The Daily Show: Ears Edition

Episode: Trump Wages War on American Cities As DOD Gets a Makeover | Michael Grunwald

Date: September 11, 2025

Host: Michael Kosta

Notable Correspondents: Jordan Klepper, Josh Johnson

Special Guest: Michael Grunwald

Episode Overview

This episode tackles two major storylines: the Trump administration’s controversial “rebranding” of the Department of Defense to the “Department of War,” and the subsequent use of the military in American cities. The second half shifts to topics surrounding U.S.-Canada relations — with a comedic field piece on Vermont’s attempts to lure back Canadian tourists — followed by an in-depth interview with journalist Michael Grunwald on his new book, We Are Eating the Earth, about the role of agriculture and meat consumption in climate change.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Department of Defense Renamed as Department of War (01:01–12:44)

A. Trump’s Executive Order:

• The show opens with coverage of President Trump issuing an order to rename the “Department of Defense” (DoD) to the “Department of War.”
  • “Not a good sign when a country that's not at war suddenly sets up a Department of War. What’s the President trying to tell us?” — Michael Kosta [02:16]
• The satirical take explores the rationale, with Trump claiming “wokeness” led to the 1947 name change, and his supporters arguing the U.S. military should project “maximum lethality” instead of being constrained by political correctness.
  • “Deadly force, not a gender studies course. It’s World War 3, not Adam and Steve... slam poetry, great.” — Michael Kosta [03:44]

B. The Reality — The Name Change is Largely Symbolic:

• Officially changing the department’s name requires congressional action; the order makes “Department of War” a secondary name only.
  • “Are you telling me the American military just gave itself an official nickname? If anything, that makes it seem weaker.” — Michael Kosta [05:10]
• Discussion of the billions potentially required to update signage, stationary, and base emblems, despite budget cuts to areas like cancer research.
  • “My God, what a waste. You know, and that's real money that we could have spent on two fighter jets for Qatar that would get bombed by two other fighter jets from Israel that we also paid for.” — Michael Kosta [05:44]

C. Domestic Military Deployments:

• Trump’s militarization extends beyond D.C. to threats of troop deployments in Chicago and New York.
  • A manipulated image: “I love the smell of deportations in the morning... Chicago about to find out why it’s called the Department of War.” [06:54]
• Satirical focus on the idea of using the military against American cities, with commentary on the president’s Freudian need to “invade the city he came out of.” [07:09]

D. Protest in D.C. and Comic Analysis:

• Footage from D.C.: Trump claims restaurants are “booming” after National Guard deployment, but his security detail and protesters disrupt the narrative.
  • “Nothing says I feel safe like driving one block from the White House, surrounded by a fleet of armored cars and countless Secret Service agents. And just look at this pussy posse behind him.” — Michael Kosta [07:53]
  • Protesters chant: “Free DC, Free Palestine. Trump is the Hitler of our time.” [08:21]
• Comic exchange between Kosta and Josh Johnson mocks the administration’s posturing, suggesting the Department of War is more interested in low-risk targets than confronting major adversaries.
  • “Hell, no. Obviously not China. They got tanks and bombs. They invented kung fu, Costa. No, I'm talking about hotel workers in Baltimore.” — Josh Johnson [10:36]
  • “I can tell you’ve never been to jail... You should walk in and start beating the shit out of yourself... You ever see a guy punching his own balls? No one’s gonna mess with him. He crazy.” — Josh Johnson [11:26]
• Segment closes with a physical comedy bit, ending on the phrase: “Peace through Strength, Costa.” — Josh Johnson [12:25]

2. Vermont’s Battle for Canadian Tourism (13:22–18:43)

A. Trump’s Antagonism Damages US–Canada Relations:

• Americans are losing Canadian tourist dollars due to Trump’s rhetoric and policies.
  • “Canadians are boycotting American vacations. By plane, down 20%. By car, down 35%. It's projected that the US will lose $12.5 billion compared to last year.” — Michael Kosta [13:52]
• Vermont, traditionally dependent on Canadian tourism, is especially hard hit.

