The Daily Show has hosted some bizarre guests in its on-the-field pieces during Jon Stewart's tenure — from racists and homophobes to a prominent pastor who said President Barack Obama is Adolf Hitler. For many viewers, the bizarre comments have raised the question: Are these people real?
Last night, Stewart sat down with Jessica Williams, a correspondent of the show, to get some answers. It all seemed to come down to one thing, Williams explained: "They are real, and they do know who we are, and they don't care because we bring a camera with us."
But would these former guests stick to their controversial comments if given another opportunity? Williams followed up with some of the guests to find out.
"You're doubling down on what you said six years ago?"
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Take, for instance, James David Manning, the ATLAH World Missionary Church chief pastor who previously equated Obama with Hitler.
"The things that he has accomplished are ultra evil," Manning said. "It takes a certain amount of evil spirit and demented, if you will, personality to do what he has done."
"I'm just trying to get this right," Williams replied. "You're doubling down on what you said six years ago?"
"You could say that, yes," Manning responded. "I'm leaning more toward Obama being like the son of Satan."
Williams said this was the typical response to her follow-up to field guests: Most people didn't just stand by their comments, they were actually happy that they had appeared on The Daily Show.
"I understood when you asked me to be on the show exactly what it was going to be about," Manning said. "It was going to be an attempt to make my ideas seem buffoonery. But I agreed to do it anyway, because I didn't think you would succeed at it. And you didn't."
