As President Trump’s MAGA hordes were overtaking the U.S. Capitol last Wednesday, photos started to emerge on social media of a familiar face in the insurrectionist crowd: Daily Show correspondent Jordan Klepper. When I reached out to him in the immediate aftermath to see what kind of field piece he had in store for viewers, the comedian simply replied, “A wild one.”
The segment, which is only being posted online since The Daily Show is still on hiatus this week, is indeed even more outrageous than the last one Klepper filmed at the so-called “Million MAGA March” just two weeks after the election last November. He not only got close enough to see the mob break into the building but also got into a momentary melee with one Trump supporter who tackled his cameraman.
“Last week we saw one of the darkest days in American history,” Klepper says at the top of the video. “And for better or worse, I was there.” At the Trump rally that preceded the act of domestic terrorism, he asked attendees whether they will accept Joe Biden as their president as of January 20. When one couple told him they “do not consent” to be governed by an “illegal, fraudulent election,” he replied, “But you elected a guy who also doesn’t care that much about consent.”
Things got increasingly more aggressive as Klepper followed the crowd toward the Capitol. “The one thing you couldn’t help but notice is just how many people looked like they were preparing for battle,” he remarks. “From the tactical vests to the pitchforks, this rally felt charged.”
“You can tell these people really love America by the number of weapons they brought to hurt other Americans,” Klepper says. “This thing was a powder keg. All it took was someone to light the fuse, like these human blowtorches,” he adds, pointing to clips of Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump Jr., and the president himself practically ordering their supporters to commit treason.
“Is this the last stand?!” he asks one man barrelling toward the building on a Segway scooter.
Klepper’s previous reports from Trump rallies over the past year have been consistently hilarious, but you can feel the jokes melting away as he absorbs the seriousness of what is about to happen. Over footage of the violent clashes that ensued, he says, “They attacked our democracy, our police, and even our cameraman.”
“Trump’s fake tough guy military are literally throwing themselves on the ground to perpetuate victimhood,” he says before noting that “in the end, the crowd didn’t stop our democracy” since Congress finished certifying the Electoral College vote later that night.
“This shitstain rebellion failed,” Klepper concludes. “As did my dry January.”
For more, listen to The Daily Show’s Jordan Klepper on The Last Laugh podcast.
