Could Colbert's 'Run' Hurt Ron Paul?

On his show Monday, Stephen Colbert urged his supporters to take to the polls in South Carolina thusly: "Independents, Democrats, college kids, viewers of my show … my good friends on Reddit, young people of the Internet—stand up and shout!" Hmm. Does that list of people sound familiar? Because Peter Grier of the Christian Science Monitor thinks it sounds a lot like a list of people who would otherwise support Ron Paul, who is also relying on young, independent voters.

In New Hampshire, those voters powered Paul to second, with a 46% plurality of 18- to- 29-year-olds. South Carolina isn't a strong state for Paul—polls have him tied for third with around 14%—"but you know how the media play the expectations game," Grier reasons. If Colbert can pick off a chunk of Paul voters, the media will declare it a significant disappointment for him. Colbert isn't on the South Carolina ballot, but has urged viewers to vote for Herman Cain in his stead. (More Stephen Colbert stories.)