The White House press corp dinner this year had Stephen Colbert speak. It’s always an irreverent and casual event, but this year Colbert delivers some real zingers. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen someone be directly critical of the Bush Administration in their faces. And he’s funny, so he gets away with it. But despite digs at Bush, Cheney, at al the best remarks are for the press corps itself:

What are you thinking, reporting on N.S.A. wiretapping or secret prisons in Eastern Europe? Those things are secret for a very important reason, they’re superdepressing. And if that’s your goal, well, misery accomplished. ...

Let’s review the rules. Here’s how it works. The president makes decisions, he’s the decider. The press secretary announces those decisions, and you people of the press type those decisions down. Make, announce, type. Put them through a spell check and go home. Get to know your family again. Make love to your wife. Write that novel you got kicking around in your head. You know, the one about the intrepid Washington reporter with the courage to stand up to the administration. You know, fiction.

Video here, 26 megs and 15 minutes. You can stop at 07:30 though, it goes to a stupid canned clip that never gets better.