For a long time, Donald Trump has been the bogeyman of the left: People can’t stop making fun of his hair, his bluster, his rude comments. And for good reason — the guy is toxic and full of hate, and he stirs Americans up by appealing to despicable instincts like xenophobia He mocks the disabled. But lately, Cruz has begun to scare people: He’s so much more in control than Trump, and because he’s so clearly a performer, people wonder what happens when he pulls off his mask and proves he’s secretly a lizard. He’s also, whatever his faults, extremely smart, and as that becomes clearer, he becomes even more frightening. Polls be damned: Cruz has become the candidate most likely to make Democrats say they are moving to Canada.
Last night on “The Daily Show,” audiences got to see two things. First, the Cruz-is-worse-than-Trump notion has been ratified by a great comic bit. And, Trevor Noah is now showing he can do politics as well as anyone on late night. At least, when he’s on, as he was Monday night. His praise of Trump for “making Ted Cruz look like a d*ck” may be his best riff since he he compared Trump to an African president.