HBO’s John Oliver was greatly upset with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Sunday’s Last Week Tonight for using a fictional family as his ideal of a swing voter. This family, known as the Baileys, is a center-right-ish middle class, which for Oliver means that Democrats risk losing their left-wing base. To further attack Schumer, Oliver brought in actors Bobby Moynihan and Edi Patterson to portray this couple; only now they were Oliver’s caricature of conservatives: cartoonishly hypocritical, judgmental, conspiratorial, supportive of political violence, and sexually aroused by January 6.
Oliver teed up the skit by addressing Schumer, “What I am saying is, by tailoring your policies so heavily to them, you are pulling yourself to the right, and in doing so, could be alienating not only the rest of your base, but new voters looking for a party that speaks for them. So, Senator Schumer: at least when it comes to formulating policy, it might be time to break up with the Baileys. Which really shouldn't be that hard to do, given politically, it seems they've already broken up with you. And I know you are not going to listen to me—after all, I'm not a fictional couple from Long Island. But luckily, we managed to track down the Baileys, and they have a special message just for you.”
In the skit, Moynihan, who played the role of Joe Bailey, declared, “You need to talk to some other people because I know you think you can win us over, I mean us specifically, but I've got to tell you, there is no way that's happening… We’re Republicans, Chuck.”
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