Colbert Should Have Phoned It In

Perhaps it actually might have been funny.

This is unbelievable. I've really never seen anything like it.

I'd agree - it was embarrassing to watch. Don't know as I have ever watched Comedy Central, let alone his show, or that I ever will, now. Especially on the heels of the cartoon cowardice they displayed. From what I have read around, I didn't take Colbert for a complete moron with little if any talent, class, style, or judgment at all.

Along with opening up opportunity for many new voices and talent, unfortunately the explosion in cable outlets also allows for some relatively untalented people to almost become sort of starz. The reality is, without a third tier network in need of content, I doubt that anyone would ever have heard of this guy at all.

Basically, it struck me as high school, or first year college level in terms of timing, topic and delivery. Yes, I know, a Lib will say I'm just expressing sour grapes because of the embarrassment Colbert presented for President Bush. But I am really being quite serious.

If many of the folks on these cable outlets had real first-rate talent, they'd either be with a larger network, or their shows would pull much larger numbers than they do. Nowadays, they get to make unfunny B movies until they're caught in some hotel room with their pants down and an underage boy or girl.

Update: See, this is how pathetic are too many on the Left. I would have been embarassed if someone did that to Clinton at one of his dinners. But it doesn't matter to certain moonbats. Anything that even appears to reflect poorly on Bush is solid gold to them. It didn't reflect poorly on Bush as he did a solid bit ealier in the event and comported himself with grace and dignity. But idiots like this clown at the link have no sense of class or appropriateness. It's why, if given the chance, they'd run this great country right into the ground. They are not intelligent, insightful, or mature enough to be trusted with anything.

See video through here.

Comments

[Phishpeaks]

Wow. Your self-righteous, humor-proof commentary of the Colbert WHCA speech is simultaneously frightening and a laugh-riot. Keep telling yourself that Colbert bombed, Dan. Maybe your gut will even start to believe it.

[Stivo]

Quote:"Along with opening up opportunity for many new voices and talent, unfortunately the explosion in cable outlets also allows for some relatively untalented people to almost become sort of starz. The reality is, without a third tier network in need of content, I doubt that anyone would ever have heard of this guy at all."

Funny that it just what they said about Fox years ago...

Quote:"I would have been embarassed if someone did that to Clinton at one of his dinners."

Imus '96... anyone? Talk about a selective memory....

The truth hurts only when you're not on the side of truth. As for his satire of the media, that was even more compelling as that is not as obvious to most as the blunders of government. And "Snow Job"... beautiful, on so many levels...

[Ari Consul]

Amen, Mr. Scott Hammer. Bless Stephen Colbert for his courage and panache. Too bad Bush won't get the message - as Colbert states, "He believes the same thing Wednesday that he believed on Monday, no matter what happened Tuesday." Let's hope the rest of the country gets the message and changes course before we sink with this Titanic of an administration.

[paul wallinger]

Mr. Riehl, you are just backing this criminal war in Iraq. Shame on you. Mr. Colbert's performance was very funny ( didn't your hear the laughs? ). The jokes are top-notch, the delivery is superb. Thank you, mr. Colbert, for your integrity. Mr. Riehl, you are a hypocrite.

[trrll]

"When I was growing up you never made fun of a president, regardless of who it was. He is our nations commander in chief."

So who was President when you were growing up? I used to have a copy of the "First Family" record album that made fun of JFK and the entire Kennedy family.

[T. Wolfe]

Cartoon cowardice? This speech was one of the bravest things I've seen from anyone in the media. Sir, you don't have even a fraction of Mr. Colbert's courage. Shame on you.

[Scott Hammer]

Gosh, could it be that perhaps Colbert was hitting a nerve, telling the truth? You stand behind a President who will go down in history as the most ineffectual and criminal of heads of states in decades. And someone sarcastically pointed out all of his faults in a hilarious way and you say he's not funny? Youv'e never watched anything except for a Bob Hope special, huh? Oh, and by the way, Colbert is hilarious, and uses, are you ready, sarcasm. Look it up if you don't understand it's meaning!

