Joe Rogan started as a stand-up comedian out of Boston. Early in his career, he was also a TV star on Hardball and NewsRadio in the mid-90s. He then became a color commentator and interviewer for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
In 2001, Rogan landed the job of the widely successful Fear Factor. On December 24, 2009, Rogan started a free podcast with his friend Brian Redband that would become the Joe Rogan Experience. The JRE has consistently been one of the most popular podcasts over the past five years.
Rogan has expanded from discussing comedy, hunting, drugs, martial arts and UFC to deep dives into culture and politics in recent years. Flash forward to 2019 and there is a demand for Joe Rogan to host a presidential debate. Not bad for the former Man Show host.
This year, Rogan has interviewed Democratic presidential candidates Tulsi Gabbard, Andrew Yang and Bernie Sanders, where he asked about releasing government secrets about aliens.
People especially like Rogan’s podcast for political discussion because he allows his guests to talk without interruption and his long-form podcast format allows candidates to outline their policies in detail. This is a far different approach than the most recent 2020 Democratic primary debates that only gave candidates 60 seconds to respond to questions about their positions on sometimes extremely complex issues.
People were so enamored with Joe’s recent interviews with Democratic candidates that they want the comedian to host a 2020 presidential debate. People are so serious about it that a petition has been created to have Joe host a presidential debate. This upcoming election, Rogan has been very supportive of Democratic candidate Tulsi Gabbard, U.S. Representative for Hawaii’s 2nd congressional district since 2013. Gabbard has yet to qualify for the September Democrat primary debate.
A Change.org petition titled “Get Joe Rogan to Moderate the 2020 Presidential Debate” was created in May, but has recently gained traction because of Rogan’s recent political podcasts with the three Democratic candidates.
At the time of publication, there were 8,593 signatures with a goal of 10,000.
“We are petitioning for the Commission on the Presidential Debates to elect Joe Rogan as one of the moderators for the 2020 Presidential Debate,” the petition states.
The petition created by Ashton Stowell notes that “Joe Rogan is a widely respected host who has hosted interviews with politicians, economists, scientists, and other popular figures, who come from various walks of life.” The petition’s description adds that Rogan regularly talks to “progressive and conservative thinkers.”
“Joe Rogan is not registered under any political party and is well-known for having civil, productive, and interesting, conversations about political issues without partisan bias,” the petition says.
If Joe Rogan did host a presidential debate, you can count on him asking the candidates if they would legalize marijuana.