Lewis Black: It's the End of an Empire sale and everything must go

David Edwards and Muriel Kane

Published: Wednesday July 23, 2008





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Comedian Lewis Black is dismayed by the number of American landmarks that have been falling into foreign hands due to the country's economic problems. In a segment on Tuesday's Daily Show, Black complained that "America's gone from a beacon of hope to a beacon of insane deals. It's the End of an Empire sale -- and everything must go!"

"We're so hard up for cash, we're dismantling America and selling it for scrap," Black lamented. "The Chrysler Building -- going once, going twice, sold. Abu Dhabi bought the skyscraper for $800 million."

As his second example, Black pointed out that "this $95 million oceanfront mansion once owned by Donald Trump was just bought by a Russian fertilizer mogul" -- who may tear it down to build something else. "Wow," Black exclaimed. "Trump's design esthetic is even tacky to a guy who sells shit for a living!"

"It's a little sad that Americans don't come through and buy things like this," was Trump's own comment on the sale.

"Oh, we can buy homes like that," Black noted. "We just can't pay for them."

Black finally bemoaned the sale of Anheuser-Bush to a Belgian brewer. "How bad is the economy when we're being bought out by Big Waffle?" he wailed.

This video is from Comedy Central's The Daily Show, broadcast July 22, 2008.



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