Waylon Lewis just blogged that what the world needs is a green Jon Stewart -- somebody to take on all of the green issues in an accessible way, but still getting to some of the important questions.
Waylon's timing was great, as I had just been compiling this list of green moments on "The Daily Show," in which Stewart does get to just the sorts of issues we'd all love to see more of. I think it's just that Waylon would like to see it every night. Be sure to put who you'd like to see Jon interview in the comments and we'll make a poll out of the best options.
Happy Friday!
1. BE PATIENT -- THIS GETS AMAZING:
WHITE HOUSE WON'T OPEN EPA EMAILS
Jon Stewart talks about the totally amazing turn of events in which the White House ignored environmental policy for its first 6 years, then found a new, digital way to ignore it. (Jun. 25, 2008)
Highlights:
Stewart: "The White House avoided implementing the agency's recommendations by informing the agency they would not open the email. Amazing the WH is treating americans' env policy like a spam boner pill ad."
Stewart: "So I guess King George III's big mistake was unscrolling the Declaration Independence."
2. APRIL 25TH DECLARED "F*** THE EARTH DAY"
Jon celebrates Earth Day, 2006. (Apr. 24, 2006)
Highlights:
Stewart: [as Bush] "And I believe that teenagers will borrow those hydrogen cars from their parents without permission and stay out past space curfew robo-necking with their android boyfriends."
3. DANIEL SPERLING
Daniel Sperling, author of "Two Billion Cars," has a really hard time getting over the giggles in this interview talking about the government's role in renewable energy and cars. Also, he kind of sounds like John Malkovich. (Feb. 11, 2009)
Highlights:
Stewart: "Oh, 15 years, well by then, we'll all be dead."
Stewart: "You have a chapter titled "Corn Ethanol? F*** That."
4. SEN. INHOFE DENIES EXISTENCE OF GLOBAL WARMING
Lewis Black is angry at people denying things -- starting with Senator James Inhofe, who at the time was the chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. (Jun. 29, 2006)
Black: "That guy's in charge of the environment and public works? That's gotta be a hoax."
Bible: "Go ye and get me an ice pop, for I am schvitzing like a Pharisee."
5. T. BOONE PICKENS
T. Boone Pickens, oil man, author of "The First Billion Is The Hardest," and ornery Oklahoma/Texas drawler, doesn't want any part of Jon Stewart's jokery early on. Or his hostery. Really, it seems like he just doesn't like Jon Stewart. (Nov. 12, 2008)
Highlights:
Stewart: "Are you suggesting invading these countries is not a plan?"
Pickens: "You've got a lot of young people here. This is your problem, not my problem."
6. AL GORE
Al Gore visits Jon to talk about "An Inconvenient Truth." (Jun. 28, 2006)
Highlights:
Stewart: "Any time something melts, Al Gore should get a nickel."
Stewart: "Tell the truth. When you do those slides where you show what could happen and you show Florida and you see how it's almost under water... With Florida under water, do you ever say to yourself, 'gotcha!'"
Gore: I think I carried Florida.
7. THOMAS FRIEDMAN
Thomas Friedman, NYT columnist and author of "Hot, Flat and Crowded," talks about hotness, flatness and crowdedness. (Nov. 11, 2008)
Highlights:
Friedman: "The truth is [Bush] could barely get the word c-c-c-conservation out of his mouth."
Stewart: "Google and Microsoft didn't start from a government project, it's started from just guys -- why aren't there guys in garages [starting the new, Green Google and Microsoft] now?"
Friedman: "That's actually a very important question."
Stewart: "It is? You know what? Let me take it back, then. I don't want to..."