[Gary]

"When I Was Growing Up" is the great lie of Western society.

The world hasn't really changed all that much. People killed people. Bad parents drowned, raped, and sodomized their own children. People sacrificed themselves to kill others, to prove fidelity to their God.

The difference now is, we know about it. We have greater access to information and the ability to figure things out for ourselves. The trouble is, a lot of well-meaning folks have decided it's okay to 'mislead' the facts a bit, because the end justifies their means.

The liberal society we created by deciding we shouldn't have to pay taxes to England 200+ years ago continues to experience the same hipocracy it encountered at conception. Freedom for everyone (except those guys, why, they're practically /animals/). Say whatever you want (but if I don't like it, expect me to ruin you).

[victor]

It was reported that some of Colbert's remarks evoked "nervous laughter."

And with good reason.

Given the vindictive history of the Bush administration, I wouldn't put it past it to now be going over a video of the audience to determine just who laughed at what.

Those seen laughing at the 'wrong' things would be well advised to immediately start updating their resumes or packing for a trip on the Bush Special: http://calltodecision.com/ftct.htm

[v]

Someone did do that to Clinton at one of his dinners. His name was Imus. Colbert was brilliant, and you all want to say he was unfunny because who actually does like being made fun of, especially when deep down inside they know he's right?

[Dronio]

The President is not the Commander in Chief of our nation. He is the Cammander in Chief of our military. There is a difference, and that difference is why we can make fun of him.

[Mr. Man]

So you don't watch Comedy Central? That figures... you clearly have no sense of humor. Why is it that Bush-apologists can laugh at everything but themselves? ROFL...

The truth is that Colbert's performance was one of the smartest, edgiest, bravest and most scathingly funny performances of all time. It was a defining moment in American culture, seperating those who "get it" from those who don't. And God help those who don't - because they're history!

[Sara]

Hey SinCerely,

You said:

"I see the a##holes are out on this post.

Humor is humor. When I was growing up you never made fun of a president, regardless of who it was. He is our nations commander in chief."

I find it hilarious when a bonfide a##hole calls someone else an a##hole. According to pinheads like you, Teddy Roosevelt is an a##hole because he once said:

"Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does NOT mean to stand by the President or any other public official save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. It is patriotic to support him insofar as he efficiently serves the country. It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country."

So if your idea of patriotism is kissing the president's ass without question, have at it, but remember...as an American, if I want to say he sucks, that's just as much my right as an American to do so....regardless of what A##HOLES like you think!

[George]

Colbert was terrific and to the point! If you 'don't get' his humor, then perhaps you should stay away from Comedy Central and snuggle in with your TV on Nick at nite, where you can belly-laugh yourself to sleep with the safe humor of outlets like Petticoat Junction and The Lucy Show. Steve Colbert's brand of humor is beyond your grasp.

[Gary]

"Basically, it struck me as high school, or first year college level in terms of timing, topic and delivery."
It was brilliant... no one will ever be able to put into better words what is wrong with America and our willingness to follow anyone who makes us feel protected, even if we're actually worse off than we were before.
Pay attention to what he's saying about 1914/1941. There's a culture of "I don't want to believe this is true so I simply won't believe" that seems like Berlin before the Allies rolled in. Perhaps it hasn't hit someone close to you; perhaps you haven't suffered a great loss; or perhaps you have, and cannot on any level accept that we are in Iraq for the wrong reasons, the wrong way and with no hope of extrication.
Colbert just became a mirror for the Bush Administration's uglier parts last night. He didn't cover what is good, and moral, and kind. But what is ugly far outweighs what is beautiful, anyways.

