Previous daily show Comedian Jon Stewart weighs in on Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ decision to transport immigrants from Texas and Florida to Martha’s Vineyard.
On his YouTube show, Jon Stewart questionhe discusses political stunts with writers Jay Youden and Tokara Mallard.
“I don’t want this race to be a race again, but — but this country has a history of putting non-white people on boats, ‘Yeah. Yeah. It’s fun when you get to wherever you’re going, ‘” Mr Jurden said.
Ms Mallard agreed, saying “it all started with slave labor.”
“That’s not allowed to be taught in my school. So I don’t even know what you’re talking about. If that’s a CRT, I don’t want any part of it,” Stewart joked, before turning his attention to DeSantis gentlemen. “Well, it’s clear at this point that the path to Republican power lies in d***ishness.”
Stewart said: “The stunt did exactly what he wanted, and it boosted his profile and made him a hero in it, and for them, recklessness is one of the only traits they look for in a leader.”
“It probably angered Trump because ‘Nobody’s going to be dumber than me.’ Like this — imagine the season we’re in, they’re trying to fit each other in horribly brutal ways,” Stewart said. “That’s going to be the thing. And this country has done a really good job of taking care of the people who are already here,”
After tearing up Mr DeSantis, Stewart turned his questions to actual immigration issues and called for a “sane immigration policy” that did not involve the “demonization” of immigration.
Stewart concluded that Republicans don’t actually care as much about immigration as they sell “brands” to voters.
“The branding is like this — what is this brand about now? Their branding is — they’ve found a group of people they can demonize and their base is excited about that,” he said. “So it’s all about finding a way to expand their brand at the expense of real people and real problems. It’s solvable.”
Although he was roasted at Stewart’s hands, Mr. DeSantis may be more concerned about the criminal investigation launched by Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar into his actions. The Texas sheriff announced earlier this week his intention to investigate whether Mr. DeSantis coerced or misled migrants when they were invited to board a plane to Martha’s Vineyard.
Many media outlets have covered the story of “Pella,” an alleged Spanish-speaking woman who paid at least one immigrant to help recruit others for political stunts.
Additionally, many immigrants were given brochures promising cash assistance, housing assistance, job training and other resources if they traveled to Massachusetts. However, under U.S. immigration law, these products are only available to refugees, which means that most, if not all, immigrants agree to make the trip under false pretenses.
Mr DeSantis defended the flight and brochure, insisting all participants were volunteers.
