Rep. Bob Inglis of South Carolina’s “Fightin’ Fourth” District took to Comedy Central’s Colbert Report Wednesday night as the 50th installment of the show’s 434 part series “Better Know a District.” During the interview, Inglis was “grilled” for providing “faulty umbrella intelligence” to President Bush in a letter he wrote about the Iraq troop surge. Inglis is the first South Carolina Congressman to take part in the Colbert Report’s Better Know a District segment.

Former presidential candidate Stephen Colbert interviewed Gov. Mark Sanford to launch a new spin-off segment called “better know a governor.” Sanford, who Colbert referred to as “the most boring U.S. governor,” was grilled on the Confederate flag issue and Bar-B-Que.

It’s a pretty funny little clip, but nowhere near as awesome as the time Colbert interview Georgia Congressman Lynn Westmoreland.

Former almost presidential candidate Stephen Colbert was among the few candidates immortalized in sand at the Republican and Democratic debates in Myrtle Beach over the past few weeks.  And by “immortalized” I mean the chamber of commerce secretly created a sculpture of someone who may or may not be him that will soon be washed away into oblivion.

Although it bore a striking resemblance to one-time presidential hopeful, Comedy Central personality and Charleston native Stephen Colbert, those in the know were sworn to silence about the sculpture, including whether or when it will be shown on a cable TV network.

“I’m supposed to tell you I can neither confirm or deny the existence of said sculpture,” said chamber President Brad Dean on Tuesday, about an hour after a Myrtle Beach fire crew demolished the sculpted face. “I hate to be evasive, but we’ve been asked to do that.” [Myrtle Beach Sun News]

So if you want to see Colbert in all of his sandy glory, you may want to tune in to tonight’s Colbert Report at 11:30 p.m. on Comedy Central.

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Photo: Myrtle Beach Sun News.

For DonorsChoose.org, a simple mention by comedian Stephen Colbert was enough to raise $59,000 and reach 13,000 public school students in South Carolina. Oh, and it also shut down every single one of their servers within minutes.

In an episode where Colbert announced he was running for president, the Charleston native and host of “The Colbert Report” also asked viewers to give to DonorsChoose.org, which helps fulfill teacher wish lists for books, globes or other classroom materials. [...]

“If anyone gets the chance to thank Stephen Colbert, please do so, because he made a big difference in this state with that simple announcement,” Bloom said Thursday at a National Philanthropy Day luncheon in Charleston. [AP]

Perhaps Colbert would consider mentioning The Palmetto Scoop sometime — if he ever gets his show back. Or at least one of the charities that advertise with us. Like the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease.

Did you know that chronic diseases are the number one cause of death and disability in the U.S. – accounting for 70 percent of all deaths and more than 75 percent of the $2 trillion our nation spent on health care during 2005? I certainly didn’t.

Well, the good news is that the vast majority of the death and disability caused by chronic disease is preventable or could be alleviated through better management of disease – if only our nation took the right steps.

So do your part to fight chronic disease by signing the petition and visiting www.FightChronicDisease.org for more information.

Now that comedian Stephen Colbert’s White House ambitions have seemingly been annihilated by the totalitarian South Carolina Democrat Party, I’ve had to re-focus my content on less fun stuff like Congress, education, spending and the guys — and girl — who are really running for president. So when I read the below quoted article with the above placed picture of Colbert in all of his Rambo-esque glory, I couldn’t help but flash back to the good ol’ days (two weeks ago) when the beacon of hope for America still burned brightly and the promise of a “truthier” future blanketed our hearts and minds.

Or something like that.

Anyway, I didn’t really read much of this article, but it’s about South Carolina’s favorite son so I’m sure it’s awesome. Enjoy:

Misunderestimate Stephen Colbert at your peril. Just because he is an unassuming, bespectacled physical specimen whose business cards may read “TV comedian” is no reason to dismiss him as a lightweight funnyman. Since the very night he launched his own series on Comedy Central in 2005, Colbert has thrown some vicious elbows, and demonstrated a bravura that dares his enemies to, in paraphrasing his ironic hero George W. Bush, bring it on.

As both a humorist and a political and media commentator, Colbert is a stealth bomber. A gladiator of mockery. A comedy Rambo. He’s the most dangerous satirist out there right now, and neither the writers’ strike nor his failure to get on the presidential-primary ballot in his native state of South Carolina will stall his advance for long.

In fact, Colbert has reached such revered status at this juncture that even in a period of relative inactivity — not doing a show, not running for president — people are talking about him, wondering about him, and waiting for his next move. He’s the Al Gore of Comedy Central: even if he can’t or won’t run for office, he is nevertheless building anticipation. (Can a Nobel Prize be far off?)

And, like Gore, he knows it. The question is, now that he knows he has the public’s attention and the media transfixed, where will he strike next? Or is not striking, and laying back, the smarter play? Colbert is nothing if not smart, and that’s why you have to watch him — even if, at least right now on TV, you can’t. [DAVID BIANCULLI - The Phoenix]

Read the rest…

(h/t No Fact Zone)

WHILE THEY LAUGH, WE FUME!

