The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Jon on Alex Pretti's Killing, DHS vs. Video Evidence & MAGA's Gun Rights Surrender | Jason Rezaian

Episode Date: January 27, 2026

After the second murder of a Minnesota ICE protester by federal agents, Jon Stewart breaks down the increasingly unhinged gaslighting from Trump officials, who are trying to paint victim Alex Pretti as a "domestic terrorist" and ICE agents as innocent kittens, despite clear video evidence to the contrary. And as MAGA and Kristi Noem ignore even their precious Second Amendment in their attempts to justify the shooting of a legally armed citizen, Jon points to the real weapon threatening this administration: cameras. Director of Press Freedom Initiatives at The Washington Post, Jason Rezaian sits down with Jon Stewart to discuss the increasingly deadly protests against the Iranian regime. They talk about the importance of collecting details of the Iranian experience despite the impermeable internet blackouts, how Trump’s desire to make a deal with Iran would only empower the current oppressive regime, the benefits of including Iranian dissidents exiled to the U.S. in policy conversations, and the humor that carried Rezaian through his 544-day wrongful prison sentence in Iran. Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster—join at https://RocketMoney.com/DAILYSHOW with promo code DAILYSHOW. Join the thousands of parents who trust Fabric to help protect their family. Apply today in just minutes at https://meetfabric.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This show is supported by Odu. When you buy business software from lots of vendors, the costs add up, and it gets complicated and confusing. Odo solves this. It's a single company that sells a suite of enterprise apps that handles everything from accounting to inventory to sales. Odu is all connected on a single platform in a simple and affordable way. You can save money without missing out on features you need.

Check out Odu at O-D-O-O-O-O-com. That's O-D-O-O-O-com. At MedCan, we know that life's greatest moments are built on a foundation of good health, from the big milestones to the quiet winds. That's why our annual health assessment offers a physician-led, full-body check-up that provides a clear picture of your health today

and may uncover early signs of conditions like heart disease and cancer. The healthier you means more moments. to cherish. Take control of your well-being and book an assessment today. Medcan, live well for life. Visit medcan.com slash moments to get started. You're listening to Comedy Central. From the most trusted journalists at Comedy Central is America's only source for news. This is The Daily Show with your host, John Stewart.

My name is John Stewart. Great show for you tonight. My guest tonight, Jason Rezaian, We'll be talking about Iran. Fabulous story. Iran right now, an authoritarian state, currently being rocked by protests that threaten to tear the whole nation apart. I mean, can you imagine? But yes, like most of the country,

I spent the weekend consumed by the awful news out of Minnesota. And I will say, hearing about this has somehow done the impossible, which is, it has dampened my enthusiasm for this week's premiere of the Melania. documentary. Everyone wants to know. So here it is. Move over Avatar sequels.

Here's another movie that wasn't necessary. Oh, I was actually really looking forward to it. Go behind the scenes. Find out what went into deciding on such an unease. Or was it madness? Either way, 10 out of 10, no notes. Also, love the tagline to the movie Melania, the inspiring true story of how an online shopping billionaire

paid millions to curry favor with the president. Am I in trouble? I can't wait for the sequel. Oh, fuck it, just take the money. It's in the hat. But back to the main story. For the second time in two weeks, another American has been tragically killed

on the streets of Minneapolis. Now, obviously, all the facts are not in yet. But here is, as best we can tell, the account of what happened on this terrible day. This individual who came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers. Oh.

The agents attempted to disarm the individual, but he violently resisted. Oh, dear God. They must have been petrified. This individual attacked those officers, wishing to inflict harm on these officers coming, brandishing like that. Fearing for his life and the lives

and safety of fellow officers, a Border Patrol agent fired defensive shots. Of course, the defensive. I mean, he had to stand his ground. This looks like a situation where an individual wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement. Committed an act of domestic terrorism. That's the facts. Whoa. Committed an act of domestic terrorism. That's the second worst kind of terrorism. Those are the facts. That's the facts. There's really no reason to doubt them. No evidence.

exists to contradict, hold on. I'm getting a, oh, really? I'm hearing there may be some grainy, Zapruder-like footage from, I don't know, every angle imaginable that contradicts the government's versions of events. Videos of the shooting of Alex Pretti have contradicted the government's account of what happened. All he has in his hand is a cell phone, not a gun. He's trying to help a woman who's just been pushed to the ground and pepper sprayed.

