McCain’s Suspense – Best Analysis Comes from Letterman
Following the trend where comedians (Stewart, Colbert) tend to be the best at undoing all the spin and exposing the raw political reality, David Letterman’s reaction to McCain’s cancellation of his visit to the show provided the best analysis of the situation.
The Christian Science Monitor provided a good recap here – quite funny actually.
McCain cancels Letterman. Letterman rips McCain
By Jimmy Orr | 09.25.08
It’s one thing to irritate your opponent. It’s another to irritate a newsperson. But when you irritate the guy who’s made a living out of making people laugh for more than 26 years, any criticism may pack more of a punch.
Don’t misunderestimate David Letterman. Letterman’s been on the air since 1982. While his show has always been a ratings success, numerous wannabees crashed and burned, badly. Magic Johnson’s “The Magic Hour” and “The Chevy Chase show” are just two examples of heinous late night Hindenburgs. It’s a tough gig.
So when John McCain cancelled on Letterman – at the last minute – you could hardly expect that the comic would take it easy on him. He didn’t.
Monologue
First, he replaced McCain with what some of the Republican’s campaign might consider the anti-Christ – Keith Olbermann. That was after, however, his opening monologue which was, for McCain supporters, brutal.
“Maybe you’ve heard the big news,” Letterman began. “John McCain, Senator John McCain, Republican candidate for President, was supposed to be on the program tonight. Were you aware of that? But he had to cancel the show because he’s suspending his campaign because the economy is exploding. You know who John McCain is… he’s the running mate of Sarah Palin.
“So John McCain calls up and says I’m not going to be there kids, because everything is going to hell,” he continued. “But the funny thing is that no one told his vice presidential candidate, Sarah Palin, and honest to God, right now she’s still circling the theater in a white minivan. She’s gonna pick him up later…”
Palin
Discussing the possible postponement of Friday’s debate, Letterman speculated that Barack Obama would have to debate Regis Philbin and had much fun at running mate Sarah Palin’s expense.
“She was at the General Assembly and someone said to her, “Oh, look over there. That’s the President of Georgia,” And she said, “Wow, Jimmy Carter.” And then she said, “Boy, I hope I get to meet Queen Latifah.”
Economy
Letterman got plenty of laughs from the usual targets – celebrities and current affairs. When discussing the shaky economy, Letterman said he wasn’t concerned.
“I’ve got all my money in second-hand FEMA trailers,” he said. “I’m not worried about the economy, I’ve got all my money in an alpaca ranch. I’ve got all my money in Rosie O’Donnell aftershave.”
A serious Dave?
But it wasn’t all laughs for Letterman. He wasn’t happy with the cancellation and it was apparent in his remarks. After all, the two go back. McCain has appeared on the Letterman show 12 times.
“So now I wonder if he’ll ever come back,” he said. “Do you think he’ll come back? A hero. An honest-to-God hero. An American hero. Maybe the only actual hero I know. I’ve met the man. I know the guy. So I’m more than a little disappointed by this behavior. ‘We’re suspending the campaign.’ Are we suspending it because there’s an economic crisis or because the poll numbers are sliding?”
Another twist
Letterman had yet another way to lampoon McCain when he found out that McCain was still in New York — not flying to Washington. In fact, McCain was talking to Katie Couric.
With the video feed of McCain and Couric displayed for all to see, Letterman quipped, “He doesn’t seem to be racing to the airport, does he? Hey, John, I got a question! You need a ride to the airport?”
Sorry Dave
As for the McCain team, they apologized for the last-minute cancellation. On the Today Show, a McCain spokesperson said it “wasn’t a night for comedy.”
“We deeply regret offending Mr. Letterman, but our candidate’s priority at this moment is to focus on this crisis,” Nicolle Wallace said.
Top Ten
Of course it wouldn’t be a David Letterman show without a “Top Ten List.” And last night’s expectedly was aimed at John McCain.
The Top Ten Questions People are Asking The John McCain Campaign
10. “I just contributed to your campaign – how do I get a refund?
9. “It’s Sarah Palin – does this mean I’m pars’dent?”
8. “Can’t you solve this by selling some of your houses?”
7. “This is Clay Aiken. Is McCain single?”
6. “Do you still think the fundamentals of our economy are strong, Genius?”
5. “Are you doing all of this just to get out of going on Letterman?”
4. “What would Matlock do?”
3. “Hillary here – my schedule is free Friday night.”
2. “Is this just an excuse to catch up on napping?”
1. “This is President Bush – what’s all this trouble with the economy?”
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comments
why should dave the dumbazz care? he’s rich! you puppets og the media and hollywood would worship the devil if there was sock value in it. the reality is that McCain done the right thing. The only reason Obama didn’t want to be there was that if he votes “not present” again or doesn’t vote at all, like the war on Iraq, then he would not be held accountable wheter the bailout suceeds or fails. The fact is that Obama has set a precedent for doing this kind of stuff by voting not present 136 times; i thin he is spineless, and will kowtow to foreign leaders when the heat is on. Likewise, David Dumbazz Letterman, doesn’t care if the general public starves as long as his ratings are up. The republicans don’t support this bailout, because it borders on socialitic ideas. The only people that look like azzes in my opinion are Obama and Dave, who is his knees at Obama’s feet anyhow.
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