Jon Stewart: True Patriot

Oh, Jon Stewart, you seem to be begging for the Golden Ruler Award! And you deserve it!!

If you didn't see last night's Daily Show where Jon Stewart interviewed John McCain, go see it now, in two parts: Part I and Part II.

Jon Stewart's words of great measure:

"Is it part of the insurgency, and isn't this part of the difficulty that we have to win over the Iraqi people and can we win them over when we seem to almost consistently diminish their suffering. Rumsfeld has said 'when you fly over Baghdad the whole place isn't on fire.' Condi Rice has said that this is birthing pangs. You know, think of how we're grieving for (the deaths at Virginia Tech), and rightfully so... (disrupted thought about mismanaged war) But even the mindset... (again disrupted thought win/loss militarily or politically) But don't you think we already won militarily? (disrupted) Can we describe this as won or lost? Even the president said this isn't the kind of war you win and people surrender on a battleship. Shouldn't we get away from the language of win or lose in Iraq and get more to a descriptive success, a metrics, deadlines, if you will, timetables."

"They're fighting each other. We're there keeping them from killing each other. Surrender is not--We're not surrendering to an enemy that has defeated us, we're saying how do you quell a civil war when it's not your country?"

(In reply to McCain's audience comment "I think I know who's side they're on.") "They're on America's side because they're patriots."

"If the architects that built a house without any doors or windows don't admit that's the house they built, and continue to say it's your fault for not being able to see into it, then I don't understand how we're supposed to move forward."

"What I believe is less supportive to the good people who believe they're fighting the great cause is to not give them a strategy that makes their success possible...(disrupted thought) All I'm saying is you cannot look a soldier in the eye and say questioning the president is less supportive to you than extending your tour for three months when you should be coming home to your family. And that's not fair to put on people that criticize."

"And you know I love you and I respect your service and I would never question any of that. And this is not about questioning the troups and their ability to fight, and their ability to be supported. And that is what the administration does and that is almost criminal."

In regards to this interview as an observer, John McCain wasn't listening attentively to any of the questions or comments Jon posed, and it seemed to my unskilled ears that McCain was answering questions from some make believe interview that was happening at the same time, as if Jon Stewart wasn't really saying anything. I don't believe there was one question that John McCain directly addressed and answered in the theme of Jon Stewart's moderate perspective.

Sad that a Republican candidate for our highest office can't get off his party's rhetoric and spin long enough to truly listen to and honestly answer questions from a true patriot: Jon Stewart.