Jon Stewart on Trump's Botched Tariff Rollout & Market Meltdown | Rahm Emanuel

Summary

Summary of "The Daily Show: Ears Edition"

Episode Title: Jon Stewart on Trump's Botched Tariff Rollout & Market Meltdown | Rahm Emanuel
Release Date: April 8, 2025
Hosts/Guests: Jon Stewart (Host), Rahm Emanuel (Guest)

---

Introduction

In this episode of The Daily Show: Ears Edition, host Jon Stewart engages in a spirited and incisive conversation with former Chicago Mayor and U.S. Ambassador to Japan, Rahm Emanuel. The primary focus is on the economic turmoil spurred by former President Donald Trump's poorly executed tariff policies and the ensuing global market meltdown.

Trump’s Tariff Policies and Economic Impact

Jon Stewart opens the discussion by mocking the enthusiasm Wall Street initially had for Trump's deregulation and tax cuts, highlighting a top banker’s controversial remarks:

“At the end of the day, I'm literally a son of a killer.”
[00:21] — Jeremy Scott

Stewart criticizes Trump's tariff strategy, suggesting it resembles reckless economic maneuvering akin to administering excessive rat poison:

“This is merely a routine rat poison colonoscopy.”
[10:54] — Jon Stewart

He underscores the severe consequences of the tariff implementation, pointing out the unprecedented market downturn:

“The market's lost more than $6.5 trillion in value.”
[03:35] — Rahm Emanuel

Rahm Emanuel provides a sobering account of the economic fallout:

“At one point this morning, the dow sinking almost 1600 points.”
[03:35]

The discussion highlights the global nature of the meltdown, affecting markets in Asia, Europe, and Australia, marking the third consecutive day of decline.

Critique of Presidential Leadership

Jon Stewart lambasts Trump's leadership style, particularly his response to the economic crisis:

“Only the weak will fail.”
[05:49] — Rahm Emanuel's report of Trump's statement

Stewart mocks Trump's priorities, referencing his leisure activities over addressing the crisis:

“He played not a round of golf this weekend, a tournament of golf.”
[06:12] — Jon Stewart

He emphasizes the dissonance between Trump's public reassurances and his inaction, demonstrating a lack of genuine leadership:

“I'm a good boy. Good boy. Good golf.”
[07:00] — Jon Stewart (paraphrased)

Economic Mismanagement and Failure to Negotiate

The host criticizes Trump's approach to negotiation, labeling it as non-negotiable and dismissive of global trade norms:

“This is not a negotiation. This is a national emergency.”
[12:29] — Rahm Emanuel

Stewart sarcastically equates the administration’s policies to fictional narratives, underscoring their absurdity:

“Dosages, but in the right dosages, that can be very healthy for the patient.”
[10:56] — Jon Stewart

Rahm Emanuel echoes the sentiment, highlighting the reckless nature of the tariff rollout:

“Have a pina colada. Forget about if they're permanent or not permanent.”
[12:30] — Jon Stewart

Consequences for American Manufacturing and Trust

Stewart outlines the misguided promises of job creation through tariffs:

“Millions of Americans can develop the Dexter. I can't even get the lint out of the charging area on my phone.”
[09:23] — Jon Stewart

He argues that the tariffs have eroded America's manufacturing reputation and global trust:

“In eight weeks, he's destroyed 80 years of reputation that America built.”
[30:42] — Rahm Emanuel

Emanuel counters by asserting the long-term damage to America's standing and the loss of credibility:

“Nobody will ever trust us. In eight weeks, he's destroyed 80 years of reputation that America built.”
[30:42] — Rahm Emanuel

Democratic Accountability and Vision for Recovery

The conversation shifts to Democratic responsibility in the economic downturn. Rahm Emanuel emphasizes the need for the Democratic Party to own up to its failures and restore trust:

“We disappointed the country. Now they will stab you in the back.”
[33:47] — Rahm Emanuel

Stewart pushes for actionable solutions, questioning how Democrats plan to reinvigorate the American Dream:

“How would Democrats bring that back?”
[34:00] — Jon Stewart

Emanuel outlines a two-pronged approach:

1. Investing in the Nation: Ensuring every American has access to education and economic opportunities.
2. Restoring the American Dream: Making it affordable and accessible for all, starting with foundational investments.

“Make sure every American has a chance at the American dream. Which means it starts first and foremost with education.”
[34:17] — Rahm Emanuel

Leadership and Future Democratic Strategies

Stewart inquires about the qualities needed in upcoming Democratic leaders to navigate out of the current crisis. Emanuel responds by advocating for leaders outside traditional Washington circles, who can restore credibility and inspire confidence:

“I want them not part of Washington. I want them to have governed. I want them to be a true change agent.”
[42:12] — Rahm Emanuel

He underscores the importance of vision over mere competence, drawing parallels to historical Democratic successes:

“The Fair Deal, the New Deal, the New Frontier, was not about competence. It was about having a vision in America, holding America to that North Star.”
[42:32] — Rahm Emanuel

Conclusion

The episode concludes with a call to action for the Democratic Party to embrace change, restore trust, and reinvest in the American populace to revive the economy and the national spirit.

