The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Trump Forces a Playdate with Xi Jinping & MTG Makes Too Much Sense for Desi Lydic | Justine Lupe
Episode Date: October 31, 2025Desi Lydic recaps Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, where they had an unsurprisingly fruitless discussion about tariffs. Then, after Marjorie Taylor Greene calls out the GOP's lackl...uster response to the government shutdown and demands the release of the Epstein files, Desi is haunted by the question: Does she (gulp) agree with Marjorie Taylor Greene? Ronny Chieng takes a look at Neo, the new robot maid designed to help with everyday tasks, such as cracking walnuts, loading the dishwasher like a drunk person, and giving a remote human operator a glimpse into your home. Justine Lupe sits down with Desi to discuss her role in the hit Netflix series, "Nobody Wants This." Lupe dives into playing codependent sisters with Kristen Bell, navigating her character’s ambiguous dynamics with Timothy Simons, being adored by her partners on and off screen, and what her girlfriends have taught her about love and strength. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcript
Discussion (0)
When we were young, we used to dream of being anything, an astronaut, the president, a prince,
but as you get older, your dreams change, focusing less on running the world and more on how you
can take your skills and ideas and turn them into something real. Instead of dreaming of going
to space or owning your own castle, maybe you start dreaming of owning your own business. You'll need
a website, a payment system, a logo, and a way to advertise to new customers. It can all be
overwhelming and confusing. But thankfully, this is where today's sponsor, Shopify, comes in.
Shopify is the commerce platform
behind millions of businesses around the world
and 10% of all e-commerce in the United States
from household names like Mattel and Jimshark
to brands just getting started.
What if I can't design a website?
Shopify has got you from the get-go
with beautiful ready-to-go templates
to match your brand style.
What if I need a hand?
Get help with everyday tasks
like enhancing product images,
writing product descriptions,
or generating discount codes
with Shopify's AI tools created for commerce.
What if people haven't heard about my brand?
Shopify helps you find
customers with easy to run email and social media campaigns.
And what if I get stuck?
Shopify is always around to share advice with their award-winning 24-7 customer support.
Turn those dreams into and give them the best shot at success with Shopify.
Sign up for your $1 per month trial and start selling today at Shopify.com slash sell
now. Go to shopify.com slash sell now. Shopify.com slash sell now.
That's annoying. What?
You're a muffler. You don't hear it?
Oh, I don't even notice it.
I usually drown it out with the radio.
How's this?
Oh, yeah, way better.
Save on insurance by switching to Bel Air Direct
and use the money to fix your car.
Bel Air Direct, insurance, simplified.
Conditions apply.
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, Desi Linens.
Welcome to the daily show.
We've got so much to talk about tonight.
Trump and China agreed a couple's therapy.
Your next roommate might be a robot,
and the government shutdown is a month old.
But will America's body ever bounce back?
First, let's kick things off
with another installment
of Trump Meets World.
International
humiliation, one after another.
Trump is fed all week
hopping his way through Asia,
meeting leaders from Malaysia,
Japan, and South Korea.
But today, he went face-to-face
with Asia's final boss.
Chinese president Xi Jinping.
And, boy,
Did he not match Trump's energy?
Mr. President, the President of the People's Republic of the United States.
We're going to see you again.
Good to see you again.
I'm going to have a very successful meeting. I have no doubt.
But he's a very tough negotiator.
That's not good.
Remember, call your doctor if your handshake lasts longer than four hours.
But this is such a stark difference from how every other leader on this trip has interacted with Trump.
Malaysia's throwing a concert for him, Korea's giving him crowns, everyone's kissing his ass,
then she comes in like his mom forced him to have a play date with a weird kid at school.
But forget about how their greeting was.
The bigger question was what happened at that meeting?
Trump said that China has been eating America's lunch for decades,
and this was his chance to seal a major trade deal
that finally makes things right.
President Trump, back on Air Force One after his meeting with Chinese
that are Xi Jinping, where the leaders agreed to a tentative truce in the trade war,
that brings tariffs and other measures back to where they were before recent escalations.
