Weekly Video Roundup

This week, our collection of Truthdig-flavored videos includes Jon Stewart grilling John Ashcroft on torture; an unbelievable before-and-after as a billboard model is transformed; and a satirical campaign ad so preposterous that the GOP won’t even run it.

No. 1: Let the Eagle Soar

Former Attorney General and amateur singer/songwriter John Ashcroft appeared Wednesday on “The Daily Show” to defend the president’s various abuses of power, including torture, which he characterized as stern questioning.

No. 2: ‘Real Beauty’ Ad Reveals Model Makeover

The Dove “Campaign for Real Beauty” outfit has posted a video showing the unbelievable makeup, styling and Photoshop efforts that go into making a model into a billboard beauty. It’s an effective indictment of how we view “beauty.”

Watch it

No. 3: Bush Dodges O’Reilly on Torture

The president refuses to answer Bill O’Reilly straight when the talk comes to torture.

The biggest guffaw: Bush speaks about engaging in a grand “intellectual debate” on terrorism.

Watch it

No. 4: The Campaign Ad the GOP Won’t Run

“Airplane” director David Zucker has produced a satirical ad criticizing the Clinton administration’s dealings with North Korea that is so inflammatory that GOP strategists have refused to use it in campaigns.

Watch it:

No. 5: Robert Scheer on Iraq After America

Truthdig Editor Robert Scheer looks at Elbaradei’s nuclear prophecy, Iraq after U.S. withdrawal and Stan Goff’s Truthdig piece “Reflecting on Rumsfeld.”

Watch it: