Video at Empire Burlesque

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HO.
LY.
SHIT.

Relentless.

(swoon)

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There are but two words that went through my head when I got done reading that transcript.

"Owned, bitch."

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What a brilliant and relentless mind! He just wouldn't let go! What presence! I'm joyously flabbergasted. Never to be forgotten.

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I'll bet the event coordinator for this dinner has been taken to an undisclosed location to prevent his or her being rendered to an even more undisclosed location.

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http://www.thankyoustephencolbert.org/

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The premise of this get-together is a "roast"; make fun of others, make fun of yourself. Either way it's fun to watch

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This was excellent. It was really nice to see somone acually call the press for what they are, a bunch of low lives. The critical point was the administration but the disgrace is the US press who let this criminal gang do what they are doing for almost 5 years without asking any critical question.

Stories like the one bellow:

How Beltway-itis Rots Reporters Brains & Distorts America's Political Debate

Pillar to press: Don't get fooled again

And many other similar stories shows that the press was not only quiet about the criminal act of Bush and his gang, but actively supported and blow up the non-stories and lies of this administration.

I agree 100% with the man when he refers to the press. How true!

2 thumbs up for a great comedian, hope to see some people actually show some courage like him,

/Farhad Abdolian

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You can see the whole event on C-Spans web along with some very interesting issues.

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Saw it live. Unforgettable. And PRICELESS!
Can you spell I-C-Y- S-M-I-L-E-S? (I knew you could.)

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Regardless of what you feel about Colbert's routine, what he did was in poor taste. The Correspondents Dinner prides itself on making the evening a safe venue for all, and the humor is supposed to stay self-deprecating. Attacking one's opponents in this forum is considered bad manners. It's like accepting an invitation for dinner at the home of someone you don't like, and instead of eating your dinner, dumping the food right on their floor. It's not illegal, and you'll get your point across -- it's just not appropriate behavior.

Of course, he's free to do so.. and they're free not to invite him back. Which is too bad, because A) I think he's usually pretty funny, and they could easily have staged that video on the Daily Show, and B) the left-side of things will say that he wasn't invited back because he was anti-Bush, which just isn't true.

Anyway, it's not like Bush hasn't heard any of those criticisms before. And do you people really get off on attacking people you don't agree with?

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Colbert's speech is exactly what anyone familiar with his show would expect from him. The fact that he was chosen to be the main speaker and that Bush accepted the invitation anyway exposes once again how little this administration is paying attention to anything. That is truly the scariest part. I would give Bush credit for having the courage to sit on a stage with Colbert and take the stinging satire, but I doubt Bush even knew who colbert or jon stewart were before this night.

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I've been a fan of Steve Colbert for quite some time. But, I think I just fell in love with him. (smile) Thank goodness for someone who will do what he and Jon Steward and Bill Maher do... Thanks Guys !!!!!!!!!!!!! But, especially Steven Colbert !!!

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You fight to win. And we're privileged to have Mr. Colbert on our side. We should follow his excellent example, and ignore the grandmas who tell us that kicking ass involves cards, flowers and olive branches. You have to break some eggs to break tyranny. And nothing less than tyranny has taken nearly complete control of America. Let's break some fucking eggs!

Steven Wanzell
artist/activist/ex-American/user of "distasteful" words
www.wanzellarts.com.ar

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America is fighting for it's life, or it is losing it. We, as a culture have caused all this, by selfishly sucking up to the corporate Empire on broken promises of owning a piece of it.

Yes, we've been foolish, and selfish. If we can face that, and forgive ourselves, we can evolve into a truly respectable society.

And if we truly believe in freedom, justice, and human dignity for ALL, ironically, we'll have to smash both the freedom and dignity of the Empire. Not tasteful, restrained, lovely or polished; this thing called revolution.