Notable Quotes:

• Rahm Emanuel on Market Meltdown:
  “The market's lost more than $6.5 trillion in value.”
  [03:35]

• Jon Stewart on Tariff Strategy:
  “This is merely a routine rat poison colonoscopy.”
  [10:54]

• Rahm Emanuel on Presidential Response:
  “Only the weak will fail.”
  [05:49]

• Rahm Emanuel on Democratic Responsibility:
  “We disappointed the country. Now they will stab you in the back.”
  [33:47]

• Jon Stewart on Leadership Vision:
  “How would Democrats bring that back?”
  [34:00]

---

This episode offers a critical examination of the intersection between political strategy and economic consequences, highlighting the urgent need for effective leadership and policy reform to navigate the ongoing financial crisis.

Transcript

[Gilbert King]

Something unexpected happened after Jeremy Scott confessed to killing Michelle Schofield in Bone Valley season one.

[Jeremy Scott]

Every time I hear about my dad is, oh, he's a killer. He's just straight evil.

[Gilbert King]

I was becoming the bridge between Jeremy Scott and the son he'd never known.

[Jeremy Scott]

At the end of the day, I'm literally a son of a killer.

[Gilbert King]

Listen to new episodes of bone Valley Season 2, starting April 9th on the iHeartRadio app.

[Jon Stewart]

App.

[Gilbert King]

Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Jon Stewart]

You're listening to Comedy Central from the most trusted journalists at Comedy Central. It's America's only source for news. This is the Daily show with your host, John Stewart. Hi. Nice to see you. So sick. We got a good one for you tonight. I'm sorry. I was just. I was just. I was just. I was just put to. No, stop. Stay, stop. We got you. Can I tell you something? And I mean this sincerely. Ever since we started spraying the audience with cocaine before the show. Welcome to the Daily Show. My name is Jon Stewart. Great show for you tonight. Rahm Emanuel will be joining me later to remind me. He'll be out here reminding me just which one of the three brothers he is again. I. I don't know. Is he the one that owns ufc? I. Does it matter at this point? But that is later. First, as you know, our economy. Our economy is in the midst of a beautiful metamorphosis, turning from a simple caterpillar into a dead caterpillar. So let's get into it with another exciting installment of trade wars. My favorite word. My favorite word. Tariffs. Terrence. Now, you might remember when Donald Trump was reelected, Wall street was thrilled, excited about deregulation, tax cuts, and the fact that you could once again call people sugar tits. One top banker told the paper that he feels liberated because now he can use offensive slurs like the R word and the P word without fear of getting canceled at work. Mm. The R word and the P word. Well, I can tell you today that that top banker is definitely using both of those words, perhaps even adding mother right now. The market meltdown. For the third straight day, global markets are sinking. Markets across Asia, Europe, and Australia plunging.

[Rahm Emanuel]

At one point this morning, the dow sinking almost 1600 points. The market's lost more than $6.5 trillion in value.

[Jeremy Scott]

This is an economic Armageddon.

[Jon Stewart]

Who wears a Hawaiian shirt to an economic Armageddon? What are we doing here? Would they pull you in from the pool? Either Financial Channel's Rodney Dangerfield or something. I told my wife about the stock plunge she said, oh, I thought you guys would never go down there. No, I don't. Haven't done that one in a while. This turmoil could have lasting effects on the global economy, on everyday Americans, and most worryingly, the stock portfolios of members of Congress. Mr. President, now is the time to soothe a worried nation. Donald Trump put this out on social media. Don't be weak, don't be stupid, don't be a pannikin. Which he has termed a new based on weak and stupid people. Panican, the genius who gave us classics like Sleepy Joe and Crooked Hillary just shit out. You're a Panican. How about Hysterocrats, Rapusikans? How about Cryontologists? Did the overseas factory you had been sourcing your nicknames from get shut down during the tariff war? So we're gonna try this again. Mr. President, can you ease the fears of this nation like a true leader?

[Rahm Emanuel]

President Trump holding firm, posting on Truth social. Only the weak will fail.

[Jon Stewart]

What are you doing? Your economic policy has the same tagline as season three of Squid game.

[Rahm Emanuel]

That'S.

[Jon Stewart]

Supposed to make us feel better. Only the weak shall die in my economy. By the way, in case you didn't get the point that he doesn't give a he spent the weekend showing, not telling. He played not a round of golf this weekend, a tournament of golf, a three day tournament, 812 holes of golf with his live golf Saudi benefactors. And in case you're wondering about the venerated journalists who are now allowed to be in the press pool, this was literally the first question he was asked on Air Force One in the middle of a financial meltdown. How was the Bell tournament? Very good. Because I won. It's good to win. You heard I won, right? Did you hear I won because I won. You heard I won. You heard I won. I won. You heard I won. I won. Mom. Mom, I won. Mom. I won the tournament. Mom. I'm a good boy. Good boy. Good golf. I know the stock market is not the totality of the economy, but if I remember correctly, in the run up to the election, Trump seemed very concerned about the stock market. If Harris wins this election, the result will be a Kamala economic crash, a 1929 style depression and anything she can do, I can do better. I can do it on my own. I won. Mom. Hey, Mom. Hey mom, look. Hey mom, look. No economy. Please love me. And it didn't have to happen like this. Trump had so many options to shape the world economy into the one he thought was fairer. He could have proposed Some incentives to bring back manufacturing. He could have gone sector to sector, nation to nation, negotiate better trade, reciprocal agreements, but he had to go to full Theresa. Now, to be fair, to be fair, to be fair to the Trump administration, they did give it almost two months and no effort before they asked ChatGPT what it thought they should do. But for those of us who've been tricked into believing that an economic crisis is a crisis, Trump's people have an answer.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Don't panic. Calm down. Everything's gonna be okay. I would not worry at all.

