EBOLA!!! It was on everyone’s lips (well, hopefully not) this week, providing much fodder for late night comedians, including The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. In addition, the midterm elections are just days away and Stephen Colbert of The Colbert Report couldn’t be more excited (yes, he could). Maher sounds off on the carelessness of the handling of the ebola situation in Texas and Last Week Tonight covers a story that is so depressing, John Oliver may actually have inspired HBO-watching citizens of the world to actually do something about it. Plus, a bonus this week on Ballot Banter, Slate’s editor-at-large David Plotz introduces a new podcast, Working, in which Stephen Colbert explains how he and his team make his Emmy winning show.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

Au Bon Panic

As stated in the introduction, ebola was scaring a lot of people this week thanks to some fear mongering coverage from the media, complete with loud headlines and a perplexing flow chart courtesy of ABC News.

Interview: Zach Galifianakis

The actor stops by The Daily Show to discuss his critically acclaimed new film Birdman. Galifianakis also talks about his experience visiting the White House to interview President Barack Obama for his segment on Between Two Ferns.

The Colbert Report

Midterms ‘014, Detour to Gridlock: An Exciting Thing That I Am Totally Interested in

Stephen is excited about the midterm elections. Like, SO excited. And interested! About as interested as the First Lady, who made a pretty big slip a few times while on the campaign trail.

Rick Scott and Charlie Crist’s Bizarre Debate

“Fangate” was a pretty big non-news story this week. For those unaware, “Fangate” occurred during a gubernatorial debate when Florida Governor Rick Scott refused to come on stage for almost ten minutes because challenger Charlie Crist had a small electric fan under his podium. Needless to say, Stephen has a lot of thoughts on the situation.

Real Time with Bill Maher

Monologue – October 17, 2014

This week’s episode of Real Time features Senator Kirsten Gillibrand discussing the importance of voting in the upcoming midterm elections, followed by Bill expressing his outrage over the careless handling of the ebola situation in Texas. Feminism and Sharia law are also discussed.

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

Translators

It’s become a bit of a joke every week when I write Ballot Banter that Last Week Tonight with John Oliver will, without a doubt, do something that everyone will love and I will lead with it in the headline the next day. This week, Last Week Tonight did something that perfectly encapsulates the entire reason for political satire in the first place. In the segment on the translators that the United States Military relies on for safety while conducting dangerous missions in the Middle East, Last Week Tonight exposed the danger that these translators face after the troops have left and how our current government is not doing a whole lot to protect them. Couple this news with the ongoing VA scandal and it has become apparent that our country has a very serious problem that Congress doesn’t seem too concerned with fixing. It’s a shame and hopefully the segment will rally voters to do something about it.

This morning Last Week Tonight tweeted links leading to additional information on assisting U.S.-affiliated refugees in Iraq and Afghanistan including thelistproject.org and refugeerights.org

Working: The “How Does Stephen Colbert Work?” Edition

Slate has introduced a new podcast called “Working,” where editor-at-large David Plotz speaks with people about their jobs and what they do all day. For his inaugural episode, Plotz sits down with Stephen Colbert and gets an exceptionally detailed look at what goes into making The Colbert Report just months before he ends his late-night series.

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What were some of your favorite moments from this week’s Ballot Banter? Let us know in the comments below.

Image: HBO