The Daily Show Compares Congress's Reaction to Police Brutality vs. the Plight of Air Travel

As The Daily Show pointed out in Thursday night’s edition, Congress is capable of reacting quickly when it comes to issues they really care about.

Three weeks after the disturbing video of a United passenger who got dragged off a flight—or as Noah described in this segment, “found himself in a surprise boxing match”—representatives from four major airline carriers testified before the House Transportation Committee about booking policies.

“Congress was so pissed after they saw that video, they didn’t just go after United. They called every airline,” says Noah. “If you’re a black person in America, it must be particularly shitty to see how quickly lawmakers can act after watching one graphic video.”

Since that United video, Noah explains, we’ve seen three more videos of black victims of police brutality, including Jordan Edwards, a 15-year-old from Dallas who was fatally shot in the head while sitting in a car. The delayed or lack of concern over police murdering black people is altogether mystifying, frustrating and predictable. As Noah says, “After the United video, it took Congress only three weeks, three weeks to call a hearing. After Ferguson, it took Congress nine months to hold a hearing that was devoted to police brutality.”

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The segment shows footage of Congress members at the hearing earlier this week, complaining about everything but the violent United incident and instead, delayed flights, baggage fees and poor legroom on flights. “I can’t even sit up straight in the seat. I have to stick my legs out in the aisle,” says Republican John Katko. What a travesty!

“It turns out, as hard as it is to be black in America, apparently it’s just as hard to be a Congressman on a plane,” says Noah. “It made me realize that they do have the capacity to care.”