[Jon Stewart]

The Dow's actually in the same place.

[Rahm Emanuel]

It was in August.

[Jon Stewart]

Do me a favor, don't look at your stock portfolio.

[Rahm Emanuel]

You know what? I don't really care about my 401k.

[Jon Stewart]

Live laugh, love. That's what I always say. You know what I say to all you? It's 401k somewhere. And when did the right become so chill? Aren't you the Bud Lights turning my kids trans folks. But economic meltdown and you're getting all philosophical. Losing money costs you nothing. This is just the reality of life. Like, were you young and dumb? How much money did you lose? Everyone loses money. Everyone loses money. It costs you nothing except money. Losing money costs you money. It's the definition of losing money. And I know you go, well, it's gonna be worth it to get the character of the country that we want back again. But we have no idea if that's actually what's going to happen. You're all acting like the tariff regime is a tried and true remedy. Oh, of course. This is the medicine that's always prescribed, except the last time it was tried 100 years ago, we had a great Depression. So how does this work? It's just a big game of economic operation as he's sticking things in, trying to take out tariffs. It's like, you know, when you're my age, you gotta get a colonoscopy. You need a full colonic like to be feel better, you know what I mean?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Rapids can kill somebody in the wrong.

[Jon Stewart]

Dosages, but in the right dosages, that can be very healthy for the patient. So everyone relax. This is merely a routine rat poison colonoscopy. By the way, what's the right dosage of rat poison? If you get enough of it, your headache will be gone. And by the way, I mean, slightly off topic, but the colonoscopy guy, his name is John Tobacco. That's a, that's a witness protection thing, isn't it? You know, so here's how it's gonna Go. Your new name is John Thabacco. Say it back to me. John Tobacco. Your name is John Tobacco. Say it back to me. John Thabacco. Your new profession is. You do anus metaphors on Newsmax. Your name is John Tobacco. You do anus metaphors. Say back to me. Say it back to me. By the way, if Trump wants us to stay the course with his radical plan, you might want to think of a strategy that inspires our confidence that you all know what you're doing. Like, for instance, these tariffs. Is this a negotiation? The president made it clear yesterday.

[Rahm Emanuel]

This is not a negotiation.

[Jon Stewart]

Let me. Let me make this very clear. This is not a negotiation. This is not that. This is a national emergency. Okay? It's a national emergency. It's not a negotiation. Well, I don't agree, but at least I have some clarity now. The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. Always have too much rat poison. So is this a negotiation or is this permanent? It can both be true. There can be permanent tariffs and there can also be negotiations. How much White Lotus did you people watch? What is permanence in this negotiated life we live? Have a pina colada. Forget about if they're permanent or not permanent. What are we doing? How will this bring jobs back? What are these jobs? Commerce Secretary Lutnick? Trillions of dollars of factories are going to be built in America. The army of millions and millions of human beings screwing in little, little screws to make iPhones. That kind of thing is going to come to America. This is all so that millions of Americans can develop the Dexter. I can't even get the lint out of the charging area on my phone. Now I gotta do. Those are the jobs. That kind of thing is going to come to America. It's going to be automated and great Americans. The tradecraft of America is going to fix them. Mechanics, fixing robotics, that's what's coming to America. So it's not the screws. We're going to be robot mechanics. The robots do the screwing and we're just there to make sure the robots are lubed and ready to screw. That is the American renaissance. We are robot fluffers. We are. We are waiting. This is all. So if I'm an American manufacturer, how long do these onerous tariffs have to stay in place to convince me to build my army of automated screw and robot mechanics? They are definitely going to stay in place for days and weeks. Jon Stewart from Popular Robot Mechanics. I've never built a fully automated robot factory before, but is days and weeks enough time or too much time. Feels like it would take a month. Well, I guess that's silver lining. Number one of this trade war wants something even more underwhelming. Here's the Treasury Secretary on if we've heard the good news on the stock collapse. One thing that I can tell you as the Treasury Secretary, what I've been.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Very impressed with is the market infrastructure.

[Jon Stewart]

That we had record volume on Friday, and every.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Everything is working very smoothly. So the American people can be very. Take great comfort in that.

[Jon Stewart]

Blink twice if you want to be saved. I was very impressed that in a market crash, the building is still standing. You know, the captain of the. I was very impressed by the way that the Titanic just slid into the water almost like it was taking a bath, just. Just dipping a toe. Those drownings should take great comfort in the lack of backsplash. But their best argument so far for any of this is the same one that we got about Tinkerbell being able to fly. You have to believe. Don't panic, okay? You've got a president who understands business.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I am grateful for a commander in.

[Jon Stewart]

Chief that has the business acumen. Luckily, we have a businessman in the White House right now. The President did write the book the Art of the Deal.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Trump is a master negotiator, and he.

