"Deck chairs on the Hindenberg:" Colbert has a good night

In the early 1990s, President George H. W. Bush was a fan of the impersonations of him by SNL star Dana Carvey--so much so that Carvey was his overnight guest at the White House.

Steven Colbert probably needn’t worry about packing his overnight bag or scoring some “TWH” monogram towels for his guest bath anytime soon. Editor & Publisher has the first reports of Colbert’s performance at tonight’s White House Correspondent Dinner:

Colbert, who spoke in the guise of his talk show character, who ostensibly supports the president strongly, urged the Bush to ignore his low approval ratings, saying they were based on reality, “and reality has a well-known liberal bias.”

Noting those low ratings, Colbert advised, "The glass isn't half empty - it's 68% empty. There's still some fluid in there, but I wouldn't drink it."

He attacked those in the press who claim that the shake-up at the White House was merely re-arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. “This administration is soaring, not sinking,” he said. “They are re-arranging the deck chairs--on the Hindenburg.”

Colbert told Bush he could end the problem of protests by retired generals by refusing to let them retire. He compared Bush to Rocky Balboa in the “Rocky” movies, always getting punched in the face—“and Apollo Creed is everything else in the world.”

Turning to the war, he declared, "I believe that the government that governs best is a government that governs least, and by these standards we have set up a fabulous government in Iraq."

He noted former Ambassador Joseph Wilson in the crowd, as well as " Valerie Plame." Then, pretending to be worried that he had named her, he corrected himself, as Bush aides might do, "Uh, I mean... Joseph Wilson's wife." He asserted that it might be okay, as prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald was probably not there.

The Boy King was not amused, if the phrase "the president and First Lady gave him quick nods, unsmiling, and left immediately" is any indication.

Crooks and Liars has the (hefty) video download, and if you’re one of those whose TV loads faster than your internet connection, C-SPAN will be rerunning it early tomorrow morning.)

(Compare E&P’s Colbert-centric version with the write-up by AP—seems doubtful they went to the same dinner.)