B. Vermont's (Quirky) Attempts to Lure Back Canadians:

• Stickers and signs declare “Canadians are welcome”; one street is even renamed “Canada Street.”
  • “You’re putting country over God.” — Jordan Klepper [14:49]
• Free parking incentives and even embracing local quirks like public nudity, all aimed at enticing Canadian visitors.
  • “Do you think maybe the naked people is a reason Canadians don’t visit as much?” — Jordan Klepper [15:05]

C. The Beer Diplomacy Solution:

• Breweries bring in Canadian beers and eliminate exchange rates to draw more visitors.
  • “So the game plan is discounts, Canadian beer and overall politeness.” — Jordan Klepper [16:20]
• Ultimately, the answer turns out to be simple: beer brings people together.
  • “Beer is good for friendship.” — (Vermont Canadian festival attendee) [16:55]
  • “Beer was the answer.” — Jordan Klepper [18:04]

3. Michael Grunwald Interview: Eating the Earth (20:37–34:39)

A. Setting the Stage:

• Michael Grunwald, journalist and author, discusses his new book, We Are Eating the Earth.
• He describes his own journey starting with a question: “Is meat really this bad for the climate?” (21:21)

B. The Scale of the Problem:

• Agriculture is the leading driver of deforestation, water shortages, and pollution — one-third of the climate problem.
  • “We're losing a soccer field worth of forest every six seconds to agriculture. That we are eating the earth.” — Grunwald [22:51]
  • Only 1% of land is urban/suburban; 40% is crops and pasture. [23:11]
• Forests are literal carbon sinks; bulldozing them weakens the planet’s ability to absorb carbon.
  • “Trying to decarbonize the planet while you’re tearing down forests for agriculture, it’s like trying to clean up your house while smashing the vacuum cleaner to bits.” — Grunwald [23:11]

C. Meat, Inefficiency, and Dietary Choices:

• Animal agriculture is extremely inefficient — especially beef.
  • “Three quarters of our agricultural land is either pasture or it’s crops that we’re feeding to animals... Beef in particular, cattle are the baddies.” — Grunwald [24:06]
  • Beef is about ten times worse than chicken or pork, climate-wise [24:49]

D. The Limits and Future of Alternatives:

• The plant-based meat boom (e.g., Beyond Meat) peaked in hype then crashed, but tech may yet catch up.
  • “Right now it’s only 90% as good as meat and it costs a little bit more... But the cow is a pretty mature technology and this stuff isn’t.” — Grunwald [26:42]
• There are other exciting solutions, including:
  • Gene-edited microbes as fertilizer
  • mRNA pesticides to “constipate potato beetles to death” [27:19]
  • AI-enhanced photosynthesis for higher yields

E. Busting “Local” and “Grass-Fed” Myths:

• “Knowing your farmer” and eating local don’t automatically equate to climate-friendly.
  • “From a climate and environmental perspective, what really matters is what you’re eating and how it’s grown, how efficiently.” — Grunwald [28:53]
• Grass-fed beef is actually worse than factory-farmed, efficiency-wise.
  • “It takes them longer to get to slaughter weight. So they’re alive to burp and fart methane for longer.” — Grunwald [29:19]

F. The Need for High-Yield, Efficient Agriculture:

• To avoid further deforestation, agriculture must become more land- and emission-efficient.
  • “We are going to need high yield agriculture... Factories are really good at manufacturing lots of stuff.” — Grunwald [30:26]
  • Both industrial and small-scale farms need to maximize food per acre.

G. Trees and Water Quality:

• Echoes: “Trees are the answer” in halting climate change and deforestation [31:56]
• Water quality crises across the U.S. are largely tied to agriculture:
  • “The reason the aquifers under California are parched are because of the agriculture on top of it... The reason there’s a dead zone the size of Connecticut in the Gulf of Mexico is because of fertilizer running off farms in the Mississippi Valley.” — Grunwald [32:44]
• Closing: farmers do essential work, but need to be held to higher environmental standards.
  • “Sure, your heartland values are great, but collectively you’re stewarding a mess and we want you to make even more food and we'll help you, but you’re going to have to do it with less mess.” — Grunwald [34:06]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Are you telling me the American military just gave itself an official nickname? If anything, that makes it seem weaker.” — Michael Kosta [05:10]
• “If we have factory farms, we’d like to have them do it with less mass. And if we’re going to have the nice organic farms, they’re going to have to make more food per acre.” — Michael Grunwald [30:26]
• “Beer is good for friendship.” — Canadian festival attendee [16:55]
• “Trees are good, man.” — Michael Grunwald [31:56]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:01–12:44]: Main segment—Trump’s executive order renaming DoD, American cities’ “invasion,” satirical Pentagon report with Josh Johnson
• [13:22–18:43]: Jordan Klepper’s Vermont/Canada tourism story
• [20:37–34:39]: Interview with Michael Grunwald on agriculture, meat, climate, and water issues

Conclusion

This episode combines pointed political satire about American militarism and Trumpian theatrics with a genuinely illuminating, comedic, and practical conversation on agriculture’s role in climate change. The “Department of War” bit eviscerates the administration’s optics and logic, while Michael Grunwald’s segment delivers abundant, accessible insights on the urgent need to rethink how we grow — and consume — our food. The tone remains comic and lightly irreverent, but never strays far from the episode’s bigger questions: What kind of nation (and planet) are we cultivating, and can we do better?