[Jon Stewart]

Does know the art of the Deal. We're supposed to trust this guy because he wrote the Art of the Deal? That's it. You ever say, I got the book? I got the book. Art of the Deal? Yeah. That's why we're supposed to trust him. You ever look at chapter nine in Art of the Deal? It's about how smart Trump is about his casino in Atlantic City. Oh. Oh, yeah. Chapter nine. I built a casino in Atlantic City. I'm a business genius. Whatever happened to the casino? Donald, trust me. Look, you make a big announcement, but your reciprocal tariff formula was just the trade deficit divided by imports equation. And when you got busted on that, you threw out this ridiculous calculus problem that's just shapes. It boils down to the trade deficit divided by imports, which is the formula that got the rich country of Lesotho hit with 50% tariffs. Lesotho? No. Your free ride's over you denim making fat cats. But we continue to blame everybody else in the world that we designed and policed after World War II. We're the richest country in the world ever. We're not the world's victims. If we have inequalities in this country, that's on us. It's not a supply problem. It's not unfair trade. For the most part. It's an investment and distribution problem. It's our and I'm not saying we can't make adjustments and renegotiate things, but it didn't have to be this reckless. You killed the hostage and then went so ransom. Some of the biggest stock market declines since the Great depression. The worst three consecutive sessions since 1987. Even worse than it was during the 2008 financial crisis.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Their worst day since June 2020 during the COVID pandemic.

[Jon Stewart]

Financial destruction not seen since the pandemic. And this time there's no controversy over how it all started. There's no wet market. You Trump released the contagion. It's your lab leak and it's right out in the open. This is like if the researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology walked out to the Great Lawn with a Tupperware and went. We have an exciting announcement when we come back. Rahm Emanuel will join us. Don't go away.

[Gilbert King]

Something unexpected happened after Jeremy Scott confessed to killing Michelle Schofield in Bone Valley Season one.

[Jon Stewart]

I just knew him as a kid.

[Gilbert King]

Long, silent voices from his past came.

[Jeremy Scott]

Forward and he was just staring at me.

[Gilbert King]

And they had secrets of their own to share.

[Jeremy Scott]

Gilbert King I'm the son of Jeremy Lynn Scott.

[Gilbert King]

I was no longer just telling the story. I was part of it.

[Jeremy Scott]

Every time I hear about my dad, it's, oh, he's a killer. He's just straight evil.

[Gilbert King]

I was becoming the bridge between a killer and the son he'd never known.

[Jeremy Scott]

If the cops and everything would have done their job properly, my dad would have been in jail. I would have never existed.

[Gilbert King]

I never expected to find myself in this place. Now I need to tell you how I got here.

[Jeremy Scott]

At the end of the day, I'm literally a son of a killer.

[Gilbert King]

Bone Valley Season 2 Jeremy.

[Jeremy Scott]

Jeremy, I want to tell you something.

[Gilbert King]

Listen to new episodes of Bone Valley Valley Season 2 starting April 9 on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and to hear the entire new season ad free with exclusive content starting April 9th. Subscribe to Lava for Good plus on Apple Podcasts.

[Jon Stewart]

Welcome back, Dallas. And my guest tonight, former two term mayor of Chicago. He has worked for three Democratic presidents, served as U.S. ambassador to Japan under Joseph Biden. Please welcome to the program Rahm Emanuel. What's happening? You are back. You were in Japan.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yes, as the ambassador and it's still an ally. Up until a week ago, I was.

[Jon Stewart]

Gonna say check your phone. Then you come Back. And you recently just took a new job. What's your new job?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Well, I'm doing Daily show writing right now.

[Jon Stewart]

What's your job?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah, I'm working for Centerview and I do write for the Washington Post and I'm on cnn.

[Jon Stewart]

I thought you worked at an investment bank.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah, Centerview.

[Jon Stewart]

Oh, Centerview.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah.

[Jon Stewart]

How's that going?

[Rahm Emanuel]

I'm out there with it.

[Jon Stewart]

When did you join?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah, about a month ago.

[Jon Stewart]

And when you got there. Let me ask you a question. When you got there, how was it going?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Well, there's a six letter word that a lot of people are saying lately. Tariffs.

[Jon Stewart]

Was this a completely unexpected. I mean, he's been talking about tariffs forever, it seems like. Did your bank set aside anything for it? Did they know this was coming? Did they put. Is there a basement where they keep things? Cash? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I mean, here is. I'm gonna breathe calmly, don't panic, because.

[Jon Stewart]

Everything'S gonna be fine.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah. 11 weeks and $11 trillion out the window. Areva durrchi. Shalom aleichem.

[Jon Stewart]

Whoa.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah. Bon voyage.

[Jon Stewart]

Look at you. Yeah.

[Rahm Emanuel]

And we only have 200 more weeks to go, right?

[Jon Stewart]

Yeah. I think a trillion a week.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah. As my father would say. So what could go wrong?

[Jon Stewart]

He takes it very easy.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah.

[Jon Stewart]

Is this the colonic that we need in your mind?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah. Let me. Let me try to help you, John, please. Yeah. So, I mean, I'm. I have a. Elon Musk measure.

[Jon Stewart]

What does that mean? Well, how many kids you have? What does that mean?

[Rahm Emanuel]

This is supposed to be a manufacturing renaissance. A manufacturer is going to come back screws next to Apple phones. As you said.

[Jon Stewart]

No, no, no, no.

[Rahm Emanuel]

We're robots.

[Jon Stewart]

Yeah.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Elon Musk has a 20,000 person factory in Shanghai, a 12,000 person factory in Berlin. When those get repurposed back in the United States, this is an incredible success. Until that time, it's an absolute failure. And what is really, I mean, on a serious note, also driving me absolutely crazy. We had China isolated. We had the whole world angry at China for exporting and destroying their economies. And we are going to be their hope and dream. We worked on getting Japan and Korea to align with the United States, isolate China. Now they're working their own economic deal and we're isolated. It's really the most.

[Jon Stewart]

Japan and South Korea are working there.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Working now with China.

[Jon Stewart]

Doesn't everybody trade with everybody?