[Rick]

Ah come on Dan, it's funny. Colbert makes his living poking fun at partisan types. Next go round he'll be making fun of the dems for Pete Sake. You have to admit that they are a joke, these partisan idiots with their "my rich white guy is better than your rich white guy". The real tragedy is that while these fools show their true mettle; those of who REALLY care about the country get run over by the monkeys.

[trutheau]

Oh, and, to the writer of this blog, "Don't know as I have ever watched Comedy Central" is probably not what you intend to write. Surely you mean, "Don't know as I have never watched Comedy Central." The former would mean that you watch Comedy Central for eternity. Ha, ha! Yes, you should; you may learn something, you uneducated moron! Ha, ha!
You suck! Bush sucks! (I'm undecided on who sucks more.) And Colbert rocks!

[trutheau]

Colbert was awesome. He threw it in the face of Bush and his missus, as you could see by the video; they were not amused. Rock on, Colbert.
Umm, the writer of this blog can't spell properly. (HELLO! Every American left behind!) "Bush as he did a solid bit ealier" should be "Bush, as he did a solid bit earlier." Although what that solid bit is, I'm not sure. A solid bit of crap, wo, diarrhea. What a fancy pants! Ha, ha!
Bush sucks! Colbert rocks!

[srgtick]

Basically, it struck me as high school, or first year college level in terms of timing, topic and delivery. Yes, I know, a Lib will say I'm just expressing sour grapes because of the embarrassment Colbert presented for President Bush. But I am really being quite serious.

Please go have sex with a woman. It will relax you. And if you call that high school, I thank our Lord Jesus Christ you're not a casting director.

[theurchin]

I see the assholes are out on this post.

Humor is humor. When I was growing up you never made fun of a president, regardless of who it was. He is our nations commander in chief.

SinCerely

Um, did you ever read newspapers from the Thomas Jefferson era. People have been making fun of their leaders for a few thousand years now. And I'm afraid it's you that doesn't get it. I'm guessing your no Lenny Bruce or Bill Hicks fan. Keep enjoying Leno and According to Jim.

[srgtick]

It watched both Colbert and Bush's performances last night. You'd have thought Bush was the professional comedy guy, and Colbert the uncomfortable politician.

You bet buddy. Colbert has no idea what he's doing. He's only been doing great comedy for 20 years and can't read his audience. Your lack of understanding is astounding. He knew he would bomb and had the balls to do it anyway.

[Vallone]

>When I was growing up you never made fun of a president, regardless
>of who it was. He is our nations commander in chief.

You grew up before Saturday Night Live? Mad magazine? Editorial cartoons? Satirizing the (office of) president is as old as the presidency itself.

[stickdog]

Click on my name to see the complete must-see Colbert video on youtube.com.

[mitch]

Oh, when I was growing up, blah, blah, blah...

Who gives a crap what things were like when you or I were growing up? When I was growing up, Nixon was in the White House. Great days, huh? Then Ford, then Carter, then Reagan. No matter what you may think of any of these guys, you have to agree they're all different. Any given person will regard at least one of them as something of a clown and/or buffoon. So that whole "we don't make fun of the president" line is pure, unrefined balderdash. Get over it.

George Walker Bush is a godawful president who deserves to be verbally savaged to his face. It's about time. Don't worry about poor little Georgie, though; he can hack it. (Oh, and for those of you so ungovernably obsessed, Clinton deserved it, too. He was a better president than GeeDub, but not by much, and he, too, lied big time--and made some dumb, dumb policy decisions--while he was president.)

Personally, I thought the funniest part was when Colbert made a series of obscene gestures at an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. Man's got some stones.

[peachimp]

Truthiness hurt? Kudos to Colbert for taking on the Prez and that 'liberal media'; wish those cowards would start reporting reality.

Bush really should have gotten Ferguson's "Bush"; now that guy is funny...but somehow I don't think he likes Bush's arse either.

Face it folks, the Emperor is naked and everyone keeps telling him how wonderful he looks. Too bad Mr. "Whiskey and Cocaine" didn't use a simple 12-step program....the first lady should have used it, too.....enablers are even sicker then the abusers or the 'deciders'.

