NEW YORK, Sept. 3, 2008

Late Night TV Hosts Go Easy On Palin

GOP VP Choice's Unwed, Pregnant 17-Year-Old Daughter Was Butt Of Few Jokes

  • Bristol Palin, 17, at the campaign rally where Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., introduced her mom, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, as his vice presidential running mate in Dayton, Ohio, Friday, Aug. 29, 2008.

    Bristol Palin, 17, at the campaign rally where Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., introduced her mom, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, as his vice presidential running mate in Dayton, Ohio, Friday, Aug. 29, 2008.  (AP)

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(AP)  Late-night comics tread lightly when referring to the pregnancy of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's unwed daughter.

CBS' "Late Show" host David Letterman made the pregnancy the subject of only his fifth and last joke about the selection of the Alaska governor as John McCain's running mate.

"Here's good news, ladies and gentlemen," Letterman said. "The Palin family crisis that we were talking about on Sunday and Monday, that has been solved now and, today, the baby is being adopted by Angelina Jolie."

Three of the comics made Democrat John Edwards the butt of their jokes. Edwards, the former presidential candidate, admitted this summer to an affair after first denying it.

"Gov. Palin announced over the weekend that her 17-year-old unmarried daughter is five months' pregnant," Jay Leno said near the top of his NBC "Tonight" show monologue Tuesday. "And you thought John Edwards was in trouble before! Now he has really done it."

Both Craig Ferguson and Conan O'Brien, who compete against each other in the early morning hours, went down the same road.

"I don't think that a young lady getting pregnant should even be news," said Ferguson of CBS' "Late Late Show." "Unless John Edwards is the father. Then that is kinda news."

O'Brien joked on his NBC "Late Night" show that Palin said that "we should never have introduced her to John Edwards."

Jon Stewart of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" kept his lacerating wit away from the topic. There was only one allusion to it in a Samantha Bee weather forecast skit, when a cloud in the shape of a pregnant woman floated by.


By David Bauder
© MMVIII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Add a Comment See all 18 Comments
by keithle1 September 6, 2008 1:55 AM EDT
ATTENTION W H O R E S!
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by keithle1 September 6, 2008 1:54 AM EDT
Attention, mothers of America.

Teach your silly, stupid, boy-crazy, impressionable, desperate-to-fit-in, attention-*** daughters about BIRTH CONTROL!

This isn''t the 18th century.

Precautions can be taken. Yes, they can. Please, people. CONDOMS. Found in pharmacies, supermarkets & truck stop bathrooms where your *** offspring probably hang out late at night.

Teenage girls should NOT be having babies in the 21st century. Nothing good can come of that. Don''t pretend that teenage boys aren''t h o r n y 24-7 & will say/do whatever they have to in order to get your daughter with the D Cup b o o b i e s in bed while you''re at a weekend religious retreat in the Ozarks.

WAKE UP! FACE REALITY!

Reply to this comment
by cbscurious September 4, 2008 3:37 PM EDT
If only Letterman would have stuck to jokes. Wednesday''s show featured an extended rant about Bristol''s pregnancy during his interview with Dr. Phil. Apparently Letterman has an insdie line that that Palin never discussed birth control with her daughter and that the young couple never practised safe ***. "If she was 18, well then it would be fine, but 17, no." What a putz.
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by pattishadit September 4, 2008 2:47 AM EDT
Why do comedians or anyone else have the right to make fun of a girl''s pregnancy, regardless how old she is or whether she is married or not? Thousands of mothers in America have unwed pregnant daughters. Are they all going to be put on trial for this? Sarah Palin seems to be a good mother and loves her family. She has a beautiful family. She should not be judged on her daughters situation, but on her own merit. And I believe she is going to be the best vice-president we have ever had. I believe she is honest and I believe she truly cares about the average hard working person. We need someone knows what it is to go to the grocery store and buy your own groceries. We need someone who knows what it is to live in a small town and to know your neighbors and just be a "real" person. Too many of our politicians are only interested in making money for their own pockets. I dont trust any of them, but for some reason, I trust Mrs. Palin. Get off her back and instead, give her some credit for doing the things she has done in Alaska. How many Senators do you think would be willing to give up their Jet Airplane and fly commercial? How many of them would be willing to give up their cooks and their maids and chauffers?
Give her the respect she really deserves. DAvid Letterman, Jay Leno, all the night show hosts should show more class.
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by pattishadit September 4, 2008 2:40 AM EDT
Being pregnant and 17 these days is a common occurence. I think it is so sad when people have to vilify the mother of this girl - she is not the first mother to have a daughter get pregnant and I am sure she wont be the last. She is a strong woman, and I believe, an honest one. I dont trust politicians as a rule, but I am inclined to trust her. GEt off the pregnancy kick and leave the girl alone. She is lucky to have a loving family who support her in her time of need and the father of the baby seems to care. Dont judge Sarah because of this. She has been a great governor and will be a great vice-president.
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by jeffrey_schf September 4, 2008 1:17 AM EDT
If Levi would have kept it in his, there wouldn''t be such an uproar!Or Bristol should have taken Nancy Reagan''s advice and "just said ''no''"!
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by ausus-2009 September 3, 2008 11:34 PM EDT
To all of you conspiracy nuts,