He's basically reset the clock to January.
Wait.
January? As in earlier this year, January?
You went all the way to Asia for that?
Okay, I think we can agree that meeting was a waste of time.
On the scale of from zero to ten, with ten being the best, I would say the meeting was in 12.
Spoken like a guy who does not know the order of numbers.
Meanwhile, back at home on this night before Halloween, we're still dealing with the government shutdown.
And it's been the same story from a month now.
Democrats versus Republicans, and things are only getting more tense.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green, acknowledging she lashed out on a Republican call.
What?
You're telling me, Representative Corella DeVille lost her composure?
What?
Let me guess.
She's saying the Democrats want to give health care to Joe Biden's auto pen.
In a break with her party, she can't.
confronted Speaker Johnson saying, I have no respect for the House not being in session.
And I demand to know from Speaker Johnson what the Republican plan for health care is.
Oh, I was not expecting that.
I'd also love to hear the Republican plan for health care.
All right. Good for you, Marjorie.
I mean, you know what they say.
Even a stopped clock is right twice a day.
Or as Marjorie Taylor Green says, clocks cause autism.
Yeah, I guess we can all enjoy that because she is literally wrong about everything else.
Let's take, for example, this $40 billion bailout for Argentina.
That's probably one of the grossest things I've ever seen.
Yeah, that is a pretty gross thing.
Wait, something weird is happening.
Am I agreeing with Marjorie Taylor Green?
That was weird.
That's never happened before.
But it's a testament to the incompetence of this administration
that even his ideological allies like Marjorie Taylor Green
are starting to find common ground with his critics.
Although, obviously, let's not forget who we're dealing with here.
We're not going to agree on much more than that.
Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green
is now backing a move to force a floor vote
requiring the Justice Department to release all Epstein does.
We should be passing the discharge petition that Thomas Massey put in to release the Epstein files.
Those are the things that we should be doing.
La la la la la la la la la la la la la no no no stop the clip stop the click
I do not want that okay I do not want to agree with Marjorie Taylor Green
What the f is going on? Is it cold in here? It just got cold in here
Okay, this is really starting to creep me out.
What the hell am I saying?
She's a Trump supporter.
She doesn't really want the Epstein files released.
Wait, is that the Daily Show Landline?
No one's called that since the 90s when I was born.
Don't Google it.
Hello?
Hello?
Release the Edpstein files.
Release the Edstein file.
Release the Edstein files.
Release the Edgene files.
Oh my God.
Okay.
Breathe.
Breathe, Desi.
Breathe.
Get it together.
Get it together.
It's probably just the wrong number.
So what? Marjorie Taylor Green has said a few reasonable things.
That doesn't mean that we have the same feelings about the Republican Party.
I'm beyond pissed off at my own party and the leadership in the House and the Senate that they are totally blowing it.
blowing it. Many times I hate my own party. I'm mad at Republicans. They never do what they
promise they're going to do. I want to hold Republicans accountable. I want Republicans to do the
job. I'm so angry at my own party. And I'm angry at all the men and leadership in the House and
the Senate. And I'm like, you guys are weak and pathetic. Oh my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God.
MTG is roasting Republicans and her male co-workers?
Where does she end?
And I begin?
Did she also try to get a reservation by telling the hostess she's Dakota Fanning?
No, no, no, don't let her get in your head.
Don't let her get in your head.
Don't let her get in your head.
I blame Republicans.
They are literally slaves to all the big industries in Washington,
the military industrial complex, big pharma, health insurance industries.
Stop it!
Does anyone else see what's happening here?
President Trump, as you know, recently called at least two senior Republicans to ask what's going on with Marjorie?
Exactly. What is going on with Marjorie? I agree with Donald Trump.
Oh my God. I agree with Donald Trump.
Fuck me. Come on, definitely.
Come on. Okay, you are the host of the show. You are in charge. You are in control. You can, you can do another story. Let's do another story. We'll do another story. How about, um, the Louvre Heist? That's a fun, fun story. Let's, uh, let's go to Paris with our very own Troy Iwada.