[O Rly?]

just keep spewing your right wing crap - you and I both know that Colbert rightly ripped this pathetic administration apart on ten different fronts...

[john]

Colbert was funny, but his jabs hit too close to home. He has some big brass balls.

[Richard]

Personally, I thought he was funny.

But, who cares whether he was funny or not?
Just because he was hired to be the comic relief for the evening?

Does anyone think that the state of affairs, both domestically and internationally, that Bush and Company have brought our once proud and united land, is funny?

Colbert's got the biggest balls of anyone in this country.

He mocked those who needed a mocking. Our "liberal" press, our corrupt politicians, and our criminal commander in chief.

I watched judgement at Nurenburg last night on PBS after the speech.

I wonder when our day is going to come.

Fuck funny.

[hobo]

Schroeder, I've got to hand it to you. I began reading the post at the beginning and rolled and stumbled all the way to the end, little by little, struggling to add something intelligent, but when I got to your post, I felt like I had been delivered without moving. You said it all, thank you.

[Adam]

I'm no liberal, but I love The Colbert Report - I rarely miss it. But Stephen was way off last night. He kept forgetting his jokes and screwed up his timing badly. Don't judge his whole show because of his crappy performance here.

[Schroeder]

Regarding Colbert's performance . . .
It was indeed embarrassing to watch, for the people who his ironic jabs were aimed.
Irony (and "truthiness" to power) hurts, and he did it in the face of the people he was criticizing. The man is my hero.

Now let's all quit name calling and have a real debate, without all the ad hominem, strawman, and red herring attacks. That is, if the Bush-supporting bloggers have anything of substance to say concerning WMD's, Iraq, immigration, Executive abuse of power, corruption in Congress, CIA-leaks by the Executive branch, the national deficit, gas prices, Iran, growth of the federal government in our lives under the Patriot Act, and any other issues the Bush administration refuses to answer questions about.

[0b101010]

> When I was growing up you never made fun of a president, regardless
> of who it was. He is our nations commander in chief.

Why deify the position? How does being Commander in Chief justify leaving the person in charge unaccountable? The President is still human and one elected by the people to do an important job properly. Criticism should be encouraged by all citizens, not stifled as under an oppressive regime.

What's the point of spreading freedom if you don't promote it at home?

[Brian Martin]

Talk about being pathetic and having no sense of class.
"Nowadays, they get to make unfunny B movies until they're caught in some hotel room with their pants down and an underage boy or girl."
That's mature. And funny.

By the way, the sound you heard in the background of the video was people laughing. If you had any sense of humor or reality, you would have been laughing as well.

[SinCerely]

I see the assholes are out on this post.

Humor is humor. When I was growing up you never made fun of a president, regardless of who it was. He is our nations commander in chief.

Colbert is a small fraction of what is now called entertainment on television. His show ranks right up there with MTV. Shows geared to the not quite mature enough to get it group, or the 12 year olds left watching TV with no supervision.

I had a thousand and one blow job jokes about Clinton, I limited them to kitchen humor.

[Mary Rosh]

Dan, I don't know if you have the stature to complain about Comedy Central's "cartoon cowardice."

Here's a way to give yourself more stature and to have your voice resonate more when you talk about courage versus cowardice:

www.goarmy.com

[Crazy Politico]

It watched both Colbert and Bush's performances last night. You'd have thought Bush was the professional comedy guy, and Colbert the uncomfortable politician.

[Bryce]

The fun in Colbert is that some people don't get the joke. Did anyone see Stossell on his show. He got Stossell arguing that we do not need the FAA.

He really is not so much a liberal as someone who pokes fun at the extreme libertarian and christian view point that seems to dominate the Republican party. It is funny for the same reason that the blue collar guys are good at making fun of the left, and for the same reason that Dennis Miller used to be funny. I say used to because ever since MNF he has sucked.

