Sunday, May 22 – Amid protests and a severe economic crisis in Venezuela, President Maduro would be hard-pressed to be less helpful. In contrast, PM Trudeau in Canada has apparently spent the week apologizing for “Elbowgate,"” in which he elbowed a government representative while trying to help another squeeze through; this might be one of the most stereotypically Canadian things ever. The main story was on the absolute free-for-all that is the US primary/caucus system. I knew it was messed up, inconsistent, and not very democratic, but as usual, John handily demonstrated just how far the insanity goes. I particularly liked his point that many Americans think they have a basic understanding of how the system works but they really don't, and why that's an obvious problem. Finally, there was a story about Chechnyan leader Kadyrov, who took to social media to deputize the people to find his missing cat – wow.
Monday, May 23 – Opening bit on the leader of the Taliban being killed in a drone strike; I liked the joke that ISIS has been a decoy all this time to make the Taliban think the US forgot about them. The story on Trump’s appearance at a fundraiser for paying off Chris Christie's campaign debt was amusing. I loved the bit about children in Africa deciding Christie needs the money more, and Trump shrugging off the threat of a trade war with China is insane but, sadly, not unexpected. The story on TSA shortages was a bit fluff but fine. I enjoyed Trevor's horror at adding clowns to a stressful situation, and he had a great riff on a reporter’s “humble bragging” about his reward membership. The interview with Rose Byrne was a little ho-hum. I was surprised to realize she was Australian (I’d always assumed British,) and Trevor’s revelation that the Australian soap Neighbours is apparently huge in South Africa made me smile.
Tuesday, May 24 – I liked having single thematic through line for the episode, doing a whole show on the NRA and gun safety regulation. We started with the new union between Trump and the NRA, which seemed uneasy despite the similar MOs of furthering their aims by exploiting people’s fears; I loved Trevor’s crack about “the smell of demagoguery in the morning.” The show also looked at the history of the NRA, which originally prioritized gun safety. Desi had an interesting field piece reporting outside an NRA convention. The angle, that the Constitution-obsessed group wouldn’t let her exercise her 1st-Amendment right to freedom of the press, was great, and I liked the observation that most NRA are opposed to the words “gun control” but not actual common-sense safety laws. The guest, Katie Couric, talked about her new documentary Under the Gun. It was an informative interview that flowed nicely from what came before.
Wednesday, May 25 – The first story looked at Brazil’s assorted crises as the Olympics approach, from political upheaval to horrific pollution to the Zika virus. I loved the comment that the US wouldn’t skip the Olympics because Americans love winning and going on vacation so much, and Trevor’s gobsmacked reaction to Congress wanting to use Ebola money for Zika was cathartic. Next came Trump’s latest conspiracy theory (latching onto an old outlandish theory about the Clintons murdering a guy) and revisited others he’s touted – Obama’s birth certificate, connecting Ted Cruz’s dad to Lee Harvey Oswald, vaccines causing autism – with the general thesis of, “And this guy should be trusted with the US military?” The guest was Cory Pegues, a reformed gang member who became a police officer. He discussed systemic problems in policing and the importance of not deciding someone’s entire future based on their past.
Thursday, May 26 – Some good jokes on Obama’s visit to Vietnam. I liked the passive-aggressive technique of only selling weapons to Vietnam when China is watching, and Trevor had an amusing tangent about what Obama does/doesn’t need to carry on him. The latest on Clinton’s emails was depressing, especially her approval rating dipping below Trump’s for the first time. Trevor’s right – how on earth did we get here? Michelle had some advice on how Clinton can get back on top, suggesting that America needs a boss more than a buddy. Another tale from the Trump archives, this time a chauvinist “women in the kitchen” quote, once again demonstrating why his approval with women is so low. Reporter Mike Allenwas the guest, talking about – what else? – the insane election. He discussed the GOP’s resignation to Trump, Clinton’s poll numbers, and pointless but highly entertaining idea of a Trump-Sanders debate.
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