David Letterman to John McCain: 'Now, what exactly happened?'

Sen. John McCain tried today to make amends with David Letterman, telling the late-night comedian that he “screwed up” when he stood him up last month to focus on the country’s economic crisis.

McCain’s appearance on “Late Show” –- his 13th time on the CBS program –- came after Letterman mocked him incessantly for three weeks.

The Republican presidential nominee took extra precautions to ensure that he made today’s long-awaited visit, traveling by helicopter from Philadelphia to skirt a weather delay, fearful that another cancellation would further enflame the host.

When the candidate walked onto the stage of the Ed Sullivan Theater, he pretended to cower in fear as Letterman strode over to greet him.

“Can you stay?” the comedian asked, as McCain settled in his chair.

“Yes, sir,” responded McCain. He then added with a wary grin, “Depends on how bad it gets.”

The Arizona senator said he had asked his son, who is in the Marine Corps, to FedEx him his helmet and flak jacket for the occasion, “but it didn’t get here on time.”

McCain had reason to be nervous. He was supposed to make an appearance Sept. 24 on “Late Show” but canceled at the last minute. At the time, he told the comedian that he was racing to catch a plane to return to Washington to deal with the burgeoning financial crisis.

But Letterman was steamed to discover that McCain in fact remained in New York another day. Instead of visiting the “Late Show” studio in Manhattan that afternoon, the GOP presidential hopeful made a stop at CBS News several blocks away to give an interview to Katie Couric.

When he learned of McCain’s whereabouts, an indignant Letterman patched into a live feed of the Couric interview during his show and shouted at the television monitor: “Hey John, I got a question! You need a ride to the airport?”

The incident ruptured a long-amiable relationship between the two men, who at one time had been so friendly that McCain chose Letterman’s show as the forum to announce his 2008 presidential bid.

But Letterman appeared deeply offended by McCain’s behavior.

The day after the senator stood him up, the comedian told his audience that when McCain first told him he had to cancel to deal with the economic meltdown, “I felt like a patriot.”

“I was going to help in my own little way get this economy out of the crater,” he said. “And now I’m just feeling like an ugly date.  That’s what I feel like. I feel like an ugly date. I feel used. I feel cheap. I feel sullied.”

At today’s taping, Letterman got straight to the point.

“Now, what exactly happened?” he asked McCain. “I got to think maybe I’m just not important enough.”

“Can I give you an answer?” responded the senator. “I screwed up.” He shrugged his hands apologetically, adding: “But look at all the conversation I gave you.”

“Well, I’m willing to put this behind us,” Letterman said.

The candidate appeared visibly relieved. “Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you very much,” he said.

Still, Letterman wasn’t ready to let him off the hook.

“I want your friend Sarah Palin here,” he said. “And if you’re in the White House, I want to be the guy who sits in the outer office, reading magazines.”

“Is this a shakedown or a ransom?” asked McCain with a chuckle.

The conversation quickly turned seriously as Letterman pressed him about his choice of a running mate and the tone of his campaign, questioning McCain's attacks on Sen. Barack Obama.

McCain did his best to project a calm, even-keeled demeanor throughout the 20-minute conversation, though he forcefully rejected Letterman’s suggestion that Alaska Gov. Palin was not qualified to assume the presidency or “lead us through the next 9/11 attack.”

“She has inspired Americans," McCain said. "That’s the thing we need.”

It remains to be seen whether today’s encounter will be enough to persuade the comedian to let up his barrage of jabs at the Republican candidate.

In the last several weeks, Letterman has made McCain and his running mate his central targets. He ridiculed McCain as old and out-of-touch, saying that at last week’s debate, he “looked like a retiree who couldn’t find his Buick.”

He derided Palin as a lightweight, saying, “To improve her foreign policy experience, she recently went to the International House of Pancakes.”

For all the buzz that Letterman’s stinging rebukes have attracted, the attention does not seem to have lifted his ratings. From Sept. 22 through Oct. 5, the most recent data available, “Late Show” averaged 3.79 million viewers, down 1% from the same period last year. And during the week of Sept. 29, the second week of Letterman’s tirade against McCain, the program’s average viewership was 3.63 million, down from 3.94 million the week before.

Despite the pounding he received, McCain appeared determined to return to Letterman’s program today, hoping to smooth things over. When his campaign plane was delayed for two hours at the Philadelphia airport this afternoon, an aide announced that McCain had chartered a helicopter to get to New York for the show, saying it was important for McCain to be there on time.

Thirty minutes later, a navy blue helicopter with thin gold stripes swooped down next to McCain’s plane.

Steve Duprey, McCain’s close friend and frequent traveling companion, said McCain felt it was important to keep his commitment to Letterman.

Asked why McCain still felt obligated after he’d been bashed by Letterman for three weeks, Duprey shrugged and said: "He didn't care."

"We moved heaven and earth for Mr. Letterman,” Duprey joked to reporters after they watched McCain disappear into the Philadelphia sky. “I thought we should call him up and say, ‘Dave, we have a problem’ ... and send a [McCain] cut-out over.”

-- Matea Gold and Maeve Reston

(Photo courtesy AP)

Comments

[Donna Tagliaferri]

I worte to Dave and told him we had broken up....I have watched David Letterman for 30 years, since he was on daytime TV.....I was furious that he was so mean....just mean. Who needs that? At 11:30 I am looking for FUNNY!!!! I get mean stuff all day from everywhere...I don't need it from David Letterman.