[Rahm Emanuel]

But they were actually number one foreign investor in the United States. Japan. A million Americans work for them. One of the biggest manufacturing countries that support manufacturing in the United States, Japan. It's the most reckless thing done by a president. I mean, there is natural disasters, human disasters. There's lightning creates a fire. There's arson that creates a fire. This is arsonist.

[Jon Stewart]

Right. But don't you think this is his mo? You know, I'm going to tell you a story. This is really the wrong direction to go in, but I'm going to do it anyway.

[Rahm Emanuel]

You look like you're taking.

[Jon Stewart]

I'm thinking of how I can do.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I was going to bring some Excedrin for you.

[Jon Stewart]

Excedrin? What is this, the forties?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jon Stewart]

I'll give you an Excedrin and a Pall Mall and you'll be fine. Oh, you're lucky I didn't.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I could give you something McKinley used.

[Jon Stewart]

Here we go. Oh, don't do that. So I had a dog, and the dog would go outside and it would. He would eat whatever he could find outside and generally things that a dog shouldn't eat.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I'm worried where this is going.

[Jon Stewart]

He comes back into the house, everything's.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Fine, and you would go home in.

[Jon Stewart]

The middle of the night. He would wake up and he would vomit on the bed. I would turn the light on and I would look to try and go get stuff to clean it. Then he would eat the vomit and then look at me and go, I did good, right? Do you see what I'm saying? Isn't that what this is? Trump? I guarantee you. Here's what's gonna happen. Trump is gonna announce he's gonna eat the vomit and look at the country and go, huh?

[Rahm Emanuel]

He's giving China a get out of jail card. They were in the doghouse with everybody. They were isolating. They were destroying steel plants in Chile. They were destroying steel plants in South.

[Jon Stewart]

Africa, but they had Belt and Road. They were making tons of relationships with people.

[Rahm Emanuel]

They were also exporting all their economic problems domestic. All over the world.

[Jon Stewart]

And they had all her manufacturing in Malaysia.

[Rahm Emanuel]

All over the world.

[Jon Stewart]

Yes, yes, yes.

[Rahm Emanuel]

And they were isolated and they were becoming a problem for everybody. We're going to be the safe haven. We've now become the problem. We've given them a get out of jail card. This is. Listen, the way I look at it, March Madness used to be about basketball, right? Now it's about the Trump administration, right? You used to do brackets. Now you do 401ks and you used to do portfolios. I've never seen anything.

[Jon Stewart]

I can tell you I like my dog vomit metaphor much better than yours. I feel like mine was very Direct yours. Now, I'm thinking about seeding and everything else.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I'm telling you, I've literally.

[Jon Stewart]

He's gonna announce.

[Rahm Emanuel]

The only thing that I could say good about this.

[Jon Stewart]

Yeah.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Is you could. You know, you see all these CEOs on the shows that are all now like, this is crazy. This is insane. I'm gonna. I'm gonna say, schmuck, what took you so long? I mean, I cannot believe all these guys running around, oh, it's the largest tax increase in American history. Thank God for the American people. They think this is horrible. He says, I'm gonna.

[Jon Stewart]

Don't you listen to his people?

[Rahm Emanuel]

No, his people. I'm talking about the American people, not his people. Totally different.

[Jon Stewart]

No, no, no, don't. No, no, no. This is the wrong way to look at this.

[Rahm Emanuel]

His people are literally. They're grasping the English languages down to four words. Yes, sir, Mr. President.

[Jon Stewart]

His people were the majority of the voters in this country.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I used to. I worked for three presidents. I used to be six, two. I'm now only five, eight. Your job is to go in the Oval Office and tell them you're out of your mind. These guys. Yes. And they go off and they repeat all this crap on tv. You know Ludnick, the Secretary of Commerce, he makes a used car salesman look like a decent guy. I've never seen anything like this.

[Jon Stewart]

Let me tell you this. And from your whole rant there, no way. You're five'eight there's no way. No way. There's no way.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I am.

[Jon Stewart]

I'm five' seven and I could dunk on you.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Come on, let's go.

[Jon Stewart]

Let's go. Yeah, I'm taller.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I got. No, no, not a chance.

[Jon Stewart]

So. So listen to this.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I play Jewish basketball.

[Jon Stewart]

Trump is gonna say Jewish basketball. That's. That's Wilt Chamberlain. Trump is gonna say. What he's gonna do is go, I just made a deal. He did the same thing the last time. China just said they're going to buy all our pork and all our soybeans. It's the best deal anybody's ever made ever. They don't actually ever do it. Nobody ever checks on it. But why? Even if you wanted to renegotiate our trade agreements or create a Ferris system or whatever it is you want to do, why would you do it in such a reckless fashion?

[Rahm Emanuel]

I want to go back to your first point, please. In your book here, the Art of the Deal, he is the worst negotiator. China never bought anything. They took him to cleaner North Korea Never agreed to anything. He negotiated the trade deal with Canada and Mexico and then he just blew it up.

[Jon Stewart]

He's blowing up his own deal.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah. He is not a good negotiator. The only. When you claim you're a good negotiator, it's cover up the fact that you're a horrible negotiator. You could have done this seven different ways. He picked the eighth way.

[Jon Stewart]

Right.

[Rahm Emanuel]

And the problem is not just. And you are right, he's going to say after Japan or after Israel, I got this deal. And he's going to try to calm the markets down. But the fact is the damage to America. Nobody will ever trust us. In eight weeks, he's destroyed 80 years of reputation that America built. All of us collectively, all through all the battles. He has destroyed. And just like your dog, he threw up on the bed.

