The Daily Show’s Jordan Klepper managed to mangle not one but two ramifications of President-elect Donald Trump nominating Army veteran and Fox News host Pete Hegseth for Secretary of Defense. First, Klepper gave a false impression of what Hegseth meant when he said women should not be in combat roles, and second, he claimed the first false impression means that “in Trump’s America,"  if women “want to risk their lives, they're going to have to get pregnant.”

After a less solemn look at Hegseth’s history of selling grenade-shaped soap and live on TV ax-throwing bloopers, Klepper shifted gears by introducing a trio of Hegseth soundbites, “But look, Pete's tenure isn't just going to be about smelling like bourbon while evading ax murder charges. No, as Secretary of Defense, he has plans to protect us from its greatest enemy.”

 

 

In the first clip, Hegseth declared, “We only have one military, and if the military goes woke, then it is less equipped to fight the wars it needs to fight.”

In the second, he added that “Social justice, politically correct, environmental, LGBT non—, CRT, DEI nonsense that divides the force, makes it weaker.”

Finally, Hegseth was seen proclaiming, “I'm straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles.”

After some jeering from the studio audience, Klepper suggested, “That's right. No women in combat roles. In Trump's America, if women really want to risk their lives, they're going to have to get pregnant.”

First of all, everyone—Hegseth very much included—understands that 2024 is not 1724 and the lines between combat roles and non-combat roles are less clear than they once were, but Hegseth was talking about roles “where strength is a differentiator.” Just like Klepper shouldn’t make things up about Hegseth, he shouldn’t make things up about pro-life laws either. Despite all the liberal fear-mongering and poor reading comprehension, there is nothing in them that could be considered life-threatening.

Here is a transcript for the November 13 show:

Comedy Central The Daily Show

11/13/2024

11:07 PM ET

JORDAN KLEPPER: But look, Pete's tenure isn't just going to be about smelling like bourbon while evading ax murder charges. No, as secretary of Defense, he has plans to protect us from its greatest enemy.

PETE HEGSETH: We only have one military, and if the military goes woke, then it is less equipped to fight the wars it needs to fight. 

Social justice, politically correct, environmental, LGBT non—, CRT, DEI nonsense that divides the force, makes it weaker. 

I'm straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles. 

KLEPPER: That's right. No women in combat roles. In Trump's America, if women really want to risk their lives, they're going to have to get pregnant. Now, tough ask. Talk to the man.