He's trying to go help her with his hands up. They engage him, and they're dragging him back. The videos also appear to show Preddy's legal registered firearm being removed from his person by an officer just seconds before those shots were fired. Wow. Well, it looks like we've got a real case of he said video totally disproves what he said. You know, this is also confusing. Perhaps to help get some more clarity on what's going on, we go live to Minneapolis.

where our own Jordan Clapper has been standing out so much for joining us. What's the latest that you're hearing? John, DHS has finally completed their analysis and now has a definitive account of what happened. Let me take you through it step by step because it paints a more complete picture. This all took place in an area where illicit activity by illegal immigrants was occurring and terrible stuff,

pedaling drugs, selling knockoff loboos, showing football games without the express written consent of the NFL. You know, heinous shit. Now, shortly after, protesters arrived at the scene to create a barricade, that's when, as you can see here, the ICE agents arrived. I say, and that... I'm sorry, you're...

You're telling me that according to DHS, those are the... The ICE agents, yes. And contrary to all the mainstream media spin, all these ICE agents want to do is keep America safe and occasionally lick their own puckered buttholes. But before they could do their job, a gang of Soros-funded protesters arrived on the scene. As you can see, these guys were packing heat,

posing an imminent threat with their girthy leftist dongs. This is the DHS account. I mean, first of all, it's Minnesota, it's winter. You would think they'd be wearing clothes, no? Don't be naive, John. If you got it, you flaunt it. I see it. This is the moment when the armed suspect

finally appeared, and shit got real. Pow, pow, pew, pew, meow, meo, hiss, hiss, John. As you can see, the suspect left them no choice. Look, I don't even know where to begin. That doesn't, the scene doesn't match any of the video that we've seen, and that's clearly Doc Ack from Spider-Man. That's Doc Ack.

John, I can see this isn't resonating with you. And luckily, DHS is not married to this version. Here's another one they're pitching. What if I told you the ICE agents just do this on the side, and they're actually all K-pop stars? Well, not that. That's just the plot of K-pop Demon Hunters. You didn't let me finish.

And they're all gay hockey players. The ICE agents. Everybody, John. That last one's intriguing. Jordan Klepper, everybody. I think the lowest bar that a government ever has to clear in terms of earned credibility

to its population is obvious reality. You just got to clear obvious reality. I believe it's what the political philosopher Seneca referred to as the don't piss on my leg and tell me it's raining doctrine. But watch Border Patrol commander in short, Greg Bovino, who, by the way, appears to be just a new character that Trump's cinematic universe is introduced.

Where the fuck did this guy even come from? It's his first season on the show. Anyway, this guy Bovino very clearly stated that the guy they killed was a terrorist attempting a massacre. I'm sure that version of events will be able to withstand

even one fucking follow-up question at the presser. Questions? First question, when did agents go and Matthew have done? Would he ever brandish that weapon at aliens? Allie, this situation, again, is evolving. This situation is under investigation. Oh, now it's an investigation. Oh, the investigation is evolving.

I thought evolution was a generational thing. Not three seconds after you confused, you accuse a guy of terrorism. And by the way, here's what they said at the presser after just the second question. All right, no more questions. Sorry, no more questions, sir. I'm ready to take your questions and no more questions and two fucking questions. And it's too bad because I happen to have a lot of questions. Like, who's going to investigate this horrific killing by the Department of Homeland Security

that the Department of Homeland Security has clearly misrepresented? The Department of Homeland Security says they'll investigate the shooting. Oh, good luck finding the real killer, OJ. We're rooting for you. And pardon me for not trusting that the administration is going to do a fair and free investment. when they are already going out on TV, moving the goalposts on why the shooting was justified, whether he was brandishing the weapon or not. He was not protesting peacefully.

He was screaming in the face of ICE. He had a phone up right to the right into ISIS's face. I mean, we all see the same thing. I mean, you shouldn't try to gaslight the administration about what happened. Somebody's on therapy talk. Gassolating you? You gaslighting? No, I'm gasoline.

