The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Trump Brokers Peace in the Middle East & Declares War Against Antifa in Portland? | Hunter Prosper

Episode Date: October 10, 2025

Josh Johnson dives into the peace deal Trump brokered between Israel and Hamas, and the president's heightened focus on a supposedly more dangerous and local enemy: Antifa. As troops menace Portland, Trump uses the Antifa bogeyman to justify military invasion, suspension of habeas corpus, and a bunch of other random agendas. On “Tech Yeah,” our expert Grace Kuhlenschmidt breaks down the biggest news in innovation, including the realer-than-life Sora 2 video generation tool, new big-screen It Girl (and AI actress) Tilly Norwood, and the first-ever robot Olympics, where the athletes come pre-programmed with CTE. Content creator, ICU nurse, and “Stories From a Stranger” author Hunter Prosper sits down with Josh to discuss his book, inspired by videos in which he interviews strangers about their lives. They talk about the importance of going deeper than small talk, the similarities between his work as a nurse and as a creator, finding a silver lining in every story he hears, and what it was like immortalizing his grandfather’s experiences in the book. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When you're with Amex Platinum, you get access to exclusive dining experiences and an annual travel credit. So the best tapas in town might be in a new town altogether. That's the powerful backing of Amex. Terms and conditions apply. Learn more at Amex.ca. This episode is brought to you by Peloton. A new era of fitness is here.

Introducing the new Peloton Cross Training Tread Plus, powered by Peloton IQ, built for breakthroughs with personalized workout plans, real-time insights, and endless ways to move. Lift with confidence, while Peloton IQ counts reps, corrects form, and tracks your progress. Let yourself run, lift, flow, and go. Explore the new Peloton cross-training tread plus at OnePeloton.ca. You're listening to Comedy Central. From the most trusted journalists at Comedy Central, it's America's only source for new.

This is The Daily Show with your host, Josh Johnson. Welcome to the Daily Show. I'm Josh Johnson. We've got so much to talk about tonight. Marco Rubio gets caught passing notes in class. Christy Noam gets in a fight with a chicken, and Donald Trump has a pretend intelligence briefing about a pretend terrorist group.

So, let's get into the headlines. Let's get into the headlines. right into the biggest story in the world. This is one of those senses that you almost never hear, but there's good news coming out of the Middle East. Major breakthrough in the Middle East, President Trump was the first who announced that Israel and Hamas have agreed

to the first phase of a deal that could lead to the end of the war in Gaza. This is more than Gaza, this is peace in the Middle East, and it's been incredible thing. Over in Gaza, Palestinian men and boys ran into the streets, clapping and cheering. In Israel, a similar scene of that's right

a peace deal has been reached between Israel and Hamas and it's based on the framework Donald Trump proposed which means another thing you almost never hear and I can't believe I'm saying this I got to give Donald Trump some props here you know

it doesn't happen a lot in fact I can only think of this the COVID vaccine and home alone too you know Don't get me wrong. This is astonishing because if this piece holds,

it means the guy who couldn't stop a fight between Gary Busey and Meatloaf broker peace in the Middle East. So Trump, when it comes to peace, you did it. You know, I mean, you also did a big portion of the war, but you did the peace too. It's like how white people did slavery in America. But, but they also ended slavery in America. And I just want to say thank you.

Thank you. Either way, this is a reason to celebrate. And look, if this deal holds, maybe we should give Trump the Nobel Peace Prize. Or, or, or, and you won't like this either, we let him burn the Epstein files. He only gets one, but he gets to pick, all right? Now, maybe you're wondering how the world found out about this peace deal.

Was it a grand announcement like the Tree of Versailles, or like the end of World War II, where nurses and soldiers met up in Times Square just to make out? No, no. This is Trump's America, so it was much stupider. At the White House yesterday, the president interrupted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, seen handing him a note and then whispering in Trump's ear. Photographers catching the handwritten message. We need you to approve a truth social post soon

so you can announce deal first. Wait, they plan his truth social posts? So when I see one all misspelled and half in caps at three in the morning, that was the plan? It's like scheduling that you're going to shit your pants. But you know what, if he can resolve the conflict in the middle east, maybe he truly is the president of peace. Maybe some of that peace and tranquility is going to come back to us.