Steven Wanzell
artist/activist/ex-American
www.wanzellarts.com.ar

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See subject

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i'm all for tearing the bush administration down, lord knows they've done more than enough to deserve it. whatever you think of his policies, you can't deny at this point that they've done far more to harm this country than help it.

but when either party starts talking about "victory" in partisan terms, as some on this forum have done, i feel sick. our government was not created to be a platform for full-grown third graders to bicker over who has control over a larger part of the playground. our government was formed upon the idea that people with a wide range of ideas could discuss these ideas in open forum, and come to decisions based upon what is best for the country.

i love colbert. i love stewart. i'll watch anything and everything either of those men touch with glee and thanksgiving. but part of the reason i love them is that they rip on everyone who deserves it, which, at this moment, is everyone in politics.

it is perhaps cliche to bring it up, but our first president warned against the ills of partisanship in his farewell address:

"To the efficacy and permanency of your union a government for the whole is indispensable. No alliances, however strict, between the parts can be an adequate substitute. They must inevitably experience the infractions and interruptions which all alliances in all times have experienced...

There is an opinion that parties in free countries are useful checks upon the administration of the government, and serve to keep alive the spirit of liberty. This within certain limits is probably true; and in governments of a monarchical cast patriotism may look with indulgence, if not with favor, upon the spirit of party. But in those of the popular character, in governments purely elective, it is a spirit not to be encouraged. From their natural tendency it is certain there will always be enough of that spirit for every salutary purpose; and there being constant danger of excess, the effort ought to be by force of public opinion to mitigate and assuage it. A fire not to be quenched, it demands a uniform vigilance to prevent its bursting into a flame, lest, instead of warming, it should consume.

It is important, likewise, that the habits of thinking in a free country should inspire caution in those intrusted with its administration to confine themselves within their respective constitutional spheres, avoiding in the exercise of the powers of one department to encroach upon another. The spirit of encroachment tends to consolidate the powers of all the departments in one, and thus to create, whatever the form of government, a real despotism."

don't pray for a democratic victory. pray for a shred of cooperation.

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how great is Stephen??? to have the balls to say everything that needed to be said to Dubya right to his face!! i think he,jon stewart and bill maher are the most brilliant men on the planet! wonder who was dumb enough to hire him to do this show? once again shows us how smart our fake president is!!

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So, Bush had to suffer through some minor discomfort....poor baby! For six years we've been lied to, ignored, spoken to like idiots, strategically robbed of our civil liberties, had atrocities commited in our name, had elected officials (many of whom are the benefactors of a corrupt election system) that have been sold to the highest bidding corporations - at the detriment of the people - paying for it with their jobs, healthcare, the environment, international respect, and the basic principles that America was founded on. Wrapped in the flag, they attempt to mask themselves and their greedy power grab as the honorable actions of patriots. The Bush PR machine, and it's various spin doctors have gotten so far away from reality, that they actually believe the b.s. they've been pushing on the rest of us. For six years I've been sickened, ashamed, outraged, infuriated, insulted, disgusted, astonished, and mortified by the words, actions, and utter arrogance of Bush and his cohorts. Reeling in the disbelief that they continue to get away with it, that the people continue to ALLOW them to get away with it. With each new revelation, feeling sure that this will be the one that finally stops them in their tracks. The outrage that so many Americans find themselves steeped in goes well beyond discomfort. FINALLY, Bush gets a little taste of what it feels like to be subjected to something that makes your stomach turn, with no way to stop to it, and no shelter in sight to escape the shitstorm you suddenly find yourself in the middle of. Maybe it was only a few minutes, a fraction of a percent of what many have been feeling for six years now, but I feel absolutely no shame in experiencing such joy in his discomfort. Thanks to Colbert, Bush has at least some idea of just how much he is disliked among the citizens he claims to represent. Since he doesn't read papers, pay attention to poll numbers, or watch anything but Fox News - this is something he may not otherwise be aware of. Perhaps it will help to deflate the enormous ego he so arrogantly and shamelessly displays on a regular basis. Hopefully, this is just the first ripple in a looming tidal wave of truthiness.

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The White House Correspondent's Dinner is intended to make the press feel that they are of the same class and same social circle as people like President Bush and the various celebrities in attendance. There is pro-Administration propaganda at the very heart of the concept of this event. Even the normal light-hearted and supposedly self-deprecating humor come with a price tag. The press will never be unbiased about something which they've experienced over a jovial dinner as a "member of the club." They'll never look at an issue the same way after they've seen the president chuckle and poke fun at himself. The whole idea that the press and the Administration would break bread together is suspect. The notion that Colbert's satire was the equivalent of insulting the host of a dinner party is naive beyond belief. Finally someone has injected a dose of reality into a staged event that has negative results for all of us.