You gaslighting me? Are you gaslighting me? A little bit, a little bit. We're gaslighting you? What the f-by-the-way. We're gaslighting you. Speaking of gaslighting, here is Todd Blanche a day after accusing all of us

of gaslighting the administration about what happened. I don't think anybody thinks that they were comparing what happened on Saturday to the legal definition of domestic terrorism. Oh, you don't think anybody's doing that? Well, they were certainly f***ing it. I mean, it might be hard to find someone explicitly using those exact words, but we found it. Violence against a government because of ideological reasons, and for reasons to resist and

perpetuate violence, that is the definition of domestic terrorism. I mean, we're gaslight. I think that actually might be the definition of gaslighting. Look, the administration realized pretty quickly that the public is not buying their description. So they had to make a choice. Come clean and commit yourself to finding the truth, no matter where it may lead, or just redefine who the victims of this tragedy really were. The victim are the Border Patrol agents.

I think when it comes to the ICE agents, I think you see the incredible frustration that they feel. You know, someone screaming in your face, F you suck, get out of here, that's tough to take for an eight-hour day. Now look what you've done. People screaming 8 hours a day is basically every customer service job in this country.

The national pastime of Staten Island. You're telling me trained and armed ice agents can't handle what the average geek squad member at Best Buy has to?

I told you I didn't spill it! I was upset. I'm sorry, Greg Bevino, you've got more to say? Politicians, community leaders and some journalists engage in that heated rhetoric calling law enforcement

names like Gestapo. You went full Stoppo? Gestapo? Gestapo? I thought you guys hate when people do that, the way a Latino newscaster might throw out a

a Maduro. But you're out there full Gestapo? Like you're an extra and Jojo Rabbit? Gustapo! I'm Gestapo! In America, we pronounce it. And I get that people's language

can be hyperbopi. certainly, but one thing that may not be helping your case, Sergeant Bovino or whatever, can we get a quick fit check on this motherfucker? You know, first of all, it is slightly terrifying to Americans that you seem to be dressing for the job you want. So if I can say,

if you love the Gestapo coat, you may want to change the Gestapo hair. Because together, it's really Stapo. So if you love the Gestapo coat, the coat, keep the coat. But instead of the fasci, you might want to give yourself the garfunkel. Changes everything. Or if you're really into the reverse Larry David, keep the hair, but maybe a slightly less threatening uniform. In your shit right now. We can't even, you know what, we can't even get through a snowstorm without being reminded of how badly this

is going for you. The biggest threat, though, continues to be, and always really generally, is it's ice. Ice is still causing dangerous conditions. Ice creating some precious conditions on the roads. on the sidewalk. There hasn't been an ice warning this severe in 12 years. When it comes to ice, all the bets are off. You need to just still be careful

because ice can still be out there. Just don't mention the storm might be the result of El Nino or it might get dragged out of the car in front of the kids. Too soon? All right, fair enough. But as all of the administration's

descriptions of the events and reasoning behind the events fell apart, the right did seem to coalesce on one aspect of the incident. When you are bearing arms and you are confronted by law enforcement, you are raising the risk of

force being used against you. You cannot bring a firearm loaded with multiple magazines to any sort of protests that you want. I don't know of any peaceful protester that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign. Don't let the left kid you with this,

that this is just a normal protest. Peaceful protesters don't have nine millimeter weapons with two extra magazines. Are you fucking kidding me right now? Are you fucking kidding? Are you saying, is that what you're saying, is that what the right? Are you saying that the problem was the guy had a gun? Are you saying that the guns are the problem?

Is that, are you saying, if I may, is everyone on the right coming together to say, Carrying a legal firearm was the problem. Am I hearing things? Is that really what you're saying? Really? Is that what you're saying? I guess that's what they're saying. Yeah, I want to hear it again. I want to hear you say it again.

But this time not from some, you know, Congressman, I want to hear from a cabinet-level secretary. And it doesn't have to be a cabinet-level secretary who deals with security or anything along those lines. Just somebody wants to jump in and comment on it. In fact, and I want this secretary to deliver this line like it's a mic drop even though oh is it not he brought a gun have you ever gone to a protest i mean we do have a second amendment in this country that jonathan have you ever gone to a protest i mean

have you gone to a protest i mean i've i know actually as a reporter covering it okay i've been to a protest guess what i didn't bring a gun i brought a billboard i didn't bring a huh i brought a huh it wasn't a it was a her it was a her i brought a biller i brought a biller I brought three billboards. The protest was outside of Ebbing, Missouri. It was three billboards. I brought them on. People don't bring billboards to fucking protests.

