stewart -- after a brilliant skewering of GOP hurt feelings -- bestowed upon Joe "Good Times" Biden a new nickname: "Rip Van Biden. "    The Daily Show Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes , Political Humor & Satire Blog , The Daily Show on Facebook

When Donald Trump was publicly proven wrong yesterday by President Barack Obama releasing his long-form birth certificate (reiterating what we already know is true: He's a U.S. citizen), most people expected Trump to react with some variation of "I'm an idiot. I was wrong. " Instead, Trump used the opportunity to praise himself.   "Today, I am very proud of myself," he said at a news conference. "... I feel I've accomplished something really, really important and I'm honored by it. "  How does one make sense of this inexplicable behavior?

NATIONAL Studying Katrina survivors Weariness, anxiety and pessimism are pervasive among Hurricane Katrina survivors, according to the preliminary findings of a Harvard Medical School study. pg 3a WORLD Sharon in coma after surgery Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was in an induced coma and battling for his life last night, hospital officials said, after surgery to stop severe bleeding in his brain from the stroke he suffered Wednesday night. pg 1a MARYLAND Mall merchant fatally shot A Security Square Mall merchant was shot dead yesterday on a parking lot at the Woodlawn shopping center, and police were searching for a stolen car spotted leaving the scene.

Having a conversation with Jon Stewart is like watching his MTV talk show. He treats the interviewer like a one-man audience, using every question to test his wit.What if he were offered Conan O'Brien's "Late Night" spot on NBC? "If he got canceled and they came to me? I would tell them no. Who wants to make that kind of money and have that kind of show every night on national television? Why, I'd put my foot down."Mr. Stewart, called "The Man Who Should Be Conan" by New York magazine, has no illusions about entering the talk-show wars.

There's not a great quantity of watchable television on tap this evening, but what there is boasts a very high level of quality. Leading the list: a camp musical and a sober and sobering documentary.* "I'll Fly Away" (8-9 p.m., WETA-Channel 26) -- Something as simple as a little boy's lost hat leads to misunderstandings and prejudicial charges in this first one-hour episode of "I'll Fly Away." Sam Waterston, Regina Taylor star. PBS repeat.* "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" (8-10 p.m., WBFF-Channel 45)

On the “The Daily Show” tonight, comedian Jon Stewart offered some advice to U.S. Congressman Ron Paul on his recent performance at the first GOP presidential debate last week. Stewart noted that Paul had already won several straw polls and could be a favorite for the nomination if he would just compromise his libertarian principles. Then Stewart played two clips of Paul criticizing the military’s use of secret prisons and of runaway military spending. “We do not need secret prisons nor do we need the torture that goes on in these secret military prisons,” Paul said.

Last night, Jon Stewart deftly skewered the idea that Donald Trump's high poll numbers mean that Trump deserves more and more media coverage (even as he says more and more ridiculous stuff). See posts here and here .  Stewart rightly pointed out that Trump and the media have a reciprocal relationship in which the more crazy stuff Trump says the more he gets covered and the higher his poll numbers (and presumably the ratings) go.  "His poll numbers are high mostly because they keep putting him on television to spew the craziest s--- he can think of," Stewart said.  But Stewart's next point was his most salient: He pointed out that Trump's early polls are "completely and totally meaningless.

On Monday, I conducted a very unscientific poll on this blog, asking readers if they believed Pakistani officials played a role in protecting bin Laden. More than 90 percent of respondents said they did think Pakistan helped the terrorist leader in some way.  Jon Stewart pressed this issue hard on Tuesday night's "The Daily Show," accusing former President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan of lying about his knowledge of bin Laden's whereabouts.  "When you say 'I don't know,' You knew!"

I have been writing for the last two weeks about President Barack Obama's TV-Lite strategy of only doing interviews with the likes Jay Leno, MTV's Sway, US Weekly and Jon Stewart. In other words, only safe and friendly interviewers. And, indeed, as I have reported with Leno's "Tonight Show" interview , all the comedian did was lob one softball after another. Stewart and Sway asked actual questions about such matters as the deaths of four Americans in Benghazi, but they didn't follow up when the president failed to answer the question they asked -- and instead hit his campaign talking points.

The departure earlier this month of the puckish bow-tie enthusiast and Crossfire co-host Tucker Carlson from CNN was a surprise to almost no one who keeps abreast of cable news comings and goings. Gossip about Carlson's ambitions to host his own, nonargumentative show had been circulating on the Internet and in newspapers for weeks. What did come as a shock was CNN President Jonathan Klein's sudden decision to can the 23-year-old show altogether, publicly endorsing the contention of The Daily Show's Jon Stewart that Crossfire and its bevy of copycat shout shows are, as Stewart likes to say, "hurting America."