“The Daily Show” is dedicating itself to a worthy cause: making comically rich billionaire Elon Musk even richer. At least Troy Iwata is.
“This man is barely worth $300 billion at this point, but we can change that,” the senior correspondent said on Thursday night. As he spoke, the light around him darkened and soft piano played, mimicking charity commercials. “For the simple price of $50,000, you can help a 53-year-old boy afford all the things he was already able to afford.”
It should be noted that Iwata started by asking the “Daily Show” audience for a measly $30,000 or, as he put it, “just 70,000 cups of coffee a day.” That number ramped up to $2.5 million by the end of the segment. It’s all in the interest of making sure “the richest man in America stays the richest man in America,” Iwata explained.
Repeatedly, host Jordan Klepper interrupted Iwata and tried to stop his plug. But Iwata was not to be deterred.
“I thought liberals were supposed to care about immigrants and African Americans, of which Elon is both,” Iwata told Klepper. “And you know, he’s not as rich as he used to be. He lost $40 billion. That’s 40 billion Arizona Iced Teas.” Iwata then added, “you can support an African man in need and his beautiful, growing ketamine addiction.”
The Comedy Central show unveiled the bit after Klepper mocked Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick for urging Fox News viewers to buy Tesla stock in a recent interview. Lutnick’s push came after Musk’s net worth has dropped by over $100 billion this month due to the drop of Tesla stock.
“It’s embarrassing that this guy is using his position on TV to sell s–t to the American people. Why are you so hungry for Musk’s approval when you should be hungry for a Taco Bell Build Your Own Cravings Box?” Klepper asked his audience. “It’s called integrity. And it’s how you live mas.” Watch the full opening monologue above.