[Saigon]

Colbert is funny on TV, not in a live setting. He sucked !!

[Utah]

Colbert pulled no punches, and I applaud him.

I thought he was very funny, and the reason whey people in the audience didn't laugh that much was because 'the truth' hurts.

[McStubbins]

Your intellectual dishonesty is as funny as Colbert was.

[Jim]

"I would have been embarassed if someone did that to Clinton at one of his dinners."

No you wouldn't have, Dan. You would have posted it here and laughed at Clinton. That's how weird your obsession is. Why is it weird? It's weird because all of this "conservative" rabble that you espouse doesn't really reflect who you are deep inside.

[26ANDCOUNTING]

Colbert didn't crash the party so take up any issues you have with the people who invited him. You act as if the people who invited Colbert never watched his show before.. They new exactly what they were getting and it was awesomely funny!! Colbert was HYSTERICAL!!

[Borg Gush]

Colbert was brilliant.

I'm not sure if your take on this is driven by a complete lack of humor or by a desparate need to spin, but you sure come off looking petty and clueless.

May I suggest emerging one in a while from the Riehl world and checking out the Real World?

[splashtc]

What was the rating for this event-given the topic.....I didn't watch it.

[Bryce]

Here is a full transcript of the opening:

Thank you ladies and gentlemen. Before I begin, I've been asked to make an announcement. Whoever parked 14 black bullet proof S.U.V.'S out front, could you please move them. They are blocking in 14 other black bulletproof S.U.V.'S and they need to get out.

Wow, wow, what an honor. The White House correspondents’ dinner. To just sit here, at the same table with my hero, George W. Bush, to be this close to the man. I feel like I'm dreaming. Somebody pinch me. You know what; I'm a pretty sound sleeper that may not be enough. Somebody shoot me in the face.

Is he really not here tonight? The one guy who could have helped. By the way, before I get started, if anybody needs anything at their tables, speak slowly and clearly on into your table numbers and somebody from the N.S.A. Will be right over with a cocktail. Mrs. Smith, ladies and gentlemen of the press corps,

Mr. President and first lady, my name is Stephen Colbert and it’s my privilege tonight to celebrate our president. He's no so different, he and I. We get it. We're not brain backs on the nerd patrol. We're not members of the fact (police). We go straight from the gut, right sir? That's where the truth lies, right down here in the gut. Do you know you have more nerve endings in your gut than you have in your head? You can look it up. I know some of you are going to say I did look it up, and that’s not true. That's but you looked it up in a book.

Next time look it up in your gut. I did. My gut tells me that's how our nervous system works. Every night on my show, the Colbert Report, I speak straight from the gut, ok? I give people the truth, unfiltered by rational argument. I call it the no fact zone. Fox news, I own the copyright on that term.

I'm a simple man with a simple mind, with a simple set of beliefs that I live by. Number one, I believe in America. I believe it exists.

My gut tells me I live there. I feel that it extends from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and I strongly believe it has 50 states. And I cannot wait to see how “The Washington Post" spins that one tomorrow. I believe in democracy. I believe democracy is our greatest export. At least until China figures out a way to stamp it out in plastic for three cents a unit.

In fact, ambassador, welcome, your great country makes our happy meals possible. I said it's a celebration. I believe the government that governs best is the government that governs least.

And by these standards, we have set up a fabulous government in Iraq. I believe in pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps. I believe it is possible -- I saw this guy do it once in Cirque du Soleil. It was magical. And though I am a committed Christian, I believe that everyone has the right to their own religion, be it Hindu, Jewish or Muslim. I believe our infinite paths to accepting Jesus Christ as your personal savior.

Ladies and gentlemen, I believe its yogurt. But I refuse to believe it’s not butter. Most of all I believe in this president.

Now, I know there are some polls out there saying this man has a 32% approval rating. But guys like us; we don't pay attention to the polls. We know that polls are just a collection of statistics that reflect what people are thinking in "reality." And reality has a well-known liberal bias.

