Filed at 8:57 a.m. ET
NEW YORK (AP) -- You'd hardly know the Democrats have even chosen a
presidential candidate, judging from late-night comedy monologues. It was
Republican John
McCain and -- oh, by the way -- his vice presidential running mate, Sarah
Palin, who claimed most of the jokesters' attention.
''John McCain's campaign has closed their offices in Michigan and they say
they won't try to compete for votes there,'' noted NBC ''Late Night'' host Conan
O'Brien on Monday. ''Apparently this is part of McCain's strategy to try to
win votes only in the original 13 colonies.''
''John McCain blew off Michigan! Well, I know how they feel,'' said CBS
''Late Show'' host David
Letterman. McCain canceled an appearance on Letterman's show two weeks
ago.
''Maybe you've noticed that all of John McCain's problems began when he
bailed out on this show. Are you aware of that? Well, the road to the White
House runs right through here!''
Craig
Ferguson, host of CBS' ''Late Late Show,'' said that ''at this point, it's a
race to see what drops faster: the stock market or John McCain's poll
numbers.''
Of course, the stock market's plunge was a popular topic among the comics,
with Letterman devoting his Top Ten list to ''Ways to Make the Financial Crisis
More Fun.'' Ranked in second place: ''Enjoy the blank stare when Katie
Couric asks Sarah Palin what the FDIC stands for.''
He also poked fun at Palin's gaffe when, addressing a group Sunday, she
referred to Afghanistan as ''our neighboring country.''
''Apparently,'' cracked Letterman, ''she can see bin Laden's cave from her
house.''
On Comedy Central's ''The Colbert Report,'' host Stephen
Colbert took an approving look back at Thursday's vice presidential
debate.
''Both candidates surpassed expectations,'' he said. ''Sarah Palin proved she
could speak. And Joe
Biden proved he could STOP speaking.''
And NBC ''Tonight'' show host Jay
Leno called attention to a candidate for governor of Bangkok who assaulted a
TV reporter for asking him tough questions on the air.
''Today Sarah Palin said, 'You can do THAT? Where's Katie Couric?'''
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