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Tuesday, 6 July, 2010 2:33 PM

The Capital Steps deliver two doses of political humor to the Ann Arbor Summer Festival

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The Capitol Steps are a political satire group that was founded in 1981. It was originally made up of Congressional staffers who performed around Washington D.C.. However, it now employs professional actors and singers. They put on two fantastic performances at the Power Center on July 4. It was a great way to celebrate our nation's independence. I went to the earlier performance at 5 p.m. and it sort of reminded me of watching the White House Correspondents Dinner. Basically, people dress up as politicans and poke fun at their mistakes while in office.

Actors were dressed to look like President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Former Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, among many others. Some of the characters were easy to figure out, while others were more difficult. Thankfully, each actor introduced himself so I could follow along. There is also a gentleman who plays the piano on stage during the entire show.

The show began with the joke, "Remain seated and wait for a federal bailout," then the crowd laughed. Then, there was a skit with golfers Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. A woman comes on stage and pretends to hit Woods in the fly for having affairs for several women.

Then, a guy came on stage who looked like President Obama and talked about the recent BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. "Please forgive that outburst," he said. "We are accepting any ideas no matter how ludacris. The government will buy up all the seafood in the gulf and it will come to you pre-blackened." The crowd laughed.

Then, the man who looked like Obama introduced a woman who looked like Hillary Clinton. "It's a pleasure to be introduced as, I mean, by the president," she said. The Obama look-a-like responded by saying: "She does that all the time."

Another politican came on stage to tell Obama which side of the aisle he should be on and said: "In the middle of the road, that's where he should stay."

There was a large skit on the Democractic health care bill. A nurse came on stage and said since the "Cash for Clunkers" program went well, the government will soon start a "Cash for Codgers" program. Another woman came on stage to turn in her father who was in his mid 80's and the nurse said she would give her $5,000 for him.

A woman who looked like Sarah Palin came on stage with a sign that read "Palin 2012." She asked how many people read her latest book and only a few people in the audience responded. "Me neither," the Palin look-a-like said. "I heard it was a hit."

There was a section of the show devoted to airport security. A woman dressed as a TSA agent said after the Shoebomber, we have to take our shoes off at the security checkpoint. After the attempted underwear bomber, people now have to come to the airport without wearing underwear. The crowd laughed. The woman also referred to the new full body scanners and said it is like doing an MRI. It would also come with a $15 co-pay, she said. The crowd chuckled.

The crowd was mostly senior citizens. The woman seated next to me said she saw The Capital Steps for the last 25 years or so. The shows change each year depending on the actions of politicians in Washington. You'll never see the same show year after year. The jokes change a lot over time.

The Capital Steps put on two hilarious performances in Ann Arbor. I would definitely recommend seeing them the next time they are in town. There are an equal number of jokes for Democrats and for Republicans to enjoy. Although kids are welcome, I would say its better for adults because children may not understand the jokes.

For more information on The Capital Steps, visit www.capsteps.com.