[mike]

McCain is an honorable man. He keeps his promises. I feel that I can trust him. I may not agree with everything he says and does, but I can judge him by what he has said and done over decades of service to our country. We need a man of such caliber and trustworthiness back in the White House.

[bugsmomma@mchsi.com]

I agree with you all about the disrespect and not funny.Money does not make you respectable or
funny on these shows. Thank you for the views. I watch less than I used to.

[Observer]

Dave's show often features 'stupid pet tricks.' And he wants to be taken seriously? Dave needs to get over himself.

[Dylan]

I personally think that McCain should have gotten worse.. He pulled a George Dubya with the obvious lying.. There are WMDs in Iraq? RLY?.. McCain, you're going back to Washington to fix our economy? RLY? They're both idiots, both republicans, both war mongers. If McCain gets elected we're going to go so deep into an economic recession that not even all of Europe and Asia combined could get us out of it. Our country will be 'screwed up'.. But, the way things go, a lot of people will probably vote McCain because they're either self-righteous, racist, or hoping for a woman president. Seriously, I'm for a woman president.. just not Sarah Palin, I know more about the world and terrorism than that dumb broad does and I'm a high school drop out. Please, don't ruin our country even more than it is now.

[Sandra Sappa]

Disgusted (hardly) Democrat: wait a moment - let's back up. I think the slight by McCain was that he cancelled his appearance on Letterman under the supposed guise of his 'riding in on a white horse' to Washington grandstand during the bailout negotiations which happened before he got there. Coupled with this grandstanding was an appearance on Katie Couric's show in which he was inadvertently caught backstage having 'makeup' applied. So he lied to Letterman, he took his time 'rushing' back to the capital. I'm not a fan of Letterman, but I don't blame him for playing the slight to the max. Why should he let McCain get away with it.

We do not forget and will not forget the BS that the McCain campaign has and continues to try. He says one thing and stabs you in the back the next moment. The man is a pain in the a-- and should be sitting on that a-- at home where he belongs and where he can play his cute games with his Rethug friends. We're not laughing. DIsgusted Republican.

[Gary Verville]

You tell them Dave. The truth hurts.

[Dane]

Hey Dave,

Gotta love that you have the integrity to not let someone blow you off with lies just because he thinks he's more important.

McCain is a sour old kraught and Palin is indeed terrifyingly ignorant. Hope you can find personal peace with the nuts without lying on their behalf. GL!

[bugsmomma@mchsi.com]

I agree with you guys. letterman is disgusting. too bad. when i was a kid......He revolts me now.
I don't want to see him anymore.. I have a choice with the channels now...no complaining honeys!!!!

[Joe the Plumber(sort of a plumber wanna be)]

Mccain is the JERK .
Palin needs quite a few pancake dinners at International House of Pancakes to bulk up her
light weight qualifications.
Lying is a character flaw. UP TILL THEN I RESPECTED MCCAIN. But if he will lie to an old friend for political expediency, then he will AND SURE IS LYING TO US VOTER.

[Gary]

Who really cares what Letterman thinks? I'm surprised McCain wasted his time going back on his show after all the whining. Letterman's a sad case.

[n quinn]

There is just no nice way to say this but....Dave you just aren't important enough during a campaign to worry too much about. I know that you have a lot of viewers and all but I think people just don't look at the entertainement industry as being very intelligent. Creative yes but lets face it your not in touch with real people and their lives. You represent an escape from reality which can be fun but I can't think of anything more frightening than Hollywood running our country! Now hop on into your limosine and give us a break. Maybe Britney is ready to come back and give you a serious interview but please stay out of politics!

[kangaroo]

I thought Dave was acting like a five year old with his constant whining. He is not professional in the least and lost whatever respect he ever had. He is using his show totally as a poliitcal platform and it's sooooo obvious how far left he is.

[McBlame]

McCain is an angry, demented codger who should thank Lettermen for letting him try to get some buzz ahead of the election. His campiagn is pathetic.

[agree with most here]

indeed in the end the news is the news and comedy is comedy (altho both try to mix it up with the two now and then)

[Jeff]

Dave Wolford, how is Letterman brave? McCain doesn't do his show and then Letterman goes on for a couple of weeks blasting him on his little show. I mean a talk show host taking shots at Republicans, that is almost a given these days. It certainly isn't courageous, try overreacting a bit more.

[Richard]

Really? Letterman was inappropriate?? McCain says he has to "rush back to Washington" and then sticks around for another day and goes on other news shows. Then gets back to DC and by all accounts makes things worse? McCain still seems to think there is nothing wrong with saying one thing and doing another.

Thanks for three weeks of great laughs Dave! You're right, Blinky DID looks like a retiree looking for his Buick during the second debate!

[L]

Hey - you think Letterman is funny - check out this new Obama video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxtclkWgokQ

[Louise Briggs]

I think Dave let McCain off too easy! I watched the clip where Letterman shouted to McCain on Couric's show, "Hey John...need a rid to the airport several times" & thought it was just great! i'll kinda miss having McCain the butt of Letterman's jokes but MCCain can't seem to do anything but supply more grist for the mill despite himself, so I think Letterman will be back on track soon.

[Pihil100a]

Letterman is LAME. I'm not voting for McCain (or Obama), but why would anyone waste time watching an out-of-touch comedian?