Sunday was a big night for HBO’s John Oliver. In addition to his regular show, the Last Week Tonight host was also the subject of a gushing profile from CBS’s Bill Whitaker on 60 Minutes. Whitaker fawned over Oliver’s “unique take on politics,” the “twinkle in his eye,” his “mischievous smile,” and “takedown” of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, where Oliver tried to bribe Thomas off the Court.
After running through Oliver’s early career, Whitaker declared how, “He decided to stop going for the easy laughs.”
Oliver then recalled how, “When I started off, I just wanted to make people laugh. Then I wanted to make people laugh about things I cared about, and, for me, that was politics in its broadest form.”
A captivated Whitaker added, “And it worked. On his weekly HBO show taped in New York City, his unique take on politics and intrinsic problems is what sets him apart from just about every other comedian on TV… He delights in revealing the absurdity in the obscure, always, we noticed, with a twinkle in his eye and a mischievous smile.”
By “unique,” Whitaker means that unlike other comedy show hosts who usually do a 10-15-minute monologue, often on several subjects, followed by a couple of sit-down interviews with one or two guests, Oliver spends around 40 minutes giving a Rachel Maddow-like address on one or just a few topics, but with more profanity.
As it was, Whitaker then told Oliver that, “You tackle topics, hospice care, bail reform, organ donations. It’s not your typical comedy fare.”
Oliver concurred, “No. I know those don’t sound funny. It’s because fundamentally they’re not. But there are funny things about how entrenched some of those problems are, and sometimes I think comedy is the best, most illuminating way to talk about them.”
Whitaker chose his topics carefully. Sure, when Oliver decides to bake the world’s largest cake in an attempt to make fun of the former dictator of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, he can be called “unique.” When he does the same old liberalism as everyone else on the current late night comedy roster, he isn’t.
But, it was that same old liberalism that Whitaker also wanted to highlight, “it’s his takedowns that seem to delight him the most… He pounced on news reports that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas had not disclosed lavish gifts from rich friends and a generous deal on his prized motor coach.”
As clips from Oliver’s February 18, 2024, episode were intermixed with his narration, Whitaker continued, “He offered Thomas a new motor coach plus $1 million a year out of his own pocket… if Thomas would resign from the Supreme Court.”
After briefly issuing a disclaimer that “Thomas’s lawyer says the justice met the terms of the RV agreement and any other omissions were strictly inadvertent,” Whitaker told Oliver that “You seem to have few limits on how far you’ll go to get a laugh.”
Oliver claimed that “the main point was saying there are not enough guardrails on people giving the money. I can prove that to you by offering this guy a million dollars a year to get the [bleep] off the Supreme Court. That should be a crime. The very fact that it isn’t is a problem, and that felt like the most visceral way to prove that fact.”
In reality, Oliver got away with it because everyone knew he wasn’t literally trying to bribe Thomas, just like nothing happened to Thomas because being friends with Harlan Crow isn’t a crime.
Here is a transcript for the February 23 show:
CBS 60 Minutes
2/23/2025
7:42 PM and
BILL WHITAKER: He decided to stop going for the easy laughs.
JOHN OLIVER: When I started off, I just wanted to make people laugh. Then I wanted to make people laugh about things I cared about, and, for me, that was politics in its broadest form.
WHITAKER: Did it feel like a risk at the time?
OLIVER: It felt like a risk worth taking.
WHITAKER: And it worked. On his weekly HBO show taped in New York City, his unique take on politics and intrinsic problems is what sets him apart from just about every other comedian on TV.
OLIVER [FEBRUARY 16, 2025]: It looks to me like you are striking out looking right now.
WHITAKER: He delights in revealing the absurdity in the obscure, always, we noticed, with a twinkle in his eye and a mischievous smile.
OLIVER [JULY 27, 2014]: Our main story tonight is the threat of nuclear annihilation.
WHITAKER: You tackle topics, hospice care, bail reform, organ donations. It’s not your typical comedy fare.
OLIVER: No. I know those don’t sound funny. It’s because fundamentally they’re not. But there are funny things about how entrenched some of those problems are, and sometimes I think comedy is the best, most illuminating way to talk about them.
…
WHITAKER: But it’s his takedowns that seem to delight him the most.
OLIVER [FEBRUARY 18, 2024]: Because Thomas is now at the heart of the –
WHITAKER: He pounced on news reports that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas had not disclosed lavish gifts from rich friends and a generous deal on his prized motor coach.
OLIVER [FEBRUARY 18, 2024]: Look at this beauty, Clarence.
WHITAKER: He offered Thomas a new motor coach plus $1 million a year out of his own pocket–
OLIVER [FEBRUARY 18, 2024]: Just sign.
WHITAKER: — if Thomas would resign from the Supreme Court.
OLIVER [FEBRUARY 18, 2024]: This is not a joke.
WHITAKER: Thomas’s lawyer says the justice met the terms of the RV agreement and any other omissions were strictly inadvertent.
You seem to have few limits on how far you’ll go to get a laugh.
OLIVER: Yeah, with Clarence Thomas, the main point was saying there are not enough guardrails on people giving the money. I can prove that to you by offering this guy a million dollars a year to get the [bleep] off the Supreme Court. That should be a crime. The very fact that it isn’t is a problem, and that felt like the most visceral way to prove that fact.
WHITAKER: Facts are fundamental to Oliver’s humor.
OLIVER [OCTOBER 27, 2024]: We filed a Freedom of Information Act request.
WHITAKER: His deep dives into serious topics are painstakingly crafted.
