-V-
07/09/06, 06:03 pm
It's hard to tell how much influence SNL has on political elections but I'll say woe be it to any politician who gets his caracature nailed by one of their impersonators.
The (accurate) portrayal of Bob Dole as a pencil twirling mean spirited paranoid conservative who refers to himself in the first person had to have taken its toll in the polls with young people. Dana Carvey's eccentric crotchety old man take on Ross Pero helped ensure that the voter's answer to him repeatedly asking "Can I finish?" was a clear "no!"
Though several have tried, no cast member of Saturday Night Live has really captured G.W. Bush. It is not likely SNL hurt his campaign much more than Bush has hurt himself with his own impersonation of a President and caracature of a human being.
When you think of Ross Pero you think of Dana Carvey. When you think of Bill Clinton you think of Bill Clinton and Darrell Hammond. When you think of George W. Bush you just think of George Bush.
No show does political satire (or any satire) as well as SNL. Overall, for their body of work over the years I'd rate them 10. They're usually well balanced in their political attacks but often do make left leaning statements in their humor (especially the TV Funhouse cartoons and Weekend Update) so I'd give them a 7 for liberal bias.
Don't forget that one of their key writer's and cast members used to be Al Franken (during the "Al Franken decade").
The (accurate) portrayal of Bob Dole as a pencil twirling mean spirited paranoid conservative who refers to himself in the first person had to have taken its toll in the polls with young people. Dana Carvey's eccentric crotchety old man take on Ross Pero helped ensure that the voter's answer to him repeatedly asking "Can I finish?" was a clear "no!"
Though several have tried, no cast member of Saturday Night Live has really captured G.W. Bush. It is not likely SNL hurt his campaign much more than Bush has hurt himself with his own impersonation of a President and caracature of a human being.
When you think of Ross Pero you think of Dana Carvey. When you think of Bill Clinton you think of Bill Clinton and Darrell Hammond. When you think of George W. Bush you just think of George Bush.
No show does political satire (or any satire) as well as SNL. Overall, for their body of work over the years I'd rate them 10. They're usually well balanced in their political attacks but often do make left leaning statements in their humor (especially the TV Funhouse cartoons and Weekend Update) so I'd give them a 7 for liberal bias.
Don't forget that one of their key writer's and cast members used to be Al Franken (during the "Al Franken decade").