Typically, being accused of lobbing softballs at a possible soon-to-be presidential candidate is the last thing a reporter would want to be accused of. But over at Fox News, they’re courting that exact reputation. “[Ron] DeSantis was on Fox News this weekend talking to the brown-haired guy who’s not Steve Doocy about what he learned from playing baseball in college,” Stephen Colbert explained on Tuesday night.
In a clip from the interview, an anxiety-inducingly excited Brian Kilmeade is seen explaining his thoughts on how baseball—a sport DeSantis played more than two decades ago—can prepare a person for a life in politics. “If they like you a lot, they rip you all the time,” Kilmeade says, and DeSantis quickly agrees: “The way you know if people like you is if they’re making fun of you.”
“Well then, Ron DeSantis, I’m about to be your best friend,” Colbert retorted. “In fact, I like you so much, I’m gonna say you look like a Frankenstein stitched together from dead personal injury lawyers.”
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For anyone initially perplexed about why Kilmeade’s Q&A with DeSantis was taking place outside, the answer soon became clear: Because how else could two grown men enjoy an extremely forced and heavily edited game of catch while chatting about Meatball Ron’s political future?
“Ron DeSantis wants to connect with everyday, sport-loving Americans,” Colbert explained. “So they played catch in a literal softball interview. Although you’ll notice throughout the segment, the editors cut away so that you don’t actually see the ball being thrown and caught in the same shot.”
While Colbert admitted that “that’s a weird way to show two guys tossing a ball,” he quipped, “I’m sure it was a real game of catch.”
