Rachel Maddow has done a great job tonight on Countdown.

[TheWraith]

She does a good imitation of Keith's style, and I think if she got to do things in her own format, she could knock it out of the park. A hell of a lot of fun, and she's absolutely adorable when she does it.

[Brigid]

1. Yep, she was great.

I don't know why she hasn't done this before.

[TheWraith]

4. I guess she's just never been a TV person before.

Does anyone else think that this might be a testbed to see if she can handle a cable news program? Maybe MSNBC is looking at her as a potential anchor.

[libnnc]

10. I think they've been grooming her for a while

I've noticed she's appeared more and more as a contributer over the last few months. I can totally see her getting her own show in the future. A gig as a regular sub on Countdown seems like a natural step in that direction.

[Spiffarino]

14. Oh, I hope you're right.

David Gregory's show isn't exactly great. Rachel would have been a perfect fit for Bowtie-Boy's slot at 6:00. She's smart, funny, cute and very entertaining.

[asjr]

18. Rachel is real. Gregory is

playacting. His head has gotten so large I am amazed he can get through the studio door.

[Howler]

41. Rachel Maddox

I would like to see MSNBC take Morning Joe off and replace him
with Rachel Maddow or give her Gregory's time slot until a
prime time programing slot opens up. I just Love Rachel she is
Brilliant!

[Rhiannon12866]

37. She has a contract with MSNBC, which is why she's been on more often, lately.

And I absolutely agree that she deserves her own show there, is one of the most intelligent minds and clearest thinkers around today. I listen to her radio show and always learn something. She was very nervous about hosting for Keith, but found her stride and was just excellent!:applause:

[Cooley Hurd]

2. She has her own style that fits perfectly on "Countdown."

Kudos to Rachel!!!:bounce:

[C_U_L8R]

3. Encore Encore !!!

She was awesome !

[islandmkl]

5. put her on back-to-back with KO....see ya, Dan....

and all will be better in our world...

[frogcycle]

23. well, Dan gets to make that decision

he clearly likes her, but don't count on his stepping aside to make room for her. Even though he is no longer GM, I suspect he has clout.

[BattyDem]

6. She was terrific!

She nailed Keith's style (which was pretty funny), but she also brought her own charm to the show. Give this woman her own show ... NOW!

Congrats, Rachel - you were awesome! :applause: :applause: :applause:

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. She did well, she was nervous, but she did well

[Fuzz]

8. She was obviously nervous, but she did well. Best sub!

[Judi Lynn]

35. Absolutely! She is in a totally different class from the newsreaders who usually step in.

She has a LOT of presence which distinguishes her from the others.

Even nervous, she seems like a natural.

[SeattleGirl]

9. She did GREAT!

:applause: :applause: :applause:

[lonestarnot]

11. Great job Rachel!

:applause:

[Old and In the Way]

12. She was really good...nt

[babylonsister]

13. She sounded nervous to me at first, but she settled right down and was

fabulous! :loveya: Rachel! And you could tell she was happy to be there!

[chixydix]

16. Maybe a LITTLE nervous, but not enough to matter. She was TERRIFIC!

(I see her on FSTV now and then...she's beautiful there too) :D

[frogcycle]

24. she did sound nervous

muffed a couple of words - and told j Alter or somebody that she was nervous - but she done good. Keith gave her an on-air peptalk last night - just a couple of words, but made it clear he welcomed her

[tavalon]

26. Wow, that I would love to see

I used to listen to her on the radio and after a while, I realized she never muffed a single word or phrase and always so crisp - I started listening to hear her mess up and she never, ever did. It was amazing. I stayed with her long after I couldn't listen to Randy anymore.

[frogcycle]

28. it wasn't bad

just a bit of a stammer or false start a couple of times -but noteworthy for her


she is so sharp as a tack. Actually better when doing commentary - the hosting role was a little different - she would kind of rush through the setup and then introduce the guest = probably thinking ahead

but as I said - nothing bad - better than 95% of veterans

[tavalon]

34. Yeah, crispest, neatest voice in radio and able to do back and forth

conversation with the same crispness. I loved listening to her.