They call them signs. I brought a billboard. I brought a billboard. I didn't bring a bang, bang. I brought a boom-bron. There is nothing that I love more than watching somebody delivered a practiced line that they think is devastating,

only to trip on their own dick. This is blowing my first. blowing my fucking mind. The people that brought you this guy and these guys, and these guys as fucking heroes who are brandishing their weapons are telling you the big mistake was letting a citizen legally carry a gun.

I mean, listen, I wasn't shocked when you guys gave up the First Amendment, and I wasn't shocked when you gave up the Fourth Amendment, and the 10th Amendment and the 14th Amendment at Trump's behest. But the second, isn't that kind of

the load-bearing wall of the don't tread on me flag? Your snakes down to a new. Your deeply felt constitutional principles are suddenly the knight in Monty Python. Ah, come back. Thank you to death. I'm still a constitution. Rent it. It's very good.

Come on, guys. Guns are your whole purpose. personality. Guns are your Zoom backgrounds, your decorative lapel pins. Guns are how you show displeasure at documents. Guns are your Christmas cards. There's no human activity that can't be made better without the pulsing heat of your Armolite best friends. Of course in Texas, we cook bacon a little different than most friends. Wanted to talk, but it is clear how much heavy lifting his beard has to do. Like, that dude, that was like,

that's some weapons shit right there. The crazy thing is the right has jettisoned the entire integrity and belief of their political worldview, the entire foundation of it

for a guy who really doesn't give a fuck. You gave it all up. This is. your president on this harrowing weekend of bloodshed? At 11.31 a.m. this morning, he wrote on Truth Social to complain about a lawsuit and say that stopping construction of his White House ballroom, in his view, quote, would be devastating

to the White House, our country, and all concerned. Just a few moments ago, he posted again lamenting the NFL's new kickoff format. This is who you threw it all the way for. Kickoff. blood runs through the streets of Minnesota. A political party has jettisoned their entire knowledge of the founding documents. And Trump's out there like, hey, everybody, we're all going to get laid. This is what makes this entire Minnesota adventure so maddening.

Because ultimately, we as a country are not asking for too much from our government. We're just not. We have the soft bigotry of low expectations. All we want. insane policies actually competently executed without you all being huge dicks. That's all we, oh no, that's not. That's not what we'll work on the acronym. But instead, we get bad policy executed with extreme dickishness.

And to add insult to injury is the denial of the reality that we all witnessed. They're lying. We saw it. And that's how brazen they lie when they know we've seen the truth. That's how they lie when they know we know. Imagine how they lie

when there's no evidence to contradict them. And maybe that more than anything explains why Alex Pretty really was a threat because he was brandishing a weapon, a handheld aluminum 1080p, 60 FPS weapon of mass illumination. Because there is nothing more dangerous to a regime predicated on lies than witnesses who capture the truth. When we come back, Jason is on. A clear financial picture is essential for achieving long-term goals,

but it's often complicated by having funds spread across multiple accounts and institutions. Rocket Money is a personal finance app that helps. helps find and cancel your unwanted subscriptions, monitor your spending, and helps lower your bills so users can grow their savings. The app solves the complex problem by consolidating checking, savings, loans, and investments into a single dashboard. This gives users a crystal clear view of their complete financial picture. Beyond organization, Rocket Money encourages growth through automated savings. Users can set goals and utilize automated savings that grow towards those goals with adjustable amounts and frequency, providing a simple, set-it-and-forget-it approach to building

wealth. Achieve better financial clarity and start saving automatically toward the future. Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Join at RocketMoney.com slash daily show. That's RocketMoney.com slash daily show. Rocketmoney.com slash daily show. If you've been putting off getting life insurance, you're not alone. Many Americans overestimate the cost, believing it's simply too expensive. But protecting your loved ones is more affordable than you think. You can get the coverage you need today with Fabric by Gerber Life.

Fabric by Gerber Life is term life insurance you can get done today. Made for busy parents like you. All online, on your schedule, right from your couch. You could be covered in under 10 minutes with no health exam required. Consider this. Even if you have life insurance through your employer, it may not offer enough protection for your family, and it may not follow you if you leave your job.

