(CNN) — Stephen Colbert roasted Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday night, delivering a halting, nonsensical parody speech akin to some of the house majority leader’s more muddled comments.
The TV show host played through two clips of McCarthy’s public comments on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on CBS, before turning to the camera and deadpanning through his best McCarthy impersonation.
“My fellow Americans, long before times have we faced great challenges of this nation but America is anything if not a land from opportunity. Of this speaker and the House, Kevin McCarthy wants to rise that opportunity and let every mouth speech as one. It’s the circle of life and it moves us all because without it brave leadership America won’t be left behind. I believe it was Ronald Reagan who said, ‘Thomas Jefferson.’ And those are words are still are true today. Thank you. May God thank America. And hello,” Colbert said.
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McCarthy’s gaffes have come into greater focus this week as he continued campaigning for House speaker. Republicans met in private Thursday to select their nominee for speaker, starting the formal process of selecting a replacement of the retiring John Boehner, but the final selection is not expected until October 29.
McCarthy’s slip last week, saying that the House Select Committee on Benghazi had succeeded in undercutting Hillary Clinton’s poll numbers, provided fodder for his political opponents on the left and right.
Colbert found an easy target in McCarthy. He latched on to foreign policy comments the California Republican made last week before the conservative John Hay Initiative, chopping up the appearance into a highlight reel of sorts.
“We must engage this war of radical Islam if our life depended on it. Because it does,” McCarthy said. “We don’t have the same as difficult decision but this White House is managing the decline they’re putting us in tough decisions for the future. In the past few years alone, I have visited Poland, Hungria (sic), Estonia, Russia and Georgia.”
Colbert replied, “Wow, that guy is well-traveled. Hopefully his experience in Hungria (sic) will allow him to finally broker a peace treaty with Narnia.”
The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2015 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved. (PHOTO: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert)