[Lex]

39. I always say being nervous shows you want to do a good job!

I think she settled down well and if she does it a time or two more, she'll lose her outward nervousness.

She is teh awesum.

[bluethruandthru]

15. Best sub ever!

Rachel really needs her own show..but then I'd miss seeing her on all the other shows where she's a guest!

[TheWraith]

19. I would agree.

The only other sub for Keith who did about as well was Brian Unger.

[renate]

32. I miss Brian Unger too

I wonder where he went.

[TheWraith]

44. He seems to be doing NPR and also bouncing around a bit.

Part of the reason Unger was so good at it was his comedic timing. In addition to being a writer and news commentator, he's also a professional comedian. One of his first national gigs was as a contributor to The Daily Show, 96-98.

[soleft]

17. Email MSNBC - Let them hear it!

[roguevalley]

20. I love rachel. :)

[FightingIrish]

21. Hear, hear. I am not disappointed

Here's a very positive thread about something really good happening and that guy "Ignored" has not bothered to post.

[calimary]

22. She was SUPERB!!! Brava!!!!!!

I was VERY pleasantly surprised. Not that I didn't expect her to do well, but she just fit perfectly. Perfectly. Really dove-tails beautifully with the Olbermann-type attitude. "Spectacularly nervous," she says, but she acquitted herself just splendidly. Cool as a cucumber and as charming as a puppy. She's quick-witted, brilliant, engaging, very pleasant to look at without being distracting, CREDIBLE to look at and listen to. The simplicity of the superficial stuff - her style, hair, make-up, wardrobe choices - contributes to that. She seized that anchor chair and made it hers.

Made me SO proud!

She should have her own show. She'd do far better than David Gregory, and would be a MOST welcome change from Tweety. I can dream, can't I?

[libnnc]

29. It's her confidence that gets me

I'd give anything to have that. She was outstanding tonight.

[renate]

33. that was cute

"Spectacularly nervous"--I wonder why? She must be used to sitting behind an MSNBC desk and ad-libbing as a commentator--I'd have thought that anchoring would be relatively easy. Maybe because the stakes are high... at least I hope they are, if that would mean that she was basically auditioning for an anchor spot. That would be wonderful.

[tavalon]

25. I loved Rachel Maddow on the radio

She always had such a crisp language style, never stumbled and was always razor sharp. I thought at the time that if she went national, she would be a huge star. I like seeing that star begin to soar.

[ConsAreLiars]

27. She was great as always, but I would love to see what kind of a show she could create

using her own style and bringing together her own team. And having the GE-MS-NBC budget to work with. Oops. GE-MS-NBC aren't likely to let that happen. They dumped the mild-mannered touchy-feely Donahue for opposing warmongering. They might now tolerate and even promote Olberman for the ratings he gets, but I doubt they want to risk further challenges to their own bloodsucking agenda and profits by bringing on another such voice.

[texshelters]

30. She was Okay

When she stuck to the script, she was excellent. When she went off script, she was a little jittery.

Then again, who wouldn't be?

Tex Shelters

[shireen]

31. somebody give that girl her own tv news show!

She's smart, witty, and graceful.

And she makes us look good! LOL!

[Lex]

40. I agree 100%. Maybe this was a bit of a test drive.

She would be great in her own format. She was great last night.

[monmouth]

36. This entire thread should be sent to the suits at MSNBC. Everyone agrees

she's great whether it be on Countdown or any other show. Good on you Rachel, great job...

[jtrockville]

38. All the guests seems to enjoy her too!

[Political Heretic]

42. I cannot go too far in my praise of this woman. Brilliant. Credible,

one of the best women in the business.

I don't have to agree with her all the time to utterly respect her at a level that approaches reverence. :)

[frogcycle]

46. you should have left out 'women'

one of the best in the business

[JBoy]

43. She was great for her first time

Spoke a little too quickly a few times and tripped over some words. That can be chalked up to nerves. For Rachel they probably need to bring the camera back a little; her head moves around more than Keith when she speaks and I found that a little distracting. All nitpicky points. All in all, a solid performance.

[samsingh]

45. she should get her own showS