President Trump's sending National Guard troops into American cities. Trump is insisting that troops are needed in cities like Chicago, Memphis, and Portland. We have an insurrection act for a reason. Damn. This feels like he made peace abroad just so he could bring everybody back. to whoop-ass here. I mean, a president hasn't invoked the Insurrection Act since the L.A. riots,

which for Trump is actually a surprisingly recent precedent. Usually, he's invoking something that hasn't been used in 300 years, like the anti-witch, you can toss a bitch off a cliff act of 1692. But what's happening in Portland that requires Trump to send troops in?

Well, Trump held a big meeting yesterday to explain why. It should be clear. to all Americans that we have a very serious left-wing terror threat in our country, radicals associated with the domestic terror group, Antifa. Antifa? That's who you're declaring a domestic terrorist organization. That's tricky because while there are people who identify as Antifa, it isn't really an official group. They don't even have a website. Like, my cousin's baby has its own website. And that's an ugly baby.

It's voice changed in the womb. You put your ear to his mom's stomach and you just heard, I'm coming. So, no website, no brick and mortar store. So if you're sending troops to Portland, how sophisticated could Antifa be? This network of Antifa is just as sophisticated as MS-13, as TDA, as ISIS, as Hezbollah,

as Hamas, as all of them. Wait, what? And they're here? She made Antiva feel like the power rangers of terrorism. They got some of everybody. They got MS-13, ISIS. They got letters, numbers, Hezbollah, Hamas. I don't know what TDA is, but they got some of that, too.

Okay, Christy Noem, your homeland security. You got to get out there to Portland and take care of business. Christy Noem went on the roof of the ice building to survey the scene. Okay, okay, okay, that doesn't look at a side of that. Okay, okay. That doesn't look that scary, but you have to remember how scary, but you have to remember how scary it is for her to encounter a farm animal when she's unawful. But you know these cities, they look innocent during the day. I bet you that was just the Antifa that doesn't have jobs, all right? At night, at night, that must be when Antifa comes out to do all the nasty terrorism.

Let's look at Portland at night this week. All right, all right. Fear is a powerful drug, but so is MDMA. Listen, Trump, I'm trying to be an ally, but right now, I don't really see dangerous criminals. I just see virgins, all right? And I'm not sure we need the military for that. Because everything that they claim is happening in Portland, it's all happening on one city block in front of one ice building.

the rest of the city is completely normal. I mean, it's still Portland. So it's normal, but it's like Portland normal. You know what I mean? Like, there will be a naked guy with a handlebar mustache riding a unicycle down the street, but that's supposed to be happening, all right? So far, all I've seen is a guy in a chicken suit

and an episode of Barney, all right? But maybe there's something I'm missing. The amazing thing is you look at Portland, and you see fires all over the place. It's like the movies where you have these bombed-out cities. I don't know what could be worse than Portland. You don't even have stores anymore. There are no stores in Portland.

You're telling me if I type stores in Portland into Google Maps, it'll just be like, no, no, it's in one of those store cities. No, we're not doing that nasty stuff over here, okay? Also, not having stores isn't exactly the worst thing about a war zone. No one was looking at Hiroshima like the devastation was incredible. Not a single Bob's discount furniture left standing. But here's the thing, Trump. I don't think the situation in Portland is a five-alarm,

def-com one, bust out the windows type of emergency. And I don't think you think that either. Because this whole meeting where you're talking about how dangerous Antifa is, you all look bored as hell. Trump is falling asleep. Pam Bondi guy tilts her neck up to stay awake, you know. Stephen Miller is yawning. The most radical person in the cabinet looked like he drained, you know. He looks like he's sitting at a piano recital after his kid finished. Also, you would think that if we're all about to die, Antifa will be the only network on your mind.

ABC is terrible. NBC is terrible. MSNBC is dying, and CNN is dying like a dog. MSNBC is sick. They're sick. I would say CNN is not quite as bad as MS. Poor CNN, they're so pathetic. beautiful black women are wearing a mega hat

last night on television. Come on guys, all right? The plan is to scare people about Antifa. You're not going to do that if you keep trailing off about hot black women you remember, all right? So look, I'm not saying that there's no such thing as Antifa. But I look at Antifa the way I look at Bigfoot.