[Jon Stewart]

That was my point. That was the point of the whole story. Did you miss the point of the whole story? That was my point.

[Rahm Emanuel]

But I wanted to say it my way and I feel better for being here. Thank you. John.

[Jon Stewart]

Did you. Do you think I just brought that up randomly? No, that was. Let's to the other side of the coin.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Okay.

[Jon Stewart]

Democratic policy has led us in some measure to this moment.

[Rahm Emanuel]

No, no doubt about it. Here's a. Here, we gotta own this. Here's the fact, which is we disappointed the country. Now they will stab you in the back. We will disappoint you and. No, that's just where it is. And you get to pick as the American people.

[Jon Stewart]

That's the choice.

[Rahm Emanuel]

That's the good news.

[Jon Stewart]

Now.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Okay, now. And. And we got. And here's the deal. Here's what we get.

[Jon Stewart]

Didn't you want to be the DNC chair? That is a terrible. That is a terrible bumper stuff.

[Rahm Emanuel]

No, you asked me.

[Jon Stewart]

No, but you know how you dislike you.

[Rahm Emanuel]

We gotta be honest.

[Jon Stewart]

Yes.

[Rahm Emanuel]

When you make a mistake, you gotta own it. And that's the only way to. No, here's. And here's what it is. Yeah, we were just talking earlier.

[Jon Stewart]

Yes.

[Rahm Emanuel]

The Stewart kids and the Emanuel kids, they're gonna be good loving home, good education and the American dream. They're gonna get a shot at it, which is a deal. But in fact, out of Washington, the American people haven't gotten a shot. They got in the shaft. And what happened is trying to own a home. Trying to basically save for your retirement, save for your kid's education, a health care so you're not in the poor house one sickness away. People are missing medications, kids are coming home. From college or living in the basement. And the American dream is good for only about 10% of kids. That's not how we keep score. And we are responsible for not keeping stable.

[Jon Stewart]

But you can still do that then can't you understand why a percentage of the population would be like, burn it down. No, I don't care.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Here's my thing. Here's my thing. Yeah, more than that. Because of what happened both in Iraq war, what happened in the financial meltdown, the American people lost their lives, their livelihood, and the elite let them down. There is no doubt that they're right to be angry. I have no problem with some of the people that make up the maga. They have a right to be angry because the elite lost faith with them. What I have is all these other executives who've lived large on America, who allow a president to run roughshod over the law, who run roughshod over America. They have no right to that.

[Jon Stewart]

But that's not owning the Democratic failure. That's again placing it too. So let's, let's.

[Rahm Emanuel]

No, the Democrats. The Democrats have a responsibility they have for what they have done with losing faith. You can't let Peoria, Youngstown. You can't let parts of Wisconsin, La Crosse.

[Jon Stewart]

But we did.

[Rahm Emanuel]

No, we did. And that's why the first thing. Sorry, we owe you. No, we do. You have to get clean with people. Own what we did wrong and worst case scenario, we then get sidetracked into side issues rather than the main cause, which is the American dream.

[Jon Stewart]

Dream. So how would Democrats bring that back?

[Rahm Emanuel]

The American dream is unaffordable.

[Jon Stewart]

Right?

[Rahm Emanuel]

It's inaccessible.

[Jon Stewart]

Yes.

[Rahm Emanuel]

And that should be unacceptable to us. And then number two, what you have to do is right now is deal with the fundamentals. Okay? No part of America is off from being invested or invested in. You got to make sure every American has a chance at the American dream. Which means it starts first and foremost with education. Oh, Rob.

[Jon Stewart]

Even when.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I've got one, I gotta own that. Okay, number two, you own with the fact is you gotta invest in this country. And we did not do that. We basically let Americans and let the Chinese eat their lunch. And that's not even fair.

[Jon Stewart]

Even when they did it. I'm gonna tell. I was talking to Ezra Klein. We were talking about rural broadband. Billions of dollars invested in rural broadband. There was a 14 point plan to get companies to the starting line to go to build. Out of all the companies that jumped in there, everybody dropped out. But three, nobody got to the starting line by the Time their administration was over. They invested in green technology, they didn't build the electric charging stations. How can you go out there and say we need to raise taxes and money when people don't believe that you're going to spend it? Like, here's what's so upsetting about all of this. Trump is great at diagnosing the problem. Doge is great at telling you we need efficiency. I think the way they go about it is actually haphazard, cruel, reckless, doesn't fix the problem. But they're not wrong in the diagnosis.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yeah, you pointed out, and I have no, I agree with you 100% of what we literally, we passing the legislation should be hard, not actually getting the resource up. On the other hand, let me give you one reverse, okay.

[Jon Stewart]

Can I ask you.

[Rahm Emanuel]

No.

[Jon Stewart]

Is this about a dog?

[Rahm Emanuel]

No, it's about when the auto industry was on their back and there were literally. I remember as the chief of staff for President Obama, right. And we got a notice that there were six weeks left before Chrysler and GM were belly up and thousands of jobs and thousands of communities were on their backs. The United States came in and saved it and our auto industry came back. So in fact there is moments you can point to. You can't get a charging station, you go, wait a second. Even now I'm not saying look, but.

[Jon Stewart]

Let'S talk about 2008 for a second. We did bail out corporations.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Yes.