If both children are Bristol''s she should be in the Guinness Book of Records. The only person in history to become pregnant a second time while she was already eight months pregnant.
Reply to this comment
by lovegetpeace September 3, 2008 10:05 PM EDT
According to the some diehard Republicans, McCain pick Sarah to energize the Conservative Base of the party. However, they say this base is much smaller now than 4 and 8 years ago. This is very poor judgement. Also, McCain is attempting to use the same trick that Bush used. In other words, McBush or McSame again.
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by im4honesty September 3, 2008 9:30 PM EDT
Forget the pregnancy. Cindy McCains quip that Palin has foreign policy experience because she lives next door to Russia, and Rudy''''s comment that the ran the PTA, ought to give all of the late night guys plenty of jokes. This think is a fiasco.


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Posted by kansas1946



The thing that is even funnier is listening to the right-wing radio nuts picking up on the ''Russia'' thing and trying to spin it. This has turned into the most ridiculous spectacle in history. Joe Biden must be licking his chops for the upcoming debate... I wouldn''t miss it for the world, it''s bound to be a hoot.
Reply to this comment
by im4honesty September 3, 2008 9:24 PM EDT
I''''m just curious to what THIS kid is going to be named.


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Posted by airboatboy


Word has it that Sarah wants the child to be names ''Chance'' because she doesn''t have one.
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by airboatboy September 3, 2008 8:58 PM EDT
I''m just curious to what THIS kid is going to be named.
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by kansas1946 September 3, 2008 8:04 PM EDT
Forget the pregnancy. Cindy McCains quip that Palin has foreign policy experience because she lives next door to Russia, and Rudy''s comment that the ran the PTA, ought to give all of the late night guys plenty of jokes. This think is a fiasco.
Reply to this comment
by xac00fm September 3, 2008 8:03 PM EDT
NO RECORD OF PALIN ''SON'' TRIG BORN ON THE DATE CLAIMED ... THIS IS BRISTOL 2ND PREGNANCY NOT THE 1ST!!!
http://www.mediatakeout.com/2008/26353-more_palin_drama_no_record_of_palin_son_trig_born_on_the_date_claimed__daughter_supposedly_got_pregnant_while_she_had_mono__attempts_to_force_daughter_to_get_married.html

People''s children are off limits? This is not about her daughter bristol, no one is attacking her daughter... this is about another GOP corrupt politician who wants to be vice-president or president.
We don''t need it... not another 4 or 8 years of lying corrupt president and vice-president.... we had enough of bush and cheney...
"NICE guys finish last!!!".. this is about palin lies and misconduct.

Gov. Palin needs to take a DNA or blood test to prove that baby trig is hers... all the evidence is supporting that the baby belongs to Bristol, her daughter.
I saw pictures and VIDEO of gov. palin when she CLAIMED to be 7 and 8 months pregnant, AND SHE DIDn''t look 7 or 8 months preganant to me... I have six children by two different women so I know what a 7 and 8 month pregnant woman looks like. Palin was not pregnant with trig, bristol was.
Reply to this comment
by dmgenet September 3, 2008 7:55 PM EDT
Comedians know they have some time to just wait for it and the obvious jokes will appear. Watch Stewart, Colbert and yes, South Park, take a swipe first.
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by lacolombe September 3, 2008 7:41 PM EDT
It seems that the McCain campaign has hit a bump!
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by spargle September 3, 2008 6:09 PM EDT
It''s not the fact of the pregnancy that needs to be discussed, it is the HYPOCRISY of the republican party on this issue. McCain himself was/is opposed to helping teenage mothers. and both, of course, are opposed to viable birth control and abortion.
Reply to this comment
by warmonger247 September 3, 2008 5:49 PM EDT
If Your A Pregnant Teen Vote For The GOP.... Ha Ha Ha









Reply to this comment
by tootsie1963 September 3, 2008 5:36 PM EDT
I THINK WE HAVE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS TO WORRY ABOUT THAN SOMEONE''S PREGNANT DAUGHTER....OR MAYBE ITS JUST ME...
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