It's big, scary, and tearing up the Pacific North West. But all we ever hear about is what the people who believe in it think is happening. In fact, if you were going to make a doc about the Antifa that Trump believes in, it would look a lot like this.

It hides in the shadows. A giant hairy terrorist group. There are many who believe that not only is Antifa. Real. But they've seen it. Tract it. Sam Cleveland.

A witness who saw... Antifa. Just days ago. I yell like a really super deep, loud yell. Ha! What exactly is Antifa? And how did this phenomenon begin? Something like a person, but not a person.

Seen very often closing stores in Portland. And with various stories about sightings or about footprints that really are pretty widespread in many, many communities in the United States and in Canada. When we come back, we'll find out the hottest new tech will be throwing out in three years, so don't go away. Ford was built on the belief that the world doesn't get to decide what you're capable of.

You do. So, ask yourself, can you or can't you? Can you load up a Ford F-150 and build your dream with sweat and steel? Can you chase thrills and conquer curves in a Mustang? Can you take a Bronco to where the map ends and adventure begins? Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right. Ready, set, Ford. Welcome back to the Daily Show.

Technology one day will kill us all. But until then, it's pretty cool. To find out more, we turn to Grace Koolenschmidt in our new segment, Tech Yeah. What up? Technophiles! I'm Grace Kulenschmidt, aka Gracie Gadgets, aka GoGo Gadget Grace, aka Little Identity Thft. This is Tech, yeah, where I tell CPU all about the biggest stories in tech. Babobop, Babobop, just kidding, I'm not a robot. God, I wish I was.

But let's jump into Hyperdrive. with OpenAI's big announcement last week. Get ready to never know what's real again. Open AI, the company behind ChatGPT, rolling out their newest video generation tool called Sora 2. Users simply type in what they want to create. The model spits out video of exactly that.

Say, for instance, you wanted to skydive to the North Pole. AI generated videos of celebrities who have passed away have been trending on social media platforms in recent weeks. London, are you ready? night we move together as one rhythm, one dream. Let the beat drop. They said AI would help us reach a new golden era of civilization. And they were right.

I have a dream that I'm about to shake that ass to this bop. I've always said that the one thing missing from the civil rights movement was EDM. And looks like my boo Sam Altman agrees. And yes, the real MLM. would probably say SORA is an abomination. But lucky for us, AI MLK would say Remy! And even better news, the AI diehards won't be limited

to smartphone videos for long, because we're getting AI on the mother-teching big screen. Her name is Tilly Norwood. Let's get to know each other, and thanks for watching. She's Hollywood's new It Girl. But Tilly is not real. She's AI-generated. Tilly Norwood is the first creation

from a new studio that develops AI actors. According to deadline, multiple talent agents have shown interest in signing the AI actress. Um, this rocks. Tilly Norwood is the new it girl. Suck it, Dame Judy Dench.

Tilly has broken the glass ceiling. And also the entire economic model of Hollywood. You go, girl. Women have been fighting for equal pay in Hollywood for years, and now everyone gets paid nothing. But the best thing about an AI actress like Tilly is you can make her do anything. And fellas, yes, I know what you're thinking.

You can put her in cars. And not just cars, cars two and three and eventually four. Lightning McQueen is a very I'm a total fuck boy. Sorry, Sally, should've had legs. Plus, the filmmakers save money on an intimacy coordinator because neither of these characters have real genitals. But oh my god, I know we always stay dead!

Moving on, everyone is always asking me, Hey, Grace, this AI stuff is super cool, but when will I get to rub my hungry human skin up against my very own robot Travis Kelsey? Well, buckle up you techno perps because that time is now. Hundreds of robot athletes competing in the world's first robot Olympics. The Chinese government is hosting this three-day event where humanoid athletes show off their skills. In martial arts, and with the 400-meter race...

