Entertainment

Samantha Bee Will Interview President Obama

by Loretta Donelan

Continuing his fall 2016 comedy tour, President Barack Obama will be on Full Frontal With Samantha Bee on Monday, Oct. 31. According to the announcement, the late night host and current president will cover "a range of topics, from the 44th president's legacy to the challenges the new Commander in Chief will face when she takes office in January. (Yes, 'she.' Spoiler alert.)" I'm pretty sure Monday's Full Frontal interview will be great, and not just because both interviewer and interviewee are totally fed up with the 2016 election. Instead, it's because Bee and Obama have a similarly dry and pointed comedic sensibility.

Obama recently appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live, where he read mean tweets about himself and proved once again that he is the funniest U.S. president we can remember. The whole segment is hilarious, but the boldest moment comes when he reads and responds to a mean tweet from Donald Trump himself. As for Bee, the only female late night host has interviewed many important political figures in her show's critically acclaimed first season, from Madeleine Albright to Gary Johnson.

It's an important time for both Bee and Obama. The president is rapidly approaching the end of his term and is actively campaigning for democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Full Frontal is deep into an excellent season of election coverage, frequently making headlines for its sharp and no-holds-barred political commentary. In fact, it seems to me that Samantha Bee and Obama have taken on similarly reckless positions in the election of 2016. Obama has made his contempt for Donald Trump clear and solidified his reputation as America's goofy Dad with nothing to lose, while Bee has never shied away from hilariously criticizing her fellow hosts, the lack of women in her field, and the current political climate.

Obama has frequently proven to have great comedic timing, and his appearance on Between Two Ferns reminds me of Bee's interview with libertarian candidate Gary Johnson: unrelenting, no smiles, hilarious. I can imagine Monday's Full Frontal turning into more of a comedy duo performance than an interview.

The description of the upcoming interview left what Obama and Bee will actually discuss pretty ambiguous. I hope Obama will be able to be candid about the election and the candidates, and I'm also interested in finding out what Obama's plans for post-presidential life are. I'm definitely going to tune in to Full Frontal on Monday to find out.