Trevor Noah: Why Trump's Antics Remind Him of Home
*By Max Godnick*
Late-night talk show hosts regularly express their [shock] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrKUewEzOxM) and [outrage] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDQ0f4n9aAo) over President Trump's latest antics.
Not Trevor Noah, the host of "The Daily Show."
"If you come from the African continent or the Middle East, Donald Trump is all too familiar," said Noah, who is from South Africa. "What he's doing is completely reminiscent of home. Michael Cohen getting payments from corporations in exchange for access to he presidency is African politics 101."
Noah's rise on "The Daily Show" coincides with Trump's political ascent. Noah took over from Jon Stewart as host of the long-running Comedy Central talk show in September 2015, three months after Trump announced his presidential campaign.
"Donald Trump has given the show a focus," Noah said in an interview with Cheddar's Baker Machado. "We are going through something together, so for better or worse, 'The Daily Show' is here to explore that."
He credits his diverse team of "Daily Show" correspondents, including Hasan Minhaj, Desi Lydic, and Ronny Chieng, with being able to mine the Trump administration for humor in a way that other late-night shows won't or can't.
Before Trump's election, Noah said there was a "certain level of complacency." Since Trump took office, the White House's policies and actions have inspired a collective awakening in political engagement.
"People are protesting, people are marching, people are engaging, people are running for office in ways that they never were before," Noah said.
Over the years, appearing on "The Daily Show" has become a rite of passage for politicians from both parties. Barack Obama granted interviews to [Stewart] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L88H2HWEXrw) and [Noah] (http://www.cc.com/video-clips/zwlq5r/the-daily-show-with-trevor-noah-exclusive---barack-obama-full-interview). [John McCain] (http://www.cc.com/video-clips/2fkvld/the-daily-show-with-jon-stewart-john-mccain-pt--1) sat down with Stewart at the height of the 2008 campaign.
But, Noah is not surprised or bothered that Trump has steered clear of the late-night circuit.
"If this is a president who won't go to California, then how can I be angry that he won't come to 'The Daily Show?'"
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/why-trevor-noah-feels-at-home-in-trumps-america).
The Biden administration will significantly loosen federal mask-wearing guidelines to protect against COVID-19 transmission on Friday, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Russian President Vladimir Putin openly invaded the neighboring country of Ukraine on Thursday following weeks of overtures and discussions on keeping an incursion from happening. David Salvo, the deputy director for the Alliance for Securing Democracy, joined Cheddar to go into the Russian leader's motivations. "What I'm sure he understands is that his invasion of Ukraine in 2014 probably ended the discussion of Ukraine joining NATO, even if publicly we won't admit that, that's just the reality. And I'm sure that President Putin understands that," he said, noting that Putin could be using the taking of Ukraine territory as leverage to gain more security concessions from the West.
Following Russia's incursion into Ukraine, the U.S. is warning businesses and major banks to brace themselves for cyberattacks. Lester Munson, a senior fellow at the National Security Institute, joined Cheddar News to break down what this means for financial institutions “So we need to be concerned about not just intentional Russian hacks against American entities but also what Russia is doing in Ukraine. Those things can impact us as well," he said
After weeks of talks and posturing in hopes of staving off an attack, Russia invaded Ukraine on Thursday, an incident that has already impacted the global economy, including the U.S.. Jason McMann, head of geopolitical risk analysis for Morning Consult, joined Cheddar’s Closing Bell to break down what investors might do to prepare themselves as the crisis continues. "I think there are a few things that we have our eye on over at Morning Consult that could cause the situation to become a bit more severe or unstable as far as market outcomes would be concerned," McMann said. "One of those things would be if the U.S. and the EU kind of moved in concerted fashion to block Russia from the SWIFT transaction system. So, I would say that's one thing that would be worth keeping an eye on."
Alex Walker, candidate for Colorado's 3rd Congressional District, joins Cheddar News to discuss why he's running against Lauren Boebert and the inspiration behind his viral campaign ad.
Lisa Hagen, politics reporter for U.S. News and World Report, joins Cheddar News to preview what to expect from President Biden's State of the Union Address on March 1.
Minh-Thu Pham, co-founder of New American Voices, joins Cheddar News to discuss the organization and why new citizens are key to defending U.S. democracy.
Joel Willett, a former CIA operative, joins Cheddar News to discuss Russian President Vladimir Putin officially launching a "special military operation" in Ukraine