On the second official episode of its new season, "Saturday Night Live" took a break from send-ups of Barack Obama and Mitt Romney to focus on some of the peripheral aspects of the campaign, including Ann Romney and undecided voters.
On "Weekend Update," Mrs. Romney--played by newcomer Kate McKinnon--defended her husband's recent gaffes, arguing that the campaign has been particularly grueling--and that the pair have sacrificed a major part of their lives in their bid for the White House.
"We're missing apple picking season," she said. "We love apple-picking season, Seth. It's like Mormon Mardi Gras. I once drank so much apple cider, I woke up the next morning in my bed wearing my pajamas."
McKinnon's Romney also dismissed the notion that she and Mitt are elitists compared to the Obamas.
"Did I miss something?" she asked. "Is hanging out with Jay-Z and Beyoncé a thing regular people do now? People are always saying I'm unrelatable because I had a horse in the Olympics. Well, let me tell you what: I would kill that horse if I could meet Beyoncé."
"Running a Republican campaign is so hard," she continued. "If you're a Democrat, you get to eat with cool people like George Clooney. If you're a Republican, you get to shake Jon Voight's cold lizard hand."
"Do you really think this would be going better if you'd nominated someone else?" she asked. "Who? Rick Santorum? Are you thinking you missed the boat with Newt Gingrich? If you think I'm unrelatable, check out Callista Gingrich. She's like a character from 'Mars Attacks.' At least my hair moves."
In a fake ad paid for by the "Low-Information Voters of America" political action committee, undecided voters aired some of their most-pressing questions.
"Who is the president right now?" one asked. "Is he or she running?"
"What happens if the president dies?" asked another. 'Has anyone thought about who would replace him? What's your plan, gentlemen?"
"Can women vote?" a female undecided asked. "Because if not, I've got a big problem with that."
"We hear a lot about our dependence on foreign oil but what is oil? What is it used for?"
But perhaps the night's best bit of political satire came during a rant by "Weekend Update" anchor Seth Meyers about Obama's seeming inability to take advantage of Romney's stumbles:
President Obama, what are you doing? Your poll numbers are looking great. Your opponent is in flames. I haven't heard Joe Biden's name in months, which is great. Then you come out and say, 'Hey, I can't change Washington from the inside.' I'm not saying what you said isn't true. I'm saying, why are you saying anything during this Romney tailspin?
I mean, let's review. On Monday, a secret tape is released in which Romney insults half of the country. And then that same day he stands by those remarks. On Wednesday, he does a town hall for Hispanics in brown face. Then on Friday, Paul Ryan gets booed by the AARP. And then, instead of just enjoying it, you go, 'Hey everybody! Remember my campaign slogan? Yeah, I can't do that.' Don't make this hard on yourself. You're like the criminal who gets away with murder and then starts sending the cops puzzles to figure it out.
Romney's campaign, Meyers added, is "getting crazier than the last season of 'Lost.' "Was Clint Eastwood supposed to be the smoke monster?"