When Barack Obama ran for president, his slogan was “YES WE CAN!” On ‘The Daily Show’ (weeknights, 11PM ET on Comedy Central), Jon Stewart criticized Obama’s year and a half in office — and offered a replacement slogan: “Yes we can, given certain conditions, blah blah blah … blah blah.”
During a historic 30-minute interview, Obama and Stewart argued — but the pair also agreed about many things. Still, the host didn’t let the president off easily. Jon critiqued Obama’s attempts to reform the national health care system, calling the president’s efforts “timid.”
This led to a stern answer from the commander-in-chief: “I have a profound disagreement with you.” Stewart said he hadn’t suggested reform was “inconsequential.” Obama shot back with a sarcastic response: “The suggestion was that it was ‘timid.'”
It was odd, watching the president duke it out with a “fake news” host. But then, Stewart was named “the most influential man of 2010” in a recent poll. And Obama was ranked a full twenty spots lower in the poll than Stewart. So maybe the president had something to prove.
Jon kept up the criticism, saying Obama had made too many compromises. He added that by compromising, Obama had covered up a political system that was intrinsically “corrupt.” But if Jon was honest, his guest was refreshingly candid as well. “That — I think — is fair,” the president said in reply.
Obama was proud of his achievements, saying he had brought health care to millions who didn’t have it before. He argued that Jon was impatient — as there were many things that needed to be fixed. The president ended by suggesting another alternate slogan: “‘Yes We Can’ — But It Is Not Gonna Happen Overnight.”
