John Oliver joined the Sen. Josh Hawley pile-on over newly released video of the Missouri Republican fleeing from the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, shortly after raising a fist in solidarity with the rioters outside.
Hawley, who fundraised for months off the infamous image of himself giving a closed-fist salute to insurrectionists, has been a laughingstock since the Jan. 6 committee aired the footage at a hearing Thursday.
“That is painfully embarrassing,” Oliver said Sunday on HBO’s “Last Week Tonight.” “That is the gait of a man who’s either just gassed up an insurrection that is now bearing down on top of him, or just drank a large iced coffee 45 minutes ago.”
“Either way, those legs scream, ‘I’ve made a huge mistake,’” Oliver added.
Perhaps the best response to the clip came from former D.C. Metropolitan Police Department Officer Michael Fanone, Oliver said.
Fanone, who was beaten and electroshocked by rioters that day, told Politico after the revelation that “Josh Hawley is a bitch. And he ran like a bitch.”
Oliver had his own twist on that commentary.
“I personally would not say that,” he said. “I would say Josh Hawley is a bitch who ran like a chihuahua desperately trying to keep up with its owner on a casual walk.”