SOME MAY remember Jon Stewart as the host of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show for many years, including 2001. That late-night comedy news program with a left-leaning slant still pokes fun at political headlines and other news, even if Mr. Stewart has “retired” from it. And it’s no secret he was and continues to be a fairly liberal guy.
But he’s been working toward an admirable goal for years, and continues fighting on behalf of forgotten heroes.
Like 8.6 million others, he’s a New Yorker, and he vividly remembers the 9/11 attacks. Now that hundreds of first responders who rushed in to pull survivors from the rubble on that fateful day are sick and dying of cancer and other terrible illnesses, he has become their voice for Washington to hear.
Year after year, he travels to speak to Congress with sick and affected responders, urging lawmakers to replenish the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, which helps pay for medical treatments these heroes need. The number of responders able to travel with him seems to grow smaller each time because victims get too sick to travel, or succumb to their afflictions. But he hasn’t stopped.
We may not have always agreed with his positions when Mr. Stewart was on the air, but his determination to see that these heroes aren’t forgotten is commendable. And his voice to Congress is fierce, reminding them that the same heroes these people cheer on Twitter every Sept. 11 are still here, still fighting for their lives and still deserving of funding for care.