Yeah, it's good to see you, too, Desi.
Is everything okay?
Yep, yeah, sure.
No, I don't know.
I have no idea.
It is now.
You know, just tell me something about the jewelry heist.
Anything about it at all?
Well, they've now arrested seven of the suspects.
There's more on the loose, but police are confident they'll catch them soon.
You know, we're just lucky that none of the major artworks were stolen, you know, like the Mona Lisa or the Marjorie Taylor Green.
Wait, what?
What? Did you say Marjorie Taylor Green?
Yeah, of course, Desi.
Everyone knows Marjorie Taylor Green is a national treasure.
It's always been like that.
Oh, God. Oh, my God. Troy, no, it's happening to you too.
Just because she's breaking with her party on a few things,
that doesn't mean that she's the new face of the resistance.
Hey, come on now, Desi, why are you being such a silly Jewish space laser?
No, Troy, stop it, stop.
Just cut the feed, cut the feed.
Is this it?
Am I trapped in this hell forever agreeing with Marjorie Taylor Green?
For all of eternity?
I saw average Americans on January 6th.
I still to this day say it was a Fed's direction, an antique.
that participated.
Oh, thank God.
Oh, that was so fucking bonkers.
I have never been so happy to say,
I disagree with Marjorie Taylor Green again.
It was all just a terrible, spooky nightmare
that was perfectly timed with our Halloween episode
a day early because we don't do shows on Fridays.
Now it is all over.
Everything is going to be A-O-K.
No!
No!
Welcome back to the Daily Show.
When it comes to the news, some stories are serious, some stories are inspiring, and some stories are just.
stupid. And for those, we turn to Ronnie Chang in a segment we call Everything is Stupid.
For years, humans have dreamed of a robot butler, someone to do unpleasant chores,
like folding laundry, doing the dishes, and stealing your neighbor's Amazon deliveries.
Hey, order some air pods already, Craig. Enough with the insulin. But now our dreams have
have finally come true.
Move over, Rosie.
There's a new robot made in town.
Meet Neo.
The bot known as the Neo is designed to help you
with housework and other tasks.
The cost $20,000.
Whoa, who the fuck has $20 grand just lying around?
And what is that address?
And when do they usually leave the house?
For that kind of money, this robot better have
incredible features.
The humanoid is available in three colors,
cream, silver, and black.
Each Neo comes with a beautiful.
machine washable knit suit ahead and choose that you can customize to fit your style.
Wow, the future is here. I can finally buy crocs for my robot. Then we can hang out with other
people who are contemplating suicide. Crocs, kill yourself in comfort. This thing has all
the features you want in a good robot, a machine washable suit, a header,
head, and most importantly, zero holes to stick your dick into.
Sorry, puffs, you are not going to f*** this robot.
That's what your Roomba is for.
On the plus side, at least Neo comes in three different colors.
Do you want your own robot slave and are also racist?
Well, then try our black Neo.
Neo, your new favorite N-word.
So, okay, you launched an awkward robot with crocs and zero holes.
This thing is supposed to be the future.
Come on, show me what kind of stuff he can do.
Neo's hardware comes packed with features, like human-level dexterity,
so that it can handle any of your chores reliably.
Hey, Neil, can you take this cup to the sink for me?
Finally, a robot for dirt bags.
Hey.
Hey, Neil, can you take this cup and, uh, can you pay my child support?
Also, can we talk about this robot's butt?
Like, why is it so sharp?
Are we supposed to use his ass to slice pastrami?
How does something that doesn't eat look like it's constantly holding in a poop?
But okay, machete buns, let's see all the time.
You can save me.
Can I get a water?
All in, it took Neo a little over a minute to fetch
to water from the fridge 10 feet away.
Although Neo is capable of lifting up to 150 pounds,
it's not as superhuman as you'd think.
Crush it.
It's a walnut.
Jesus, it's like paying to live with a sick old man.
