MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: On the Monday, November 20 episode of 'The Late Show', host Stephen Colbert humorously highlighted the White House tradition of pardoning turkeys, tracing it back 76 years to President Harry S Truman.
The chosen turkeys of this year, named Liberty and Bell, reflected a nod to Pennsylvania, a swing state. Colbert quipped that it was much more "elegant" than when Bill Clinton apparently named two turkeys "Exit 154" and "Gabagool" to appeal to New Jersey voters.
Stephen Colbert jokes about the comforts enjoyed by the pardoned turkeys
Further into his monologue, Stephen Colbert playfully shared details about the pampered life of this year's pardoned turkeys, Liberty and Bell. He humorously described their indulgences, including a bubble bath with various ingredients and a love for Taylor Swift's music.
Colbert added a touch of comedy by imagining the turkeys arriving in DC in a luxurious black Cadillac Escalade and jokingly suggesting they were headed to prom with the theme "Enchantment Under the Gravy."
He said, "Liberty. Really? You don't know what happens to turkeys? Am I the one informing you what happens to turkeys?" adding, "Liberty and Bell enjoyed all the comforts of a hotel, starting with taking a bubble bath."
"Oh, bubble baths are great for turkeys. Put them in the warm water, add some bath salts, maybe some bath peppers, maybe some bath carrots and onions, whatever herbs are lying around and just bathe them low and slow. They'll love it," joked Colbert.
Stephen Colbert came up with a Turkey-themed version of Taylor Swift's 'I Knew You Were Trouble'.
Moving on, Stephen Colbert playfully revealed that the turkeys are "Swifties" and humorously presented a turkey-themed version of Taylor Swift's song 'I Knew You Were Trouble'.
His joke hinted at Joe Biden's gaffe during the White House turkey pardoning ceremony as the POTUS confused Taylor Swift with Britney Spears while talking about the former's international 'The Eras Tour', as per NBC News.
The altered lyrics included references to trotting, flightlessness, and lying by the casserole, creating an entertaining moment in the show. The audience responded with cheers and applause to the turkey-centric parody.
"Gobble when you walked in/That's called trotting/You can't fly because/You're flightless/Now you're lying/By the casserole/[gobbling] gobble, gobble, gobble. [gobbling] gobble, gobble, gobble," were the lyrics of the altered song.
Notably, the original lyrics stand, "I knew you were trouble when you walked in/So shame on me now/Flew me to places I'd never been/Now I'm lying on the cold hard ground/Oh, oh/Trouble, trouble, trouble/Oh, oh/Trouble, trouble, trouble."
The humor continued with the suggestion that someone might want to wear a turkey suit to seek a pardon, keeping the audience entertained with the lighthearted take on the turkey pardoning tradition.