[Jon Stewart]

But people, homeowners who went under, they lost everything.

[Rahm Emanuel]

So you're looking at the guy. You're looking at the guy. 100%.

[Jon Stewart]

It's hard for me to go like, oh good when all the guys that work at GM lost their jobs.

[Rahm Emanuel]

You're looking at the guy. Well, that's actually, that's cheap. That's not actually true. GM jobs got saved rather than go. Some people were accurate talking about. Yeah, well that's. Yes, but you. Not totally accurate. This may be the last time I'm asked on the show. But on the second thing, here's the thing we did do and we saved the auto industry from going under. And the second thing is on that part and somebody who was in the White House that advocated for Old Testament justice on bankers, cuz they should have been put into the public square and literally had the crap beat out of them because they were asking for bonuses when people were losing their homes.

[Jon Stewart]

And I. No, wait, that's what you argue in the Oval Office. No, they're all like, what should we do about the thing? And they're like, beat them, whip them.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Actually to be in all fairness, it wasn't the Oval Office.

[Jon Stewart]

Put them in a.

[Rahm Emanuel]

It wasn't the Oval Office. It was in the Roosevelt Room.

[Jon Stewart]

Yeah.

[Rahm Emanuel]

They should be beaten up because they're sitting there asking for their bonuses as if they earned a bonus when people lost their homes, their livelihood and their life savings.

[Jon Stewart]

That's right.

[Rahm Emanuel]

And that is where we lost faith in the Iraq war, which is built on deception. The liars loan that lost people their homes was built on deception. And then you got Covid coming around and the Democrats sat around and acted like they were something.

[Jon Stewart]

Do you ever watch what this president is doing and think cuz you did.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I do, but I put on.

[Jon Stewart]

Stop. You're in the Oval Office. You're watching him do all these different things. Do you ever think. Because President Obama, and this is what he used to yell at me about. I used to have to. I don't know if you were there when I used to have to go down there and he would yell at me for a while.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I was the one that called you.

[Jon Stewart]

Okay.

[Rahm Emanuel]

So when he was with you, I got free time and I actually got the one.

[Jon Stewart]

Oh, is that true?

[Rahm Emanuel]

All right.

[Jon Stewart]

So do you watch what this president does in terms of at least the boldness of it, not what he's doing, and think, why didn't we push the edge and get the things that we thought rather than getting. If we ran on the audacity of hope, why did we govern on the possible? Is that, Is that something?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Well, the answer is in the talmudic way. Yes and no. Okay. And I'll tell you why. No. Yes. I was like, faceable. No, no. I feel like. Don't ever say that again. Okay. Or I'll have to give you. I understand this hand. I understand. I understand. No, I know. Here's the thing. I, like, sometimes I look around, I literally, I set up a blind trust. You look at these people, they're literally trading. They're setting up bitcoin. We were schmucks. We were idiots for doing this. On the other hand, nobody ever had an ethics problem in the Obama White House. We did follow the rules of law. America was respected around the world and we did create jobs. So did we follow it and say, oh, we should have done it audaciously like this and break over? No, because as members.

[Jon Stewart]

What would you have done, though, if you could?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Oh, that's going to. We have to do three more shows. No, but I say on the defense of President Obama.

[Jon Stewart]

It's not a defense.

[Rahm Emanuel]

He said, you know, my presidency's a marathon. And I hand over the baton to somebody else to pick up. I actually think he left America better than the one he inherited from President Bush in a whole host of ways. I don't agree with everything. And then you look at this. No, I don't wish we did this. And I'm glad we didn't do this. Was it constraining? Yes. But leaving here literally walking around saying, huh, there won't be a recession. What do you need a 401k for? No. And then.

[Jon Stewart]

I don't mean blow. I mean to push things in a way that didn't follow.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Well, somebody who pushed a number of people known for that.

[Jon Stewart]

That's why I'm asking you this question.

[Rahm Emanuel]

There are things, there's no doubt, like what they're about to do. Let's take this on the budget and say $5 trillion in the taxes doesn't cost anything. Well, I'm sorry. Any kid in third grade math, even post Covid, knows what $5 trillion does cost, okay? I mean, give me a break. So when they sit there and do all this, they got it. You didn't get it.

[Jon Stewart]

I mean, I got it. I'm just adding up how many Americans you've called stupid tonight. No, I'm just going through the list.

[Rahm Emanuel]

No, I start off with American children.

[Jon Stewart]

I want. I want the bankers beaten. I want the dumb children removed.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Now, wait a second. I think the American people agree with me about bankers getting beaten.

[Jon Stewart]

No, they're not vigilantes. No, it's a cheap high.

[Rahm Emanuel]

I know, but I'm here for 20 minutes, so it feels pretty good.

[Jon Stewart]

Here's what we need.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Okay, but here's. No, the thing is, do I feel like I could. Back to your original question. Do I feel like we should have done certain things like this? Yeah. But that for a guy, I believe in the end of the day, following the rules, playing by the rules is better for the country than trying ultimately. Not just ultimately. Also at the time, there are definitely frustrating things. There are things that I. Look, what I will say this is. You look at, like, what they did on the courts and how they stacked them versus we. Kind of the way we did it in the sense of the process, full background check, etc. You could have pushed. You could have no doubt pushed that much harder and much faster. No doubt about it.