Is it just me or does that guy look tired? China is calling this the first three-on-three humanoid robot soccer match. These athletes seem to putt around, excel in faceplants, and some even had to be carried off the pitch. Thoughts and prayers to that poor robot. But don't worry, they'll dip him in rice and he'll be back on the pitch in no time. The best part about these robot athletes is they come pre-programmed with CTE, which means they have all the on-field violence and all. all the off-field murders.

It's a win-win. Robot athletes are so freaking cool. God, I'm begging you. Make me a freaking robot already. You know what that sound means. It's time for Grace's tech tip of the day. For my casual tech users out there, always make sure to have a strong password.

For example, mine is 17 moles dollar sign. It's the exact number of moles I counted after accident. walking in on my grandfather naked. And the money sign is because they make you pick a symbol. But don't steal mine. You'll have to walk in on your own grandfather naked and get your own password. Now, unfortunately, AI isn't without controversy.

With any new technology, there are always the haters, or as I call them f***ing losers. AI is transforming the way we live, but that transformation comes with a cost. with a cost. Energy experts warn the electric grid is not ready for the coming wave of AI-powered data centers.

By 2034, data centers around the world are expected to consume roughly 1,580 terawatt hours yearly. That is about as much as is used by all of India. Oh my god, we're getting a second India! And this one is made out of computers, much tucking gold! Plus, without all that extra electricity, I can finally use my toaster in the bathtub without stressing. Trust me, bagels taste better in the tub.

But I guess all these warnings about AI are making me wonder, is AI truly beneficial? Or will this new technology usher in the dark ages of a computer-driven world where our natural resources are sucked dry to feed a machine overlord who forces us to serve the very creation? creations made to serve us. Well, that's all the time we have on Tech, yeah. See you next week when we'll talk about how to look cool while texting and driving.

Grace Cool and Schmidt, everyone. When we come back, Hunter Prosser will be joining me on the show. Don't go away. At Desjardin, we speak business. We speak startup funding and comprehensive game plans. We've mastered made-to-measure growth and expansion advice, and we can talk your ear-off about transferring your business when the time comes. Because at Desjardin business, we speak the same language you do.

Business. So join the more than 400,000 Canadian entrepreneurs who already count on us, and contact Desjardin today. We'd love to talk. Business. This episode is brought to you by Square. You're not just running a restaurant, you're building something big, and Square's there for all of it,

giving your customers more ways to order, whether that's in-person with Square Ciosk or online. Instant access to your sales, plus the funding you need to go even bigger. And real-time insights so you know what's working, what's not, and what's next. Because when you're doing big things, your tools should to. Visit square.ca to get started. Welcome back to the Daily Show. My guest tonight is an ICU nurse creator

and New York Times best-selling author of Stories from a Stranger. Please welcome Hunter Prosper. Okay, first of all, thank you so much for being guests, but especially my guest. Thank you so much for being here. So you are an ICU nurse and like a content creator on top of that. And do you make both groups feel bad about themselves when you're around? I mean, because when you're around content creators,

like, creator is a, you know, it's one of those words where it's like a big word for a thing where you're making, like, entertainment. You're making, like, just content and stuff like that. So then when you throw in, I also do ICU. Yeah, it's like my blue chip I can. Yeah, yeah. Also, when you're at the hospital, it's like,

I mean, we're all ICU nurses here, but I have millions of followers. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Now, in your book, you are talking to people, and you're asking them questions, these questions take them to places that reveal something about them. And I'm wondering if you think talking to people in the way that you do has made you a better nurse. Yeah, that's a thoughtful question, Josh.

Honestly, I think they've both helped each other. The questions that I ask all of these strangers are the same exact questions I use in the bedside. You know, when I'm with a patient, especially in the ICU, you have two patients and you work with them for 13 hours a day multiple times a week. And so how's the weather only lasts so long. You know what I mean? You have to start being able to understand what kind of conversation the person wants to have. And so the questions in this book

and many other questions that I ask, they are all bred from me being a nurse. And without being able to do these stories, I wouldn't have been saved from the burnout that I was experiencing from the ICU, but vice versa, making content as well, being a content creator, as you would know, it can cause its own type of burnout.

And without having nursing, I wouldn't be able to step away from the content side as well. So they fill each other's cup. Yeah, yeah. And when you talk about one filling the other's cup, did you ever have any sort of, I'm trying to figure out how to word it. There's almost like an imposter syndrome that can come with success.

