Stephen Colbert returns after his illness with Liz Cheney

I opened Meyers, Kimmel, and 'The Daily Show' take closer looks at Santos being expelled with a program note and well wishes.

I closed 'Bankrupt - Ruby Tuesday' by Bright Sun Films, a tale of the Retail Apocalypse by telling my readers "Stay tuned for comedy tomorrow, when I expect 'Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, and especially Jimmy Kimmel will run a victory lap as they dunk on his departure while mourning the loss of a great subject for comedy.'" I got two-thirds of my wish, as both Meyers and Kimmel featured George Santos in their sketches and monologues, while Colbert is at home recovering from a ruptured appendix. Get well soon, Stephen! Your fans miss you!

Stephen returned Monday night. Yay! Welcome back! Watch Monday's monologue, If Trump Gets Unlimited Power He Won’t Be Giving It Up | George Santos Cashes In On Cameo.

The former president doubled down on his assertion that he would only be a dictator on day one if elected again, and former Congressman George Santos already has a lucrative new career.

Hearing Stephen quote others calling Trump "Julius Caesar" and "Orange Jesus" reminds me that John Michael Greer the Archdruid has been calling him "Orange Julius" since at least 2017, if not earlier. I rather like that and if my wife hadn't already likened him to The Penguin running for Mayor of Gotham City, I'd use it as his label. Instead, I want both Greer and his nickname for the 45th President to become better known among the American Left. If he becomes more widely disliked, so be it.

Stephen returned with The Story of Stephen Colbert’s Ruptured Appendix.

Stephen shares the frightening details of his emergency surgery for appendicitis, and thanks everyone for their support during his recovery.

Evie literally made the right call to get Stephen to the hospital. Thank you, Evie!

Follow over the jump for Stephen interviewing Liz Cheney and a bonus cold open.

The interview opened with Rep. Liz Cheney On What It's Like To Be Embraced By The Left.

Former Congresswoman Liz Cheney, a lifelong Republican, says it feels “a little weird” to receive praise and admiration from liberals after taking a stand against Donald Trump. Stick around for more with Rep. Liz Cheney and check out the book, “Oath and Honor,” available now.

As I wrote in July 2022, "In Liz Cheney's case, she'd like her pre-2015 Republican Party back. I doubt she'll get it any time soon, so she'll settle for damaging TFG instead. I wish her luck." She's certainly doing her best.

The interview continued when Stephen asked and Cheney responded How Many House GOP Members Believe Trump’s Election Lies? Rep. Liz Cheney Says Not Many.

Former Congresswoman Liz Cheney estimates that fewer than 1% of Republican congresspeople actually believe the former president’s election fraud claims.

The difference between what Republican politicians say and what they believe is a version of Upton Sinclair's "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it." Their positions and therefore their salaries depend on repeating the Big Lie. As for the 14th Amendment, I think the insurrection clause applies, but, like much of the rest of the 14th Amendment, the courts are too timid or ideologically opposed to enforce it.

The interview concluded with Stephen and Rep. Liz Cheney Debate the GOP’s Role in America’s Slide Towards Fascism.

Stephen Colbert asks former Congresswoman Liz Cheney to examine the Republican Party’s role in eroding the public’s trust in America’s institutions.

That's a good example of a civil conversation between people who disagree and it's also a good question. It will have to be answered, although I included part of the answer in Jon Stewart examines the problem with Fox News.

[T]he election of The Former Guy and his continued popularity showed this happened to the Republican Party because a plurality of Republican voters revolted against the party's leadership, which proved to be too weak to fight them and TFG. The politicians couldn't control the movement, either.*

*A fellow guest at a party I attended in the summer of 2016 asked me how we got TFG and Hillary Clinton as nominees. I told him that the parties got the nominees they deserved. The Republicans got TFG because the party was too weak and the Democrats got Hillary Clinton because the party was too strong. He laughed ruefully and asked if the American people deserved the nominees. I told him that was another matter entirely.

That's still true and is why we're almost certainly going to get a rematch between TFG and Joe Biden next year.

I'm skipping Olivia Rodrigo — watch her performances in 'SNL' tries to turn a week of unfunny news into comedy and gets saved by Adam Driver and Olivia Rodrigo instead — to share A Message For George Santos, From George Santos.



Thanks George! *Snork*

Jimmy Kimmel isn't done with Santos, either, but I might post a driving update tomorrow first. Stay tuned.