Chelsea Clinton is making the media rounds promoting her new feminist children’s book, She Persisted Around the World, and made a stop at CBS’s The Late Show early morning, March 6 to talk about it. But as is typical for anti-Trump host Stephen Colbert, his interview questions focused heavily on his hatred for the president. Colbert practically begged the former first daughter to curse at President Trump in a pitifully transparent display.
Even though she was there to promote her new book, the CBS host spent over half the interview egging on Clinton to “spill” on how much her family must hate the president as much as he does.
“Your family has a particularly unique relationship emotionally to the fact that Donald Trump is President of the United States,” Colbert stated the obvious, before asking Clinton how her family “copes” with their “anxiety” over Trump.
“How does your family cope with that level of anxiety that Donald Trump I think wants to generate every day? I have my own way but I gave up liquor for Lent,” he joked, before urging Clinton to give the dirty details of how her family talks about Trump at home.
“How do you guys talk about this at home? Like, c’mon, spill the tea. How do you guys talk about Donald Trump? Give me a conversation recently you've had about the president,” the late night host begged.
Clinton stumbled for an answer, saying, “Goodness!” which Colbert seized on, admitting he wanted to her her say some four letter words about Trump.
“That's the strongest language you use?! Gee willikers?” he snarked.
The typically reserved former first daughter went on to bash Trump in a more rehearsed way than the talk show host would’ve liked, giving a rambling answer about how Trump was “degrading the norms and institutions and policies” around “women’s rights, voting rights and transgender rights” that her parents “had been working on” since “before she was born.”
“[A]s you noted, the president, I think, thrives on anxiety and insults. There's just always so much to talk about. Because I think, unfortunately, this administration is kind of the collision of cruelty and incompetence,” she added.
Colbert teased Clinton’s rehearsed answer, saying, “Does your entire family speak in paragraphs? Because that was a real beautiful paragraph,” he joked, before trying once again to get Clinton to curse at Trump.
“But like, it doesn't get any sharper, crisper than that at home? [chuckles] Nobody throws the glass of chardonnay at the TV ever?” he wondered.
After Clinton said tepidly that wouldn’t be “productive,” Colbert again begged for Clinton to show more emotion.
“It’s not really productive but it feels so good! (Laughter) C’mon, your family has some weaknesses. Show one! C’mon, be human here! What have you yelled about?” Colbert demanded, pounding his fists on the table.
“I mean, I just would rather go to a protest or convince more people to go vote in November!” Clinton shrugged, as the audience cheered.
Colbert isn’t the only one in the media to act as therapist instead of interviewer. On The View last May, Joy Behar asked Chelsea how her mom “coped” with the “devastating loss to the country.”