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I am I missing something? I would love to see a high res version out there.

There's nothing but a link to another site.

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The US, betrayed by a sycophant media that would leave a Goebbels salivating; misinformed on a daily basis by a corporate capitalist power structure advised by the likes of Rupert Murdock; degraded, lied to, and reduced to puppetry by the worst President in US history; and in the midst of an unprovoked, senseless, and costly war which has left its economy and reputation in a shambles -- has a new hero.
Steven Colbert got to say what millions have already said; and he said it in the presence of the people who currently profit from all of this-from ex CIA agent Valeria Plame--(think of THAT book contract) to the generals who watch their people die daily.....;to the Congresspersons and Senatorialiars.
Colbert-you're now the most famous televised satirical episode since Nixon said:"I am not a crook."

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If you can't view it here, the entire Colbert act can be seen at http://video.freevideoblog.com/video/ AAC7FA18-2DDC-4D3E-B1BB-9D6CBD83E27F.htm [after you copy and paste, delete the space after "video/" and before "AAC..." and then you have the right address.] It's close to a half-hour, including Colbert's Helen Thomas video just before he finishes up.

I second the comment about the seduction of this event, making the WH Press Corps feel like they're part of a club. Kudos to Colbert, and maybe his satire will wake up a few of the other reporters who will "get" it and start turning in their (figurative) membership cards.

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Stephen Colbert, Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgeral, Joseph Wilson and all of those in government who refused to be corrupted - we owe them so much. What is really very, very, scary is that if the Bush administration wins the Garcetti v. Ceballos case to soon be decided by the Supreme Court, whistleblowers will no longer be protected by the First Amendment if they protest corrupt or illegal government activities.

This case was heard by the Supreme Court before Justice O'Connor retired, but, for some mysterious and unexplained reason, it was re-heard after Justice Alito was appointed by Bush, and Alito’s remarks during the hearing were not sympathetic to whistleblowers. If the Bush administration wins this case, forget about democracy or morality in the United States government and prepare to move to another planet, because this one's not going to be safe to live on.

Under Bush we are losing all of our constitutional protections. A government that is not accountable to the people it serves and that can fire employees for protesting illegal or corrupt practices is not a democracy and it’s not what our friends and relatives are fighting and dying for in Iraq. We need the watchdogs and whistleblowers, especially with the Bush administration, which is all about propaganda, intimidation, coercion and corruption.

As you can see from Mr. Colbert’s brilliant presentation, don’t expect great things from the press or expect them to focus on critical liberty issues. Please read about it and publicize your opinion to let the Supreme Court know we’re watching before it’s too late.

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Maybe the White House Press Corps lapdogs didn't get it, but a bunch of us teachers down in Georgia did. I suspect they'd have to get out of the Beltway for the buzz of self-importance to wear off.

What if everyone told the truth to Bush? Even for one day a week - Imagine: "Yes, sir, Sean Wilentz is right, you are likely to be remembered as the worst president in US history." "There have always been many of us who knew from the beginning that the war was based on some bizarre wish to outdo dad (who's looking better and better in comparison, BTW)." "While it might be more reassuring if you could actually verbalize a coherent thought, you'd still have to have something worth saying, Mr. President."

Good for Colbert - keep knockin' 'em down!

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Wow! Colbert and Neil Young - in one week! Surely its Christmas!

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Colbert was FABULOUS. Actually, Valerie and Mr. Mrs. Wilson WERE LAUGHING.

It was, indeed, the emperor has no clothes.

I am sure the President was upset by the Karl + Stephen gay bashing!

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By publically discrediting Bush, Colbert has struck a blow for peace. I hope that he, and others who are opposing this war, will consider including peace biographies in the "US Peace Registry".
The US Peace Memorial Foundation http://www.USPeaceMemorial.org was established to demonstrate that advocating for peaceful solutions to international problems is an honorable and socially acceptable activity in our democracy. Satire is very powerful.

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Interestingly enough, most of Colbert's other videos remain on YouTube. Only the "offending" was removed. What gives?

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