Colbert's '08 Campaign Comes to an End, Are Obama Supporters Responsible?

Posted by Melissa McEwan, Shakesville at 12:00 PM on November 6, 2007.

Melissa McEwan: If you need me, I'll be watching Strangers with Candy reruns and quietly sobbing.

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This post, written by Melissa McEwan, originally appeared on Shakesville

And a great wailing and gnashing of teeth arose from the Colbert Nation:

Stephen Colbert has dropped his bid for the White House.

His announcement came after the South Carolina Democratic Executive Council voted last week to keep the host of "The Colbert Report" off the state's primary ballot. The vote was 13-3.

..."Although I lost by the slimmest margin in presidential election history--only 10 votes--I have chosen not to put the country through another agonizing Supreme Court battle," Colbert said Monday in a statement. "It is time for this nation to heal."

..."I want to say to my supporters, this is not over," Colbert said. "While I may accept the decision of the Council, the fight goes on! The dream endures! ... And I am going off the air until I can talk about this without weeping."

Heh. It might also have something to do with that pesky writers' strike...

If you need me, I'll be watching Strangers with Candy reruns and quietly sobbing.

UPDATE: Top Obama Supporters Pushed To Keep Colbert Off Ballot

Two prominent supporters of Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign in South Carolina called state Democratic Party officials urging them to oppose putting comedian Stephen Colbert's name on the primary ballot, according to party officials and Obama supporters with knowledge of the calls.

Colbert, the host of Comedy Central's "Colbert Report," saw his hopes to be placed on the primary ballot ended last week when the South Carolina Democratic Party executive council voted 13-3 to block his bid, with the majority of voters saying he was not a viable enough candidate to be included in the primary.

Tagged as: colbert, election08

Melissa McEwan writes and edits the blog Shakespeare's Sister.

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CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE NOW! [Report this comment] Posted by: higginslads on Nov 6, 2007 12:38 PM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] A sitting member of Congress is introducing a measure to impeach the vice president of the United States and the story isn't visible on Alternet. This should be the leading story on a website that bills itself as an "alternative" to the mainstream. Some alternative! More like left gatekeeper. For those who are interested in doing something constructive about our current state of affairs, please call your representative and urge them to support Mr. Kucinich's bill. The Capitol switchboard is: 1-800-828-0498 1-800-862-5530 1-800-833-6354 Just ask the operator for your representative's office. If you don't know it, tell her/him where you live and she/he will look it up. Once transferred to your representative's office, politely tell the person who answers the phone that you urge your representative to support Kucinich's articles of impeachment against the vice president. You will probably be asked for your name and address. I just did this. It's the first time I had ever called my representative (Rodney Frelinghuysen in NJ). It was easy and I felt better after doing it. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] » High drama, low substance Posted by: eddie torres All Democratic Candidates FEARED Colbert in the PRIMARY [Report this comment] Posted by: Prairie Waif on Nov 6, 2007 2:36 PM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] Obama may just be the name thrown out for the press, however, if you dig deeper, I am sure you will find Hillary, and the other campaigns' staffers in on the shenanigans to prevent Colbert from being on the Primary Ballot. Why? Because they would look like FOOLS to lose to a television comedian who has unified the nation with his sarcastic rendition of Repubican compassionate conservatism than any of the currently declared candidates have accoplished. The Colbert Nation is stronger than the force of each "front-runners'' imagination, therefore, he was removed from the ballot. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] » RE: All Democratic Candidates FEARED Colbert in the PRIMARY Posted by: xconservative Other forces at work [Report this comment] Posted by: eddie torres on Nov 6, 2007 3:08 PM Current rating: 5 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] The cost of joining the South Carolina Democratic Party primary ballot for any candidate - including Colbert - was $2,500. That was well below the $5,000 threshold that would have triggered federal elections campaign reporting rules. If Colbert had attempted another route to the ballot, it would have cost more then $5,000 - the SC GOP's primary fee is $35,000. The reporting rules would not have pleased Colbert's newest and biggest sponsor, Doritos (PepsiCo), who prefer to rig the political process by showering legislators with untraceable "gold" once they actually arrive in Washington DC. And since PepsiCo sponsors a whole slew of programs on media outlets across the GE/Murdoch/Disney/Viacom spectrum, they're not looking to attract a lot of new attention to their multiple subsidiaries in tax havens like Bermuda and Panama. Nor do they want to attract public attention right now to the willful FCC complicity in the concentrated ownership of the public airwaves that their GE/Murdoch/Disney/Viacom hosts use to award the title of "front-runner" to the Presidential candidates with the largest TV and radio advertising budgets. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] angryfromsc [Report this comment] Posted by: angryfromcross on Nov 7, 2007 6:24 AM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] The SC Democratic Party missed the ball once again. WE don't do winning, it is more about keeping the same crowd in power of a minority party than it is about winning elections. They enjoy flying around all over the country to DNC meetings and thinking they are still run our state. We need a revolution and WE need to take back the state and the SCDP. If and when we lose the current leadership of the party we will be just fine, because they have already cost us the legislature, all but two federal slots and all the constituational offices except for one! If the Fowler Communications lobby chooses to change parties, assuming the GOP would take them, the rank and file Democrats will survice even better, because if they do for the Republican party what they have done for the Democratic Party-- the common working class Dems will be back incharge in three election cylces! Cobert would have brought youth and energy to a state party that is on life support. I hope a bold reporter will folow the money trail to see who is working for which lobbying firm and who has special interest in seeing that Hillery wins SC is all I can add. But you best wear your metal jacket! [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] I just wish... [Report this comment] Posted by: ShrubtheWarcriminal on Nov 7, 2007 7:52 AM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] ...that Colbert would run a write in vote if that is allowed by the Democraps in SC. As stated above, I think Colbert would have embarrassed the Democraps with at least a good showing. I know my vote in the primary will not go to any candidate that is not truly progressive. That means that at the very least Clinton and Obama will not get my vote. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] Absolutely love the guy [Report this comment] Posted by: goeswithness on Nov 7, 2007 8:28 AM Current rating: 4 [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] But I couldn't have taken this bid seriously. It's sort of performance art, don't you think? I enjoyed it while it lasted, and it would have been sort of fun to see how it all played out, but I would have considered a vote for him in the primary to be like flushing it down the toilet. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] » Thats sort of the point, I believe... Posted by: JoshuaLudd Just out of curiosity [Report this comment] Posted by: Rishy on Nov 7, 2007 9:11 AM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] Does that body in SC have the RIGHT to deny a place on the ballot to someone who has met the criteria ? Colberts run has IMO underscored numerous areas of concern in our electoral process........ [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5] Unseriously [Report this comment] Posted by: Staggo on Nov 7, 2007 1:23 PM Current rating: Not yet rated [1 = poor; 5 = excellent] The reason for keeping Colbert off the ballot was that he would have garnered enough votes to seriously unserious a failed, limpid, and rigged process. Humor and government are oil and vinegar. [« Reply to this comment] [Post a new comment »] [Rate this comment: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5]

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» High drama, low substance Posted by: eddie torres

» RE: All Democratic Candidates FEARED Colbert in the PRIMARY Posted by: xconservative

» Thats sort of the point, I believe... Posted by: JoshuaLudd

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» High drama, low substance Posted by: eddie torres

» RE: All Democratic Candidates FEARED Colbert in the PRIMARY Posted by: xconservative

» Thats sort of the point, I believe... Posted by: JoshuaLudd