FUNNY HA HA REDUX

The Post's "gossip columnist" Richard Leiby ran an item this morning on the Hotline Comedy Show I wrote about yesterday:

He's no Darrell Hammond, but Rep. Brian Baird (D-Wash.) had the crowd in stitches with his President Bush imitation at the Hotline's post-inaugural comedy review Friday night at the Warner Theatre -- a taped performance now available for wider public consumption at C-SPAN.org.

"You folks in the liberal media will print anything if we call it 'Operation,' " the blue-tied Baird riffed. "Operation Iraqi Freedom is going to now be known as Operation Shia Theocracy. We're very proud of our successes there. ...

"On the education front, we're going to launch Operation Easier Grammar. [Big laffs.] You see, there is way too many rules in grammar. ... This will help my daughters pass the No Child Left Behind test."

He closed to guffaws by announcing Operation Solar Landing: "It's gonna put a man on the sun. Now, I know, I know, you pointy-headed academics and you liberal judges, you don't think we can do that. [Pause.] Heh. We're going at night!"

Baird, whose district backed Bush in the election, told us yesterday he has been polishing his routine for a year and a half, updating it to reflect the president's greater "confidence" as a speaker: "The shoulder-shaking laugh and the smirk -- there are vestiges of that but less pronounced." He watched inauguration events to get new material.

I neglected to mention the shoulder-shake in my previous write-up, but that alone got as much of a laugh as any joke save for the closing bit.

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posted by WWB at 11:53 AM |