Democrats' "Colbert" Retort

Democratic Caucus chairman Rahm Emmanuel has instructed Democratic Congressmen to avoid “The Colbert Report” lest they find themselves in an embarrassing situation they can’t wriggle themselves out of.

Republicans avoid the show anyway, realizing Colbert will make them look bad (an exception was a Georgia Congressman who had entered a bill ordering the Ten Commandments be displayed in government buildings; when Colbert asked him to list the Ten Commandments, the guy came up stone-cold empty). Democrats, understanding that Colbert’s a liberal in conservative’s clothing, good-naturedly appear, but he usually makes them look silly, anyway.

Of course, some of the Congressmen clearly are playing along and only an idiot would call them on their appearance. When Colbert asked Florida Congressman Robert Wexler to finish the sentence “I snort cocaine because,” Wexler didn’t hesitate in replying, “Because it’s fun.” (Of course, he was running unopposed in his district, so there was no one around to make an issue out of his joke.) More recently, Kentucky representative John Yarmuth, asked by Colbert to debate him on an issue, happily argued for throwing kittens in wood chippers when Colbert boldly took a stance against the practice.

We should all sincerely hope that Democrats ignore Emmanuel on this one. And maybe, just maybe, eventually one of them might get the upper hand on Mr. Colbert. But probably not.