[Jon Stewart]

And so if you were gonna. We'll leave it at this final advice. You're a guy that's been in the Oval Office a few times. The Democrats are in the wilderness. I'm assuming that whoever is going to be the next leader of the Democrat Party is going to come from the wilderness like it usually does. Clinton came out of nowhere. Obama came out of nowhere. Generally, the successful ones, even Jimmy Carr, come out of nowhere. Who's the next? Who's the next? And what would you want them to be?

[Rahm Emanuel]

Not. No, here's what I would. On a serious note, I do want them. I want them not part of Washington. I want them to have governed. I want them to be a true change agent. And I want them to understand one thing. Keep we. The biggest thing we have to do is restore the credibility and trust with the American people.

[Jon Stewart]

Competence.

[Rahm Emanuel]

It's more than competence. Competence counts. But that's not. It's not what keeps you up. The Fair Deal, the New Deal, the New Frontier, was not about competence. It was about having a vision in America, holding America to that North Star.

[Jon Stewart]

And that is give me three people that you would call on to write that vision, to have that vision, to help you with that vision, to be that vision.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Three.

[Jon Stewart]

Three.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Okay. I got six for you. Okay. Okay. Here, hold on. Let me give you.

[Jon Stewart]

No, I'm writing it down.

[Rahm Emanuel]

You got it. You want this one? It's better. It's a little better on that one. Yeah. Okay.

[Jon Stewart]

Okay.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Hey, John, your. Your dog was playing with that before.

[Jon Stewart]

All right.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Okay.

[Jon Stewart]

Six.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Okay. Governor of Pennsylvania, Shapiro.

[Jon Stewart]

You're just talking about the. Yeah.

[Rahm Emanuel]

You asked me who.

[Jon Stewart]

Who. But these are the usual. Okay, so you're saying it's going to come from the. The governor Bashir Whitmer.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Look, the one constant in American history.

[Jon Stewart]

Yeah.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Is governors have been the most likely to make it to Washington because they bring change. Both parties. Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton. You go there. Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Governors are your most likely change.

[Jon Stewart]

Would you give a Mark Cuban a shot, somebody like that, totally out of the box?

[Rahm Emanuel]

No. No, I wouldn't. Because I think that you actually have to have, you know, the currency you work out in politics is politics. And if you don't have experience in it. No. And I do think governors bring change. People that have. Understand. But the most important thing to me is can you articulate that vision that takes America out of this wilderness to a better place to do a better thing? Because when you're done with this, it's going to be a lot of carnage, young man.

[Jon Stewart]

Rahm Emanuel. We're going to take a break. We'll be right back after this. Do you see, though? The people are so crazy.

[Gilbert King]

Something unexpected happened after Jeremy Scott confessed to killing Michelle Schofield in Bone Valley Season one.

[Jon Stewart]

I just knew him as a kid.

[Gilbert King]

Long, silent voices from his past came.

[Jeremy Scott]

Forward, and he was just staring at me.

[Gilbert King]

And they had secrets of their own to share.

[Jeremy Scott]

Gilbert King. I'm the son of Jeremy Lynn Scott.

[Gilbert King]

I was no longer just telling the story. I was part of it.

[Jeremy Scott]

Every time I hear about my dad, it's, oh, he's a killer. He's just straight evil.

[Gilbert King]

I was becoming the bridge between a killer and the son he'd never known.

[Jeremy Scott]

If the cops and everything would have done their job properly, my dad would have been in jail. I would have never existed.

[Gilbert King]

I never expected to find myself in this place. Now I need to tell you how I got here.

[Jeremy Scott]

At the end of the day, I'm literally a son of a killer.

[Gilbert King]

Bone Valley Season 2 Jeremy.

[Jeremy Scott]

Jeremy, I want to tell you something.

[Gilbert King]

Listen to new episodes of bone Valley Season 2 starting April 9 on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear the entire new season ad free with exclusive content starting April 9th, subscribe to Lava for Good plus on Apple Podcasts.

[Jon Stewart]

That's our show for tonight, but before we go, we're going to check in with your host for the rest of the week, Desi Lyddick. Desi, what's up? What's happening? It's going down this week. Oh, big science news, Sean. Just this week, researchers using fossilized DNA have brought back dire wolves from extinction. Very exciting. Aren't those the Game of Thrones wolves? The dire. That does sound a little risky. Oh, does it? Does it sound a little risky? Oh, I don't want giant dire wolves or a T. Rex with guns for arms. Only the weak will fail, John. I don't. I'm not weak. I don't. I actually. I don't want a T. Rex with guns for arms. I don't want that. Wow, you're being a real P word, John Panican. You're being two P words, John. Fair enough. Desi Lydic, everybody. Here it is. Your moment is end. The Dodgers face down adversity. You entered the playoffs battered and bruised, but not broken. When you ran out, the healthy arms, you ran out of really healthy. They had great arms, but they ran out. It's called sports. It's called baseball, in particular. Explore more shows from the Daily show podcast universe by searching the Daily Show. Wherever you get your podcasts, watch the Daily show weeknights at 1110 Central on Comedy Central and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount.

[Rahm Emanuel]

Paramount podcasts.

[Gilbert King]

Something unexpected happened after Jeremy Scott confessed to killing Michelle Schofield in Bone Valley season one.

[Jeremy Scott]

Every time I hear about my dad is, oh, he's a killer. He's just straight evil.

[Gilbert King]

I was becoming the bridge between Jeremy Scott and the son he'd never known.

[Jeremy Scott]

At the end of the day, I'm literally a son of a killer.

[Gilbert King]

Listen to new episodes of bone Valley Season 2, starting April 9 on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.