Fabric provides independent coverage that you control. There's also no risk to finding out your options. There's a 30-day money-back guarantee, and you can cancel at any time. Fabric has over 1,900 five-star reviews on Trust Pilot with a rating of excellent. Stop overestimating the costs and start protecting your family's future. Join the thousands of parents who trust Fabric to help protect their family. Apply today in just minutes at meetfabric.com slash daily. That's meetfabric.com.

slash daily. M-E-E-T-Fabric.com slash daily. Policies issued by Western Southern Life Assurance Company, not available in certain states, prices subject to underwriting and health questions. He is a journalist who was wrongfully imprisoned in Iran for 544 days. He now serves as director of Press Freedom Initiatives at the Washington Post. Please welcome to the program, Jason in resigning. I'm doing very well. Thank you so much for being here. It has been, you were held for 544 days.

Were you in the notorious Evan prison system? Yes. Yes. I was the unfortunate next guest after your friend, Mazziar. Maziar Bajar, who was a journalist who a friend of this show who was held there in solitary confinement. And I'm assuming you got that same VIP treatment.

Oh, yeah. For torture. Seven weeks a solitary confinement. Lights on 24 hours a day. endless interrogations by morons, you know, the whole bit. Although you did, there's a story, and I'm sure you've told this before, but they told you to call at one point your mother. Yes. And the idea being that this would break you and this would break her.

What happened with that? So I said, look, I've been in your custody for the last three months. I don't know where my mom is. I don't have her phone number off the top of my head. but if you think you can figure out how to get her on the phone, I'd love to talk to Mom. I've been in Communicado for months

and I reached her and we spoke for, gosh, it turned out to be about a half an hour. And it became, I think, one of the most surreal experiences of the whole ordeal. When she and I talked about it afterwards, reminisced, I was like,

Mom, we kind of ran out of shit to say. So you were literally, you're talking to your mom for prison and you're doing this. So anyway. Yeah. And, you know, after some time, after many months, she was able to come visit me. And we would have these meetings like you do in the prison as you see in a movie, you know, behind the thing. And, you know, I'd get glimpses of news from the outside world. And I had been told that Muhammad Ali had called for my release, which is a pretty big deal.

Pretty big deal. And so, you know, I wanted to verify this with mom. And I said, Mom, is it true that Muhammad Ali called for my release? And she said, yeah, that was something. I said, you're telling me that the two most influential Muslims in America have called for my release. She said, Muhammad Ali and Keith Ellison? And I said, no, Muhammad Ali and Obama. Perfect.

So you've got to keep laughing. in those situations. It's not easy. Masa said the same thing, that the only thing that kept him through the darkness was that sense of humor and attachment to those that he loved. And that was 10 years ago, 11 years ago. 10 years ago, I got out. 10 years ago. Just last week, yeah.

And is it, you know, and I am not, what Iran is going through right now is so heartbreaking. You came out of, you know, the Green Revolution was this moment in 2009 where it's sort of, you really thought maybe there is this reformist Mossavi that's going to run against Al-Mandinaja. And then those protests end violently and all that. And they've gone through the Masa Menei and all these other protests. They end violently. Did this moment feel different to you when they started protesting in Iran before the horrible crackdown? Was it different than what we saw in 2009?

Yeah, I think what we've seen over the last 17 years since 2009 was the rate of protests picking up. For the last 47 years of the existence of the Islamic Republic, there's always been protests, but sporadic, fewer and farther between. And in the last five or six years, it's almost been annually and spread across the entire country. And this time around, people all over the country in vast numbers. And, you know, it's a kind of feat of nature.

It's organic because all opposition leadership has been snuff, out, executed, imprisoned, exiled. Sure. So, you know, this is just mass discontent at a level that we've never seen before. People calling for the end of the system. You'll remember in 2009, they wanted their vote. Even in this very restricted system, they still felt as though every four years they had the opportunity to go out within a tightly managed situation and say, hey, look, these

are eight terrible guys. This is the least terrible as far as we're concerned. Right. This is who we want. And that was taken away from them that time around. Now it's, let's just break this whole thing down. This is not working. This is not tenable.

Our life is getting worse and worse. Our standard of living is decreasing by the day, and you have no answers and no credible path to a better future for us. And so really begging the world to help them and not finding too much help. Well, that, you know, the help. One thing also to discuss with Iran, there are parallels here. Obviously, here, what's going on is a hint of that, is a slight coloring of it. It's not what they're experiencing over there, the horror that they're experienced.