And there's almost a worry about what you're doing right when it comes to, I imagine, nursing. And so that's also the same way that you could have that sort of upward spiral. You could also have a lot of doubt in your life. Like, is that something that you struggled with? Yeah, I'll say, Josh, they're working. As a nurse, it's one of the few fields that can really humble you.

I spent a lot of my time with people at their lowest part of their life and doing things that would be seen as like, you know, a dirtier job. And having been in those situations and looking around me and being like, I'm caring for this person at their most vulnerable moment, it's never made me feel too above anyone. It's always made me realize that we're all on this together. Yeah, yeah. Because I'll tell you right now, just, you know, nurse to potential patient, right? I'm like, I'm bad about going to the doctor,

and I think it's because in hospitals, there's a lot missing of what you do. Do you know what I mean? When you go to the hospital, when you go to the emergency room or something, it's like you already have your own fears. Like, when I've had to go to the emergency room, sometimes I'm genuinely afraid that the nurse, the doctor, is going to be like, that's new. I don't know what that is.

But at the same time, I think if someone, you know, was sitting with me and they were not just necessarily even asking me questions about myself, they were asking me interesting questions, thoughtful questions, and they were getting to know me as a person, I think I wouldn't even notice the shot. I think I might be like, ow, but like it's in the middle of telling them about my life or something. Yeah, that's the part of nursing that I fell in love with. The first time I ever shadowed a nurse, obviously she did medicine and she took care of the patient in that aspect, but really she healed them through her words.

Like she made the patient feel comfortable in an otherwise very uncomfortable setting. And that's what I always wanted to strive to do since that day. Yeah, yeah. I mean, this book, yeah, this book is broken in the sections, and the sections are questions. What made you ask these specific questions? of people. Yeah. I wanted an array of questions that run the gamut of emotions. And like I said, these questions are the same questions I ask my patients in the hospital. But whatever the question

is, no matter what question I use, it always has to be open-ended, of course, and it has to cover an emotion of some sort. And that's what the purpose of this whole book is, is to show that our experiences, extremely unique, okay? The experiences you've gone through, I can't relate to, but what we can relate to is our emotions. So you felt pain, I felt pain. You felt love, I felt anxiety, anxiety. Like, that's what connects us as a species, is this emotional experience that we're all going through. So the human experience is a very much so emotional experience.

And I hope this book shows that that's what connects us. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. Oh, absolutely. You know, when I look at your work overall, I sort of see how in America, especially right now, there's like a deep polarization.

There's like a, there's dehumanization of people, whether it's immigrants, trans people. You know, you just see a lot of, like, breaking of connection and everything, and there's less community than there should be, and there's less connection than there should be. And so when I look at everything that you do, I just see a lot of that, which is, admittedly, not a question. That's more of a compliment.

That's just, I should have, ended it with the question mark, but that's just how I feel about you, you know? Because I think you're doing two things that are incredibly difficult, and I don't even know which one is more difficult than the other, because being with people in these, like, very, very vulnerable moments has got to be hard, it's got to take a toll on you, but also when you ask someone a question, when you are learning something about someone, that's also very, very very difficult because you might not like what you learn, you know, especially you're with people who are not in, they're not in a time where you show your best anyway, you

know? And so I can't imagine how you, whether it's decompressed or how you recover from that thing. Like you talk about burnout with content creation or nursing, but it's like, is there ever something that's like so genuinely heavy for you that you don't know where to put it? Yeah, that's another great question, Josh. I suffered from burnout a lot in nursing, and that taught me how to compartmentalize,

but then learning that compartmentalizing was also burning me out because you have to kind of separate your humanity from what's really going on, and that wasn't working for me. So what I learned was there's silver lining is in every single person's story. So whether you're talking to someone,

when I speak to these strangers, it's without question two to three hours long every time. Throughout that two to three hour journey, there is a lot of tragedy. But if you can gather the ability to look at this person and say, but they're here telling me the story. They survive this event that they're going through.

