Jon Stewart says Biden ‘becoming Trumpian,’ knocks Democrats ‘omerta’

Comedian Jon Stewart suggested that President Biden is “becoming Trumpian” as he tries to mitigate the aftermath of his poor debate performance last month.

Stewart suggested in his latest “Weekly Show” podcast that Democrats are using a code of silence to respond to concerns of the president’s ability to beat former President Trump in November and serve a second term. He went on to compare Biden to the former president, pointing to how he has reacted to calls for him to step down.

“All I’m saying is if we are taking an honest look at what our best chance to defend ourselves against a perceived threat, I think we are selling ourselves short,” the former late night host told guests Tommy Vietor and Jon Favreau, the Obama-era aides and founders of Crooked Media. “And in a lot of ways, using — as, as Tommy put it — omerta to stifle what could be an incredibly productive, at least conversation.”

“Even if Joe Biden came out and said, ‘Look, I understand where I’m at in my life span and cycle and what I do. Here’s how this government works.’ Rather than coming out and becoming Trumpian and saying, ‘You think someone else could hold NATO together, they could never; only God can tell me to get out of the race,’’ Stewart added.

The late night host was referencing parts of Biden’s first postdebate interview with ABC News’s George Stephanopoulos last week, where he at one point said, “And who’s gonna be able to hold NATO together like me?” and that only the “Lord Almighty” could make him drop out of the race.

Stewart did not directly call on Biden to step down in the podcast clip posted online, but he has been critical of the president in the past. He said on “The Daily Show” earlier this week that the excuses the president’s reelection team have made for his disastrous debate performance are “bulls‑‑‑.”

He also suggested that Biden’s campaign should publicly explain how it can win the race.

“Like, if you were to come out and say, ‘Here’s, here’s my team. Here’s how we hold the line.’ But we’re not seeing any of that. Nothing that’s been done inspires any confidence other than the fatalism of, ‘It is what it is, and this is what we’re stuck with,’” Stewart said.

“And that’s the part that I think has degraded people’s trust in institutions and the government from the get-go,” he added. “That’s a problem.”

A growing number of Democrats have called on Biden to withdraw from the race in recent weeks, but the president has remained adamant that he will not be withdrawing from the race.

The Hill has reached out to Biden’s campaign for comment.