I mean, if I pay an extra, do I get the emptiest bed pan?
Hey, Jura, I get back to bed.
The doctor said, no cracking walnuts.
Also, we already have the technology to crack a nut.
They wrote a big shitty ballet about it.
I sleep through it every Christmas.
But, okay, so food prep isn't your thing.
What about cleanup?
Next challenge.
Load three items in the dishwasher.
You got this, Neo. You got it.
And that took five minutes.
Look, to be fair, we've all been this drunk before, all right?
Go to beg Neil, drink some gatorade first, and don't text your ex.
But honestly, Neil's complete inability to be helpful around the house isn't even the stupidest thing about it.
When you get your Neo in 2026, it will do most of the things in your home autonomously.
But right now, everything I saw Neo do was guided by a skilled pilot.
And who is the voice I'm hearing right now of Neo?
Hi, I am a remote operator in a different room in the building.
Okay, so after all that, the robot of the future is just a creepy guy who's watching you do everything?
Call me old-fashioned, but I'd rather just have a perverted human butler, all right?
At least while his dick was out, he'd be able to load the dishwasher
Also, is this mostly useless robot even safe to have in my house?
What if Neo decides to take a very heavy piece of wood,
like the top of a table, and drop it on me when I'm sleeping?
Neo will not be able to or allowed to.
Physically, can the robot do that?
Yes.
Physically, can a lot of products in your home do something dangerous
if they decided to, yes?
No.
No, they can't.
My toaster can't kill me while I'm sleeping.
Because my toaster's a f*** coward.
And fine, so Neil won't kill me.
But what about that creepy guy in the next room controlling him?
Because that guy clearly has nothing to live for.
So to summarize, we all expected a robot that would make our lives easier.
But instead, we got this thing that can't crack a walnut, loads of dishwasher like a drunk frat guy, and has a weird, weird ass.
That again, you cannot stick your penis into.
Also, it's not a robot, it's some guy.
So until these issues are fixed,
I guess I'll have to just keep cracking my own walnuts.
All right.
Okay, shit.
You know what?
This is actually really hot.
All right, fine.
I apologize to a stupid drunk robot.
Desi, back to you.
Thank you, everyone.
When we come back,
Jesse and Luke will be joining me on the shows
without all right.
No.
Oh!
Thank you for me.
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.
Check out the big stars, big series, and blockbuster movies.
Streaming on Paramount Plus.
Cue the music.
Like NCIS, Tony and Ziva.
We'd like to make up her own rules.
Tulsa, Kills.
We want to take out the competition.
The substance.
This balance is not working.
And the naked gun.
That was awesome.
Now that's a mountain of entertainment.
Paramount Wolf.
Welcome back to The Daily Show.
My guest tonight is an actor you know from Succession,
who also stars in the hit Netflix series.
hit Netflix series, Nobody Wants This.
Please welcome Justine Liu.
Oh my goodness, it is so much fun having you here.
Now, everyone knows and loves you from Succession,
Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Mr. Mercedes,
and now nobody wants this.
And I will tell you, it doesn't matter what you're in,
you steal every single scene.
Oh, thank you.
Yeah, you do.
It's true.
And I just want to say, don't try that shit around here, all right?
All right?
Understood.
No, your place.
I understand.
I know my place.
Okay.
No, your place.
No, you are so good in this show.
You absolutely, it's like every time you're,
on screen, you're pure magic, and so many laughs.
And I binged season two in about two days.
Amazing.
Probably like everyone else.
Have you guys seen it?
Have you watched?
It goes down easy.
It goes down easy.
Yeah.
It's sweet.
It's fun watching women be complex and funny and interesting.
And I think my favorite part about season two is the first season there was this one
like, will they, won't they, between Kristen and Adams' characters.
But this is really, season two opens up.
It's like, it's about a love story between two sisters.
Yeah, I mean, that was always kind of how I took it,
just because you kind of have to understand
what Morgan's intentions are when she's acting so, like, just insane
and rude and bratty and perfect, yeah.