So, Mr. President, pay no attention to the people that say the glass is half full. 32% means the glass -- it’s important to set up your jokes properly, sir. Sir, pay no attention to the people who say the glass is half empty, because 32% means its 2/3 empty. There's still some liquid in that glass is my point, but I wouldn’t drink it. The last third is usually backwash. Folks, my point are that I don’t believe this is a low point in this presidency. I believe it is just a lull, before a comeback.

I mean, it's like the movie “Rocky." The president is Rocky and Apollo Creed is everything else in the world. It's the 10th round. He's bloodied, his corner man, Mick, who in this case would be the vice president, and he’s yelling cut me, dick, cut me, and every time he falls she say stay down! Does he stay down? No. Like rocky he gets back up and in the end he -- actually loses in the first movie.

Ok. It doesn't matter. The point is the heart warming story of a man who was repeatedly bunched in the face -- punched in the face. So don't pay attention to the approval ratings that say 68% of Americans disapprove of the job this man is doing. I ask you this, does that not also logically mean that 68% approve of the job he's not doing? Think about it.

I haven’t. I stand by this man. I stand by this man because he stands for things. Not only for things, has he stood on things. Things like aircraft carriers and rubble and recently flooded city squares. And that sends a strong message, that no matter what happens to America, she will always rebound with the most powerfully staged photo ops in the world.

Now, there may be an energy crisis. This president has a very forward-thinking energy policy. Why do you think he's down on the ranch cutting that brush all the time? He's trying to create an alternative energy source. By 2008 we will have a mesquite powered car.

And I just like the guy. He's a good Joe. Obviously loves his wife, calls her his better half. And polls show America agrees. She's a true lady and a wonderful woman. But I just have one beef, ma’am.

I'm sorry, but this reading initiative. I've never been a fan of books. I don't trust them. They're all fact, no heart. I mean, they're elitist telling us what is or isn't true, what did or didn't happen. What's Britannica to tell me the Panama Canal was built in 1914? If I want to say it was built in 1941, that's my right as an American. I'm with the president, let history decide what did or did not happen.

The greatest thing about this man is he's steady. You know where he stands. He believes the same thing Wednesday, that he believed on Monday, no matter what happened Tuesday. Events can change, this man’s beliefs never will. And as excited as I am to be here with the president, I am appalled to be surrounded by the liberal media that is destroying America, with the exception of fox news.

Fox News gives you sides of every story, the president’s side and the vice president’s side.

>> But the rest of you, what are you thinking, reporting on N.S.A. Wiretapping or secret prisons in Eastern Europe? Those things are secret for a very important reason, they’re super depressing.

>> And if that's your goal, well, misery accomplished. Over the last five years you people were so good over tax cuts, W.M.D. Intelligence, the affect of global warms. We Americans didn't want to know, and you had the courtesy not to try to find out. Those were good times, as far as we knew.

But, listen, let's review the rules. Here's how it works. The president makes decisions, he’s the decider. The press secretary announces those decisions, and you people of the press type those decisions down. Make, announce, type. Put them through a spell check and go home. Get to know your family again. Make love to your wife. Write that novel you got kicking around in your head. You know the one about the intrepid Washington reporter with the courage to stand up to the administration. You know fiction.

>> Because really, what incentive do these people have to answer your questions, after all? I mean, nothing satisfies you. Everybody asks for personnel changes. So the white house has personnel changes. Then you write they're just rearranging the deck chairs on the titanic. First of all, that is a terrible metaphor. This ships not sinking.

This administration is soaring. If anything, they are rearranging the deck chairs on The Hindenburg...

>> Now, it's not all bad guys out there. Some heroes, Buckley, Kim Schieffer. By the way, Mr. President, thank you for agreeing to be to my show. I was just as shocked as everyone here is I promise you. How is Tuesday...tonight?

