Stephen Colbert

It’s almost not fair anymore to point out when a popular comedy show takes another shot at Arizona state government. With a budget deficit of more than 20 percent (and perhaps double that for the next fiscal year), there are only bad choices and worse options for the governor and state Legislature. Someone is bound to poke some fun, no matter what they do.

But Stephen Colbert’s “The Word” has to be the best regular feature of any comedy show out there. The segment is a parody of Bill O’Reilly’s “Talking Points” commentary on The O’Reilly Factor. Between Colbert’s conservative persona, what he’s actually saying and the running counterpoint in words on the right of the TV screen, there will be two, three or even four levels of humor on display at the same time. Pure hilarity.

So I must call your attention to Tuesday’s “The Word,” when Colbert took on Arizona’s plan to sell nearly all of its prisons for cash to help balance the budget. While I’m not as troubled as other people by the concept of private prisons, I do understand their concerns. And Colbert’s final line really is a classic.

The segment is long at 4.5 minutes, but definitely worth your time.

Hat tip to Jim Nintzel at Tucson Weekly for writing about this first.