So even first season, I was kind of like,
what is this story? What is she doing here?
And the way that I kind of, my North Star was being that she's heartbroken,
that her sister is moving into this new romantic relationship
and kind of departing their codependent love affair of a kind.
It's, you know, a platonic love affair, but they are, you know, soulmates in a sense.
So, yeah, this season kind of took that and ran with it.
Yeah.
That's so, it's so relatable because so many sisters experience that.
And even close friends.
Yeah, I mean, I spent all of my 20s, like, sharing my bed with my girlfriends.
And even now, like, every time I come out here alone, and I'm...
Careful. Careful.
Don't read the comments on the YouTube clip of this video.
Oh, my God.
No, but you know, you're just, we're just, like, it's, like, intimacy is so much a part of female friendship.
And, yeah, I, I, even now when I come out here, I'll, like, be like,
hey, girls, can you come over and hang?
Like, it's, it's just, like, one of the best parts of life.
So I totally get the feeling of, you know, your friends departing a version of your relationship to be with their romantic partners or when they have a baby and you kind of have to, like, find a new iteration of what the friendship is.
And that comes with celebration and excitement for your friends and also a little bit of heartache.
And I think Morgan's going through a bit of an identity crisis around it.
Yeah, definitely.
And the scenes between you and Kristen are so elected.
Your chemistry is so good with one another.
I mean, and the way that your characters love,
you love hard and you fight hard.
Have you had to have some real boundary talks
with each other before some of those scenes?
Because it gets intense.
Unfortunately, there's no boundaries.
And some of the stuff that I, like,
there's like times where I literally in the show
go like, ow, like don't touch me like that.
And it's not written into the script.
It's just that she like pulls my finger a little bit too hard.
And me as a character is just like,
ow, like, ew, you literally broke my finger.
That wasn't written in the script.
That is my favorite runner.
Thank you.
That's very sweet.
I literally, by the end of the season, we were like,
okay, I think we worn out that whole bit.
Like, I did it like five times, and I was like,
they're like, okay.
It's so funny, because everyone knows that person who's so dramatic.
Ow, you hurt me.
Totally.
I mean, for me, there's a dynamic is a bit childish,
and I feel like I've seen this dynamic between friends,
like kids before, you know, like the whole, like,
Charlie bit my finger.
I honestly kept on thinking back to that,
like that kind of like bratty play.
And they have a little bit, you know,
like when you go back and hang out with your family,
there's some regression that happens.
And I feel like these girls kind of regressed
to like the teenage, or maybe even elementary
school-age versions of themselves.
Yeah, kids act that way and presidents act that way, apparently.
Totally.
The bruises on his hands, just being so dramatic.
I know, it's so sad.
It's so sad.
The chemistry between you and Timothy Simons is so great as well.
You guys have, so your character, Morgan and his character, Sasha, have this sort of flirtation.
It's very much in the gray area.
Strange, drawn to each other and not like really sure what it is.
Nothing's quite happening, but did you, how much of that did you know going in and how much
did you sort of like discover as it was happening?
We knew very little about what was going.
going on.
Yeah.
Yeah, it was fun.
It was fun.
And it was also, like, confusing.
You know, you always want to know, like, what your function is in the scene or, like, what the tracks are.
Are we going to, like, end up making out in the next episode?
And that was, like, a real prospect in the first season, like, trying, like, it was on the table that this would turn into an affair.
And, like, it kind of got, like, passed back and forth and talked through and hashed out.
And so there were times where it was very weird and kind of, you know, it was very weird and kind of, you know, it was.
and kind of, even to be completely honest,
like, frustrating in moments where you're like,
what is happening?
And then I saw it, and I was like,
this is really interesting what's happening here.
Like, not knowing exactly what that dynamic is
and that these two people just find each other magnetic
and they're drawn to each other,
and they're kind of unclear about what that energy is
and the boundaries that come with relationships.
I just thought it was really interesting.
And then this season, I kind of like
that it evolved into something that was more platonic
and they kind of lean on each other,
as friends in a real way.