But there is, in Iran, the protests were always, there is an artistic, educated elite. Tehran, it's based in the cities. It's considered, you know, if you want to break it down into red and blue. Right. There's the blue states in Iran and there's the red states. The power of the mullahs is in the red states. Certainly. So it would be like normally when they crack down, like in 2009,

it's like sending a masked force of thugs into a blue city like, I don't know, Minneapolis. So it's like that. Yeah. This is much broader than that. This is not the elites rising up. This is everybody. And Iran, we forget, is a multi-ethnic country. lots of different languages, Azeri Turks in the north,

Baluchis, Kurds, Afghans, everybody rising up. And actually, what's really unique about these protests and the Masa Amin protests in 2022, is this sort of a call and response between these different ethnic and religious groups saying, we support you. You know, I think the truth is that Iranians, whether they're Muslim, Shia, Sunni, Christian, Jewish, Zoroastrian, Bahai.

They think of themselves as Iranian first. And that's something that goes back 2,500 years, and I think it's something worth preserving. Why do you think, you know, in 79, when they had the more fundamentalist revolution, the Shah's army turned. The revolution happened because the guys with guns went, you know what?

We can't do this. These guys, we're going with you. Why do you think that hasn't happened? I saw, there was a few pieces of footage I saw of some besiege, you know, sort of the guys that you see on the motorcycles with the glove switching. But that's it. It doesn't seem like it's gotten through to them. I think it's the ideological fervor mixed with the fact that they can still sort of buy the loyalty of those kinds of people. When they can't buy that loyalty anymore, you'll start to see them switch real fast.

But that hasn't happened yet. And I think when it does happen, that's game over, right? But I haven't seen visible signs of that yet. And what we're talking about, you know, even with the 2009 protests where people were killed and the Masamini protests where people were killed, you know, early numbers that came out of there were, I don't know, 2,500 people or something along those lines.

And now they're saying, no, it's actually tens of thousands of people were slaughtered by this regime. It's not something that people can go back to their daily lives after. I've been able to communicate with some relatives and friends back in Iran. And, you know, the bearing witness and sharing what's happened is what's so important to them right now. People are just saying, you can't imagine what we've just experienced. And then to be shrouded in an Internet blackout, you know, it is mind-boggling. And this time they've gotten, you know, they've always had the Internet blackouts,

and there's always been VPNs and satellite dishes and ways to go. go about it. Total blackout for about two weeks. This feels like they're more sophisticated with their methodology. Yes. And I think, you know, one of the things that we can incredibly do as the United States and, you know, the entire global community of nations is support Iranians staying online. And it's the thing that we've been promising them since 2009.

In 2009, they did shut down the internet. Internet wasn't as big a part of Iranians' lives as it is right now. And every time, each one of these rounds of protests, when they slaughter innocent people, people. America says, it doesn't matter if it's a Democrat or Republican, we're not going to let this happen again. We're going to keep you online. We're going to help you organize. And we haven't done it yet. Well, there's, listen, I got a lot of problems with Elon Musk and a lot of things he does and says. But the one good thing he does is, I think he sends a bunch of star lengths over there. And that helps keep him. Look, I mean, I say, air drop them in. You know, they don't have

air defenses at this point. Those were taken out back in June. Drop a billion terminals. Donald Trump was really clear. Yeah. He was really clear that, you know, he said to the people, to the people of Iran, keep protesting, keep going out in the streets. If they do anything to you, we're a coming. What do you think happened between we're a coming to, let this playoff for a little bit longer? I mean, it's an incredible question.

And last summer when, you know, when we decided to enter in. into the war that Israel has started, right? You know, up until the very last minute, he was saying, hey, look, we want to make a deal with these guys. And just today, he said, you know, my armada is at your front door, but I want to make a deal. I think making a deal with them at this point would be the worst-case scenario for the people of Iran.

Of course. Well, look in Venezuela. You make it. What's the deal? How about this? You give us the oil and we'll let one of you guys still remain in charge and things will get incrementally better. for the people of Iran, but they still won't have their own self-determination.

Ever, right? And it buys these guys who seem to be at their last gaps of life many more years in power. And I think that would be the worst possible outcome. Do you see, you know, there's now, obviously, the Shah, his son, Reza Palavi, lives here. Does that have any credibility within, you know, or even Mosavi, who was the reform candidate in 2009, who's been under house arrest? I don't know. Is he there a Nelson Mandela figure? Is there someone in the way that Khomeini led them in 79 from out of the country and then into the country?