General Mosley, Air Force Chief of Staff. General Peter Pace. They still support Rumsfeld. You guys aren't retired yet, right? Right, they still support Rumsfeld. Look, by the way, I've got a theory about how to handle these retired generals causing all this trouble, don't let them retire. C'mon, we've got a stop loss program; let's use it on these guys. If you're strong enough to go on one of those pundit shows, you can stand on a bank of computers and order men into battle.

C'mon. Jesse Jackson is here. I had him on the show. Very interesting and challenging interview. You can ask him anything, but he’s going to say what he wants at the pace that he wants.

>> It's like boxing a glacier. Enjoy that metaphor, because your grandchildren will have no idea what a glacier is.

>> Justice Scalia’s here. May I be the first to say welcome, sir. You look fantastic. How are you?

>>
John McCain is here. John McCain - John McCain. What a maverick. Somebody find out what fork he used on his salad, because I guarantee you it wasn't a salad fork. He could have used a spoon. There's no predicting him. So wonderful to see you coming back into the republican fold. I have a summer house in South Carolina; look me up when you go to speak at bob Jones University. So glad you've seen the light.

Mayor Nagin is here from New Orleans, the chocolate city. Yeah, give it up. Mayor Nagin, I would like to welcome you to Washington, D.C., The chocolate city with a marshmallow center. >> And a graham cracker crust of corruption. It's a mala march is what I’m describing, a seasonal cookie.

Joe Wilson is here, the most famous husband since Dezi Arnez. And of course he brought along his lovely wife Valerie Plame. Oh, my god! >> Oh, what have I said? I am sorry, Mr. President, I meant to say he brought along his lovely wife, Pat Fitzgerald is not here tonight?

Dodged a bullet.

And we can't forget man of the hour, new press secretary, Tony Snow. Secret service name, snow job. What a hero, took the second toughest job in government, next to, of course, the ambassador to Iraq.

>> Got some big shoes to fill, Tony. Scott McClellan too say nothing like nobody else. McClellan, eager to retire. Really felt like he needed to spend more time with Andrew Card’s children. Mr. President, I wish you hadn't made the decision to quickly, sir.
I was vying for the job. I think I would have made a fabulous press secretary. I have nothing but contempt for these people. I know how to handle these clowns. In fact, sir, I brought along an audition tape and with your indulgence, I'd like to at least give it a shot. So, ladies and gentlemen, my press conference.

[Bryce]

Kevin:

Well said. I voted for Bush in 2004, and if I had been old enough to vote in 200 I probably would have voted for him then as well. As Colbert pointed out with Bush, be knows what he thinks on Monday, and he thinks the same thing on Wednesday, regardless of what happened Tuesday.

What people don't want to admit is that it is no longer a Democrat v. Republican thing as people who want to see America do well v. people who want to see Bush remebered well.

[Kevin Lyda]

If you could take a step away from the Bush Worshipping Altar, you might have noticed that Colbert skewered others besides than your idea of the greatest president ever. He went after Nagin (a Democrat) and he went after the entire White House Press Corp - not just gay Republican prostitute Jeff Gannon. Though in fairness he knocked him too. He also went after John McCain - but in going after McCain he again slammed the DC press.

I think the phrase "speak truth to power" is overused. In my opinion Colbert spoke uncomfortable facts to a bunch of privileged empty suits.

I laughed, yes, but in the end I found the performance sad. Why did we have to wait for a comedian to stand up and start saying things that should have been said by the responsible leaders of both parties.

I'm a Democrat and my party has it's own problems and culpabilities over the past 6 years. But that said I think most Democrats were caught off guard and expected better from Republicans. And if there's a key mistake that nearly every Democrat has made over that time, it's that mistake.

The Republican Party as it exists today is demonstrably unable to govern America in any responsible manner.

[Ron Atkinson]

I would have been embarassed if someone did that to Clinton at one of his dinners.

Liar.