Yeah, they do.
It worked.
The ambiguity totally worked for the view,
from my perspective anyway.
Erin was on to something.
She was like, I don't know.
Maybe they're going to make out next episode.
And I was like, but it really lends itself
to being an interesting dynamic.
Yeah.
And your character also had quite the love story.
You had a love interest.
I don't want to give anything away.
But your character was definitely treated like a queen.
You got to wear these amazing outfits.
in this elegant atmosphere.
Meanwhile, you have a six-month-old at home.
Probably not getting a ton of sleep.
Was that just the best to be able to walk into that fantasy?
You know, my husband does dote on me quite a bit.
He's kind of amazing.
He's an A-plus husband.
So, like, you know, there's little things that he does all the time.
Like, you know, like when I give the baby a bath, he'll, like, put out candles
and, like, give me a glass of water with electrolytes in it.
And kind of like...
Electrolites?
Your husband does electrolytes.
It keeps me hydrated.
I know.
But I will say there was...
Which camera do I play, too?
The most romantic of all ingredients, the electrolytes, honey.
But, yeah, he's very sweet, but it was nice, I will say.
Like, I just, at home, I do not, I do not put a lick of effort into wearing things.
And being put in hair and makeup and beautiful clothes, it really,
does change the way that you feel about yourself.
So there was something nice to being like a little bit like, oh, I'm not that girl anymore.
Play pretend over here.
Yeah, I live in that world for a little bit.
Yeah.
Here we are.
And here we are.
You wrote this beautiful piece in Porter Magazine about, it was a love letter to your friends,
and it was what my girlfriends taught me about love and strength.
And it was so beautifully written.
Love letter to your girlfriends.
What, you know, for me reading it, it was so nice.
It just felt like a warm hug with, in this world,
how women are so often pitted against one another.
To read that felt so, like, honest and wonderful.
What did you hope that other women and other men
took away from that?
Ooh.
I mean, I just wanted to explore what that dynamic is.
And I guess it was like a moment for me to just encourage
people to turn towards the people that they love and feel, you know, the gratitude or have a
moment of realization for how important connection is. I just feel like we're in singularly dark
times. And what I said in the thing is that my friends, they feel like they're my,
there's these sacred relics that I've gathered throughout my life and that they're my secret
weapons. Like, like, truly I keep them in my back pocket at all times and they're always there
as kind of like these anchors in all different iterations of life.
And I don't know, I guess it applies to most connection,
any connection, any human connection that you have.
Like I just think that it's the thing that gets us
through these times, is just seeing each other
and being there for each other and hearing each other
and connecting.
And yeah, I just, I owe my girlfriend so much.
So for me, it was just a love letter to them.
Oh, so, and this is what we need.
We need more of this.
I mean, we need some warmth.
I mean, I think that is why the show has such an audience.
And I just think that, you know, this show, you're always talking about, you know, even
when we met before this, like, it's just a tough moment and it can be really depressing.
And so I feel like the only thing to do is just turn towards each other.
So that was kind of just a little slice of that.
Well, it felt that way.
And that is, we need more of that.
So keep it coming, please.
Okay, one thing before I let you go.
I hear that there's buzz about a season three happening.
You don't have to reveal to the audience,
but you could just whisper in my ear.
Do you think that Morgan and Sasha will get together in season three?
You want me to whisper?
Just whisper.
Don't tell them.
Just tell me.
Oh!
Oh, get ready.
Season two of Nobody Wants This is now streaming on Netflix.
Justine Loof, everybody.
We're going to take a quick break,
but we'll be right after we're back to us.
Thank you.
Ahoi, everybody.
Ahoi, everybody.
Not only am I a care bear, I'm a self-care bear.
Self-care bear.
Look at those fingers go.
Boo, Beatlejuice is bat.
Look at my costume.
I am a super meteorologist, get it?
The bats are in the battle free.
We're going for like a Barbie.
And your costume is officially sexy Mrs. Santa Claus.
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.