Is a figure exist like that? Not in the way that Khomey was organized and had support rallying behind him without a lot of dissent, right? I don't think that there's any of the leadership of the system now or people who are in prison that folks inside Iran look to as their savior. A lot of people have been calling the name, you know, Reza Pahlavi in the streets during his protests. But I don't know that, I mean, he's lived in exile for 47 years. That's kind of a lot to ask. Right. Right.

And I don't think we have a great track record. Just to roll in their country and be like, so, what's your Netflix password? Let's just get this going. Yeah, we don't have a great track record with that. But it does leave us like, is this just, there are no good options for the people of Iran who are suffering at an incredible level. I don't think there are any good, obvious options, but I do think that over the last, gosh, you know, 17 years since 2009, we should have been making inroads to opposition folks.

I know from personal experience and relationships, hundreds of Iranian intellectuals and dissidents now exiled here in the United States who, many who drive Uber's, right? people that should be informing our policy and helping us understand this place. And there hasn't been a great space for them in these conversations. And I think, you know, it's never too late, but it's pretty freaking late. Right. And in terms of understanding, our ability to understand those things is getting worse and worse. You know, you are at the Freedom Desk at the Washington Post, which it's the Washington Post. Like, you're on the Freedom Desk. Do you get like a window or you're in a door?

Like, are you in a closet? Like, it's the Washington Post. These guys, they spend $80 million on a Melania documentary, and yet they're cutting all the reporting overseas. I mean, you must, do you just walk in there and go like, where's Bezos? Or Bezos, however you're... You know what? Let's spend a little less on the boat foam wedding party

and keep some fucking reporters in Tehran. I know that you can't say anything, so I'm just going to keep talking. Well, I'm not here to trample on your First Amendment rights. You know what? Thank you so much for saying that. It is the level, what is, just in terms of being there, the level of frustration, I mean, the United States government just raided a reporter in the Washington Post, raided their house. Seize devices. Seize devices. You're on the press freedom desk at that newspaper.

Your owner has, I would assume, 24-7 access to him. they just did a screening, how can this happen? How do we protect the press freedom at home so that we don't become Iran? Well, I can't speak to anyone else's thinking besides mine, but... Careful, careful, Jason? No, but I will tell you that day in and day out, and we've seen our staff increase and decline in numbers

throughout the entire time that I've been at the Washington Post coming up on 14 years. We've consistently punched above our weight, broken incredible stories from Ukraine to the White House, right? We're at the front line of this every single day. We're going to be continuing to do that. You know, no matter.

Bring it home, Jason. Come on, Jason. Come on, Jason. Bring it home. We need you on that wall. Come on, brother. Preach. The Washington Post is now. never going to back down from covering these stories.

We have the most incredible staff in the business. And I promise you, I promise you, whoever goes to work in that building tomorrow, the next day, a month from now, is going to keep breaking stories, keep holding power to account better than anybody else. Sign up for the Freedom Vets Newsletter at the Washington Post. Let me tell you something. If there's anybody that I can trust to continue this effort without fear of favor,

It's a guy who had to spend 544 days in one of the most difficult places on this entire earth. And to do so with your integrity and your soul intact is a monumental human achievement, sir. And I cannot help but salute you in all of that. Jason was on. We're going to take a quick break and we'll be right back after this. Monday! Your host for the rest of the week, Desiline. What's going on this week?

Well, John, Kanye released a full-page ad in the Wall Street. Journal apologizing to Jewish people for his Nazi phase. So, John, as the representative of all Jewish people, do you accept? I'm really not, I'm not the representative of all Jewish people. Oh, okay. Well, can you at least, like, bring it up in the next meeting or whatever? We don't really have meetings, so it's...

Really? It's not what Kanye said. When did you guys decide to ruin his Adidas deal? All right, Desi Leidick, everybody. Here it is your moment is out. Organized. Who's out there? You've got the liberal media, the national socialist, all those communist groups that are there to divert. And that's exactly what they want.

They're anarchists. They're in Congress. They want to destroy our country. They hate our country. They hate our flag. They hate our veterans. They hate our God. They hate democracy.

And they hate capitalism. They want to destroy it. create some kind of wakotopia. 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 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central, and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount Plus. This has been a Comedy Central podcast.