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Hillary, Sarah, and SNL

Print | Comments () Posted by Joanna Weiss September 15, 2008 01:29 PM

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So Tina Fey did a spot-on impression of Sarah Palin to open this week's "Saturday Night Live." And a show that has, on some level, been sympathetic to Hillary Clinton throughout the campaign continued on that track; this was clearly a sketch told from Clinton's perspective. I'm wondering how much of a hand Fey had in writing it, since last winter, she made her loyalties clear:

I'm not saying "SNL" is guilty of political bias here, though I'm sure some would see it that way. It seems more likely to me that the writers -- at their best -- understand that, in classic dramatic terms, Hillary remains the tragic figure in this campaign. She did the work, she prepared, she fought, she followed the path that seemed to be right, only to be usurped -- twice! -- by someone with less resume but more natural charisma. Her story is great drama, which means it has the potential to be great comedy.

(One other note: I was actually struck, watching this clip, by how much Fey doesn't look like Palin, glasses notwithstanding. For what it's worth, Fey's face is more angular. But she makes up for it all with that accent. And her comic timing is priceless.)