Stewart, Colbert to hold rallies in Washington D.C.

Glenn Beck came to Washington, D.C., last month to "restore honor." Jon Stewart hopes to "restore sanity" when he gets to the capital next month.

The Comedy Central host announced Thursday night that he will hold a rally at the National Mall on Oct. 30, capping a week of "Daily Show" broadcasts from Washington.

Stewart says he's not looking for the seasoned rallygoer who may flock to hyperpolitical gatherings carrying a homemade Obama-is-Hitler — or Bush-is-Hitler — sign. Instead, Stewart described the event as a "million moderate march" and a "clarion call for rationality" — in other words, an antidote to the overheated protests on the left and right.

[Photos: The massive crowd at Glenn Beck's August rally]

"You may be asking yourself, right now, sitting at home, but am I the right type of person to go to this rally," said Stewart. "The fact that you would even stop to ask yourself that question, as opposed to just, let's say, jumping up, grabbing the nearest stack of burnable holy books, strapping on a diaper and just pointing your car toward D.C. — that means I think you might just be right for it."

Stewart also promised to have premade signs for all the busy, non-conspiracy-minded attendees who don't have time to create their own. One possibility: "9/11 Was An Outside Job." And Stewart closed the segment with another banner that he feels captures the rally's theme: "Take It Down A Notch For America." (You can watch Stewart's announcement below.)

But what's one major Washington rally without a counter-rally? Beck had Al Sharpton and other civil rights leaders holding their own event as he descended upon the capital. Stewart has his own (pretend) nemesis: Stephen Colbert.

[Photos: Jon Stewart celebrates award after award]

"Shame on you Jon Stewart," Colbert said later on his own show. "America cannot afford a rally to restore sanity in the middle of a recession. Did you even consider how many panic-related jobs that might cost us in the fear-industrial complex?"

Colbert, in an attempt to fight Stewart's "creeping reasonableness" and "restore truthiness," announced a competing event on October 30: the "March to Keep Fear Alive." You can watch Colbert's announcement below.

(Photo: AP/ Mark J. Terrill, file)

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