OBAMA SUCKS, S.C. (TPS) - CNN is reporting that, “Two prominent supporters of Illinois Sen. Barack Obama’s presidential campaign in South Carolina called state Democratic Party officials and urged them to keep funnyman Stephen Colbert’s name off the primary ballot, according to party officials and Obama supporters.” We don’t know which “prominent supporters” they’re speaking of, but may God have mercy on their souls.

There are few words in the English language to describe how pissed we are at the crybabies in the Obama camp. We understand that the Democratic Party was never going to allow Colbert on the ballot, regardless of the childish antics of Obama’s people. But the fact that they still went and whined to party officials to keep someone from partaking in the democratic (and Democratic with a big “D”) process — serious or not — is downright pathetic.

And not only did they usurp democracy, but they may pay a price for messing with Colbert. It will take little more than a few angry statements on the Colbert Report — if the writer’s strike ever ends — to put a good-sized dent in Obama’s Colbert-loving base.

So why make such a potentially harmful error?

Well, apparently they couldn’t stomach the fact that Colbert was able to “mobilize” Obama’s crowd with infinitely more effeciency and excitement. The Obama camp must have really felt Colbert was a serious threat. Either that or they simply hate free speech.

Until now, we’ve had little negative disposition toward the Obama campaign; we disagree with about 99 percent of what the guy believes in, but we didn’t think ill of he or his staff. Now however, we wish them nothing but painful defeat. And we will be throwing the vengeance party.

(h/t Mike the Actuary)

THEY SURE GOT IT RIGHT

VIABILITY, S.C. (TPS) - It’s rather humorous that the South Carolina Democratic Party Thursday denied Stephen Colbert from appearing on their presidential primary ballot in January, despite his paying the requisite $2,500 fee and filing the proper paperwork. It’s humorous because they made that decision based on Colbert’s “viability” and their belief that he lacked it on a national level.

Now, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, viable means: 1. Capable of living, developing, or germinating under favorable conditions; 2. Capable of living outside the uterus; 3. Capable of success or continuing effectiveness.

We’re pretty sure every human being passes the first two tests, so number three must be the deal breaker. And by this standard, it must be that Colbert is not effective enough nationwide and lacks the ability to have success in venues outside of South Carolina.

But wait… hold on just one second. Doesn’t Colbert have a devoted audience numbering well into the millions every night on his nationally-televised show, The Colbert Report? Oh, and didn’t he recently place fifth among Democrats nationally? Seems to us like he’s both effective and successful across the country.

Surely the candidates that did make the ballot — even the ones he polled ahead of — must be more viable than Colbert. There’s no way they could reject him and allow a less effective candidate who is less likely to succeed on the ballot.

Thankfully, the Democrats got this one right and only the truly viable candidates have made it to the presidential primary ballot. Viable candidates like Dennis Kucinich, Bill Richardson, Joe Biden, Chris Dodd and Mike Gravel.

So what if Kucinich speaks at length about his “UFO experience“? Americans love science fiction. He’s definitely viable.

What’s the big deal if Richardson chose not to call for the removal of disgraced former Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez because he, like Richardson, is Hispanic? The majority of America agrees that race should be the number one factor when determining leadership. Viability test passed.

Who conveys “middle America” better than Biden, who uses an Indian accent when he goes into 7-11? No one, that’s who. Someone give that guy a big viability stamp.

Speaking of middle America, does anything say “mainstream” like Dodd’s “Golden Leash Award” for accepting nearly $1 million in special interest money in return for special favors? Absolutely not. V-I-A-B-L-E.

And we can’t forget the most effective and most capable candidate of them all, Gravel. How could someone not find him nationally viable when he’s best known for his three minute YouTube campaign commercial where he throws a rock in the water? We don’t even need to say that this guy is effective and successful, he’s just that viable.

Yup, those darned S.C. Democrats sure do know the meaning of viability. And luckily for us, they were smart enough to put that knowledge to good use to keep out that non-viable Colbert.

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Photo: New York Times

COLUMBIA, S.C. (TPS) - Sources with the South Carolina Democratic Party tell us that comedian Stephen Colbert, who formally filed Thursday to have his name placed on the presidential primary ballot, has been denied. The decision came after a vote by the party’s executive council and means that Colbert’s name will not be on the Jan. 26 Democratic primary ballot in South Carolina.

“The council bases their decision on a number of factors, including national viability, and they felt he did not meet the criteria,” Keiana Page, a communications assistant with the party told TPS. She noted that of the 23 member board, three voted in favor of allowing Colbert on the ballot and 13 voted against. National committee member Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter was among those voting for Colbert.

Page said that there is no appeals process and the decision is final. The ballot will be certified with the state elections commission later today.

Colbert said he will not file with the Republican Party, but can still have his name on the ballot as an Independent in the general election if he collects 10,000 signatures.