Why McCain's 'Saturday Night Live' cameo matters

October 31, 4:46 PMNY Top News ExaminerLiza Viana

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You could call it the "Saturday Night Live effect." There's no question the late-night comedy sketch show has had a profound affect on the way voters see Barack Obama and John McCain, along with Sarah Palin, this election season.

Now, with many writing him off in his bid for the White House, McCain is going to be here in New York - the epicenter of the economic freefall that many would agree turned the campaign tides against him - to make another appearance on the show tomorrow night. This show will essentially be McCain's last chance to humanize himself to the millions of people across this country who are unsure whether he's the best candidate to lead this country out of the abyss into which it seems to be sinking.

Despite polls that show Obama with an average of a 6.4-point lead over his Republican rival, McCain campaign manager Rick Davis said today they're "pretty jazzed up about what we are seeing in the movement of this election."

"Obviously, we've had a lot of ups and downs in the course of this race, and the one that that has been the standard that the McCain campaign has created is that we fight back," he added.

McCain was a guest SNL host in 2002, which featured him singing Barbara Streisand songs. He also had two cameo spots in May, when he made jokes about his age and then segued to a riff on pork barrel spending projects. He is a funny guy. Anyone who has been on the campaign plane or bus with him can tell you that. Saturday's appearance could help him convey that side of him, especially to younger voters  - those who aren't already voting for Obama, that is. Are there any even out there?

But it will be the independents and undecideds McCain wants to sway - an AP poll out today says 1 in 7 voters out there are still persuadable. I doubt as many people will tune in tomorrow night as they did to watch Palin's debut on the show. But it still should be interesting. And, if for no other reason than it's Friday and this video makes me laugh every time I watch it, here's video of the Palin rap from her recent SNL appearance. If only they could get McCain to do something like this...[click on the link if you can't see the video below]