I was a bit disappointed that John McCain actually felt the need to appear on The Late Show and apologize to David Letterman. I mean, the guy endured five and a half years of torture by the North Vietnamese, but after three weeks of ribbing by Dave, he knuckles under? That said, McCain’s ritual act of contrition before this particular priest of the entertainment-industrial complex on Thursday night did make for riveting television.
As I predicted, Dave continued to mock McCain for his false excuse for bailing on a scheduled appearance three weeks ago, right up to the moment when the host was finally face-to-face with the senator at his desk. (There were lots of Joe the Plumber jokes, a makeshift magnetic map of the Straight Talk Express bus route that avoided the Ed Sullivan Theater three weeks ago while making various stops across Manhattan at the time McCain was supposedly en route to the airport to fly to Washington to fix the economy, and human prop Keith Olbermann, waiting in the wings in case he needed to sub for the missing candidate a second time.) Once the interview started, however, the mockery stopped, and Letterman was respectful, though not deferential. For his part, McCain got the mea culpa out of the way quickly — "I screwed up," he said a couple times. (He, too, made the comparison to his POW ordeal, saying, "I haven’t had so much fun since my last interrogation.") But the interrogation was just beginning.
Letterman, in his faux-ingenuous way, was able to ask questionsof the candidate that I hadn’t heard any journalist ask him. Like: WasSarah Palin really his first choice for vice president? In his gut, didhe really feel she was ready to lead the country in the event of acrisis? Having endured smears during the 2000 campaign, didn’t he feela special responsibility to keep the tone elevated this time around?And did he disavow Palin’s remark that Barack Obama is known to be"palling around with terrorists"? In fact, McCain thought this was afair comment, since Obama had once worked alongside at least oneunrepentant former terrorist, William Ayers. Letterman responded byspotting him Ayers and raising him G. Gordon Liddy, the unrepentantconvicted felon who planned acts of terror around the same time asAyers, and who masterminded the Watergate burglary. (Another famousplumber!) For the first time in the interview, McCain seemed flummoxed, acknowledging only that he’d met Liddy.(Actually, there was a lot more to their relationship than that.)After a commercial break gave him time to think of a fuller answer,McCain observed that Liddy had gone to prison and therefore paid hisdebt to society. Alas, Letterman didn’t ask the obvious follow-up question (so,if Ayers had been convicted and served time, Obama’s association withhim would be okey-dokey?) but instead concluded the interview with somefluffy questions about Tina Fey’s Palin impersonation. Still, for halfan hour, Letterman generally refused to let McCain off as easily asother interviewers have.
On some level, both McCain and Letterman surely know that this is all showbiz. McCain’s been on The Late Showmore than a dozen times, so he knows the drill, and he’ll surely returnto the Ed Sullivan Theater in the future, whether or not he becomespresident. And when he does, Dave will continue to be cordial (thoughnot obsequious) to his face, while feeling free to joke about him atany other time. Still, for one night, a window opened up where both mencould travel back and forth across the line between joking about theissues and addressing them in straightforward seriousness, and theyboth rose to the challenge posed by that unique moment. As the senatortold the talk show host, "It’s gonna be a sad feeling around here whenthe election finally takes place."
Tell us, PopWatchers, do you think McCain effectively made his case to Letterman’s audience? Did his apology help or hurt his campaign? Was Dave too hard on him, not hard enough, or just right? And has any of this political spectacle (on The Late Show or other entertainment venues) actually swayed your vote?
More on John McCain and David Letterman:
Sound Bites: Video highlights of the McCain-Letterman interview and other top TV moments from last night
The Letterman-McCain smackdown, round 1
The Letterman-McCain smackdown, round 2
Are Letterman and McCain about to bury the hatchet?
PopWatch is there as McCain announces his presidential candidacy on Letterman’s Late Show
UPDATE: CBS.com has made the entire interview available for streaming here.
I’m really sad that I missed the interview/episode. Is there anywhere online that will have either in its entirety?
McCain’s relationship with G. Gordon Liddy convicted and unrepentant Watergate burglar
Liddy acknowledged preparing to kill someone during the Ellsberg break-in “if necessary”; plotting to murder journalist Jack Anderson; plotting with a “gangland figure” to murder Howard Hunt to stop him from cooperating with investigators; plotting to firebomb the Brookings Institution; and plotting to kidnap “leftist guerillas” at the 72 RNC-a plan he outlined to the Nixon administration using terminology borrowed from the Nazis
In 98, Liddy’s home was the site of a McCain fundraiser. He made at least 4 contributions totaling $5,000 including $1,000 this year
On his radio show. McCain greeted Liddy as “an old friend,” McCain sounded like one. “I’m proud of you, I’m proud of your family,” he gushed “It’s always a pleasure for me to come on your program, Gordon & congratulations on your continued success and adherence to the principles & philosophies that keep our nation great” tinyurl.com/4k8f28
Come on. So obvious Dave is pro-obama the way he grilled McCain. What is amazing is the focus on Palin’s experience – and concern there when the actual President – not VP candidate of the other party has less. But the media proves again their complete bias. At least Dave isn’t a newsman.
