<\/a>It appears that Republican Vice Presidential candidate Mike Pence has been watching \u201cMonty Python\u2019s Flying Circus.\u201d Not just watching, but channeling. In the Vice Presidential debate last night, Pence did a pretty good imitation of a character played by Michael Palin in the famous, hilarious, \u201cDead Parrot\u201d sketch, which first aired in 1969.<\/p>\n

In case you don\u2019t remember it, in the \u201cDead Parrot\u201d sketch, Palin plays the owner of a pet shop. A customer walks in, carrying a bird cage containing an inert parrot. He demands a full refund, because, he says, he purchased the Norwegian Blue Parrot just 30 minutes ago, and it\u2019s already, obviously, dead. [\u201cIt\u2019s an ex-parrot.\u201d] \u00a0The pet shop owner, with a straight face, repeatedly denies the obvious. [\u201cIt\u2019s resting\u2026probably pining for the fjords.\u201d]<\/p>\n

We can see that the bird is dead. He can see that the bird is dead. And the customer can see that the bird is dead. But the shopkeeper simply stonewalls, throwing out multiple alternative descriptions for what is clearly a dead parrot.<\/p>\n

As I watched Pence\u2019s performance last night, I kept thinking of that scene, as Pence repeatedly shook his head and denied that Donald Trump has said what he actually, very publicly, has said.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the Monty Python sketch:<\/p>\n