That gives me a sense of almost pride to say, like, we're humans, that shows how strong humans can be, how resilient they can be. So when I go home and after hearing a tragic story, I'm not so much sad as I am uplifted to know the person survived that. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. When going through the book, you know, you've explained

to me how you came across the questions in your mind that you want to ask and everything but were there any stories that particularly stuck out to you because the book is full of them yeah yeah that was hard because we interviewed hundreds of strangers it was me and my fiance and she traveled the country with me she was my

photographer for the book by the way and she's not she's a nurse so she's not a photographer but but so we interviewed hundreds of strangers and so even dwinding that down to the hundred that are in this book was very hard but then to even get more specific, the ones that resonate with me. All of them, but I will say, there's a few that pop in mind, and one of them is, I guess I should preface with, I told a little bit of a lie when

I say everyone in that book is a stranger. There's one person that's not a stranger in that book. My grandfather was battling a terminal illness when I was making this book and when I found out about his disease. He was a man a few words. It's always been my mom and I, she's the most important person in my life. And if I ever needed a father figure, which I didn't because she was everything for me. But if I needed one, he was that person. My grandfather was everything to me. His name was Jimmy.

I'm trying to cry. But he was everything to me, but he was a man, a few words. And so we connected, but it was always because everything he said was so wise, but it was one sentence at a time. And it was great. He'd say one sentence. I'd love him. I'd tell him I love him.

He told me he loved me. And then that was that, but it was always one at a time. I told him I wanted to do this book. and he said, buddy, I would love to. And we spoke for hours. And it was the first time my life I'd ever spoken to him for hours. And he told me so many things about him that I never would have known if it weren't for this book.

So I guess in a way I'm trying to say, I want this book to not just be a book of strangers, but I want it to empower the people reading it to ask their loved ones you send questions because it's often the people that are closest to us that we don't know the most about. We think we know because they're next to us and we think we know everything about them.

but when it was the last time you really did ask your grandfather was the most painful thing you've ever been told and so to do something like that it was that stories i'm always going to remember it and now his face is on the cover of the book as well and and he's on a new york times bestseller so that's really cool he's like immortalized you know yeah absolutely i'm fully fully with you i appreciate you being here so much i appreciate the work that you you do. I appreciate that you've made this because this, whether you know it or not, this will teach someone how to ask questions and it will do the thing that you're talking about, you know, because it's such a perfect example of what we should be doing anyway. You know, there's so much

pain. There's so many people that are, like, reaching out. There's so much loneliness and everything and there's no need to be lonely because we're all here, you know? And I think looking at this is a real reminder of that. So I appreciate you so much. I'm thankful that you're here with me. Thank you, John. Yeah, thank you. So, you know, I like to do something special every time I end an interview. And so I'm going to ask you for a hug.

I love that. Okay, but we do, just for camera, need to basically stay within this frame. So I will need to hug you from across the day. Okay, so, all right, coming in. Yep. All right. And that's been stopping. Yeah.

Thank you. Yeah. Storms from a stranger is available now. Hunter Prosper. Thank you so much. We're going to take a quick break, but we'll be right back after this. What a run! This champ is picking up speed. the lane.

Phenomenal launch into the air. Absolutely incredible Air Transit! Fly the seven-time world's best leisure airline champions, Air Transit. Maybe it's just a phase you're going through. You'll get over it. I can't help you with that. The next appointment is in six months.

You're not alone. Finding mental health support shouldn't leave you feeling more lost. At CAMH, we know how frustrating it can be trying to access care. We're working to build a future where the people, path to support is clear, and every step forward feels like progress, not another wrong turn. Visit camh.ca to help us forge a better path for mental health care. That's our show for tonight. Now here it is. Your moment is in. You see the signs, and they're all made out of a beautiful, beautiful paper, beautiful, nice,

stiff, very expensive paper, with beautiful wood handles all the same, all the same color. They come from very expensive printing machines. are not people that write out their signs in a basement that believe in something. These are paid anarchists. 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.

From that first coffee of the day to dropping off your dry cleaning on the way. From stepping onto the subway to opening your doors to your first customer of the day. We're here to power you along the way. Menaris, powering Canadian commerce. Visit us at manares.com slash commerce.