I thought that was a great interview by David Letterman. It’s not like he was out to get McCain or anything, I just think he asked the questions he was sincerely curious about.
But McCain had nothing to gain from an interview like that at this stage of the race. It’s unfair since Letterman was the one asking all the questions, but by speech and manner, even the talk show host looked more capable.
John McCain is clearly a Statesman-Patriot-Soldier who can give as good as he gets, but wouldn’t shrink into lawyer games if confronted with real threat to the USA.
I wouldn’t have wasted my time with Letterman, who even bashed Richard Simmons during his past several week pissant tirades, but John has more patience for sputtering twits than most of us do.
CBS is just another a bastion of NY Democrat crap, and now that McCain gave Dave his whiner-dues, we can get on with electing someone worthy of carrying the nation’s Nuclear Suitcase. Something best not delivered to a wet-eared OTJ trainee in these rather serious times.
Thank you, David Letterman, for being the first person I’ve heard to ask McCain, to his face, about the Bill Ayers / G. Gordon Liddy comparison. (Maybe viewers who don’t know about Liddy will look up some info and put the Ayers thing into perspective. These are politician, and NONE of them have squeaky-clean records!)
Also, kudos to Dave for forcing McCain to say–on the record, explicitly–that he thinks Sarah Palin was the best VP choice and totally qualified to handle a 9/11-type emergency. Right. If any of you believe that (and believe that McCain believes it!), I have a very nice Bridge to Nowhere I’d like to sell you….
I think that Dave did a great job. I wish that Dave had more time to ask the questions that many Americans are asking. Of course, McCain didn’t answer all of his questions and kept interrupting Dave. McCain was awfully squirmy.
Dave was fantastic. People get so over-awed with VIP’s that they forget it’s just a person. A wise man once told me “never let anyone’s title or status intimidate you”.
I was so happy Dave brought up Liddy, and I loved how McCain only said he met him at first, and when Dave asked if he attended a fundraiser at his house, McCain just pretended to look like he was wondering and asked “Liddy?”
He must have realized he was busted because after the break all of a sudden he kmew him ands was friends with his son as well.
Julia, how is the media biased, if it is it is biaded FOR McCain, he never gets the tough questions, and this is the FIRST time anyone has brought up his relationship with Liddy, who was not exactly a good guy.
here is the obvious follow up response. Bill Ayers is still today a radical, he is also not just a guy that they ran into a few times over several occasions (as was Liddy and McCain) but he was heavily involved in Obama’s rise to fame and power in Chicago. He served with him on an ACTIVE board for 6 years.
Also, McCain may be much older but the list of very suspect people they each palled around with is MUCH MUCH longer for Obama. It’s very serious, but hey, he’s good looking and speaks SO WELL!!1 So what the heck, lets hand him the keys to the white house.
Why all the focus on Palin’s experience? She is only the VP candidate. Obama has even less experience than her and he is going for the Presidency!! Biden has been a lame duck in the Senate and America (at least some of you) want that ticket in the white house?? America is screwed. Also, is Dave going to have to pay higher taxes on his earnings or will he (and the other Hollywood types supporting O) have some sort of government tax break given to him (like that $478 MILLION to movie, and TV producers) to keep his money?
Why does anyone think McCain owes Letterman an apology? Let’s see, hmmm, Letterman, late night talk show, McCain working on our country’s problems, hmmmm. Letterman is an entertainer, McCain is running for president and look at what he’s already given for our country! Who the heck does Letterman think he is? Wow, the power we have given these entertainers, blows my mind. Guess we know who is running this country (or who will be, huh?).
I liked McCain a lot more on Letterman than I did during Wed’s debate. He’s always great in interviews…good sense of humor, comes across very relatable and human. But in the debate he was just a bully and a hypocrite. Maybe his advisors are telling him that’s what he needs to do to win the swing votes…but let me tell you: I’M AN UNDECIDED VOTER, and I thought McCain acted like a jerk Wednesday night.
Bringing up Libby was great. Showed the Hypocricy of McCain. He did not just know this man causually, Hein fact has been on his radio show several times. Even called him his friend. Libby has never said sorry for his past actions. Way to go Dave!