The Daily Show: January 17, 2007 - VIDEO

The past few weeks haven't been so great for dictators. Saddam Hussein was executed, and Fidel Castro got an artificial anus. I don't think Jon needed to tell any jokes about it. The audience seemed to enjoy the set-up alone quite a bit. C'mon! It's an artificial anus!

"'08ama": Barack Obama has taken one step closer to joining the 2008 presidential race. I loved Jon Stewart's little fanboy freak-out. That moment was only topped by the Chocolate Chip Pancakes & Sausage on a Stick. Oh man.

Resident Expert John Hodgman stopped by to talk about the new season of American Idol. This wasn't one of Hodgman's best appearances, but I liked the clip of the Elephant Man singing "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" and the idea of Hodgman, Stephen Hawking ("Bloom, you are an expert at sucking"), and Flavor Flav in the same room. I noticed that on America's Next Top TV Expert, Hodgman had, along with the mustard, his book, The Areas of my Expertise. Sneaky, sneaky.

"Rob Riggle's Local Heroes": In Wisconsin, a terribly unqualified man tried to run for sheriff. In an attempt to gain the votes of the citizens, he changed his name to Andy Griffith, only to receive an angry little letter from the real Andy's attorney. This segment didn't get on my nerves, so I suppose that means it was an okay Riggle piece.

The night's guest was Jerry Rice, promoting his new book Go Long!: My Journey Beyond the Game and the Fame. There wasn't anything specifically about the book, but a lot of general sports talk and discussion about Rice's career.

Jon/Stephen: None. Stephen's preparing for Papa Bear, remember? Moment of Zen: Dennis Kucinich sang "Sixteen Tons" at Reverend Jesse Jackson's luncheon. You've gotta see it: