Stewart: Palin can even make 'doggone genocide...sound folksy

Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin has started dragging old attacks on Barack Obama back into the campaign, insisting, "It's really important for Americans to start knowing who the real Barack Obama is."

The Daily Show's Jon Stewart, however, was more interested on Tuesday in finding out who the real Sarah Palin is. "Excuse me, woman we met six weeks ago," he asked. "We want to know about you. Is your husband a crazy secessionist? Did you fire that guy for not firing the guy you wanted him to fire?"

Palin recently told a booing audience, "Our opponent is someone who sees America as imperfect enough to pall around with terrorists who targeted their own country. ... One of his earliest supporters was a man, who -- according to the New York Times -- was a domestic terrorist and part of a group that, quote, launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and the US Capitol."

"Is there anything this woman can't make sound folksy?" asked Stewart wistfully. "'And let's not forget about that doggone genocide in Rwanda.'"

Stewart then showed photos of William Ayers, the "domestic terrorist" to whom Palin had referred, in both his long-haired Weather Underground appearance of 40 years ago and his current innocuous-looking bald and bespectacled persona as a professor at the University of Chicago and "recipient of the 1997 Chicago Citizen of the Year Award."

"I'll tell you," noted Stewart, "you know who might be very interested to hear about Barack Obama's political ties to a former inciter of violence? An angry mob."

Stewart then turned to Daily Show "senior polling analyst" John Oliver for insight, asking "Why is it really getting ugly?"

Oliver explained that the election now depends on the 8% of the voters who are still undecided and they "fall into a variety of categories." He displayed a pie chart breaking them down into the Chronically Insuecture, Racist Democrats, Attention Seekers -- and a whopping 45% of Stupid.

The Stupid, Oliver explained, are "the swingest of the swing voters -- and they, as they always do, will decide this election."

"Do stupid people vote?" asked Stewart.

"Certainly, some will forget to," acknowledged Oliver. "Many will make simple mistakes -- eat their ballots, go into the voting booth only to urinate and leave."

"But some will vote" Oliver emphasized, and "only personal attacks affect them. ... And on November 4th, the election will be in their hands."


This video is from Comedy Central's The Daily Show, broadcast October 7, 2008.