With the late-night comedy shows on hiatus due to the writers’ strike, readers of About.com Political Humor have stepped up to pinch hit with their own topical punch lines. Here's the latest round:

"Mississippi Republican Sen. Trent Lott, the Senate's minority whip, announced that he will be retiring from the Senate at the end of January, citing frustration over 'not being able to whip minorties.' Senator Lott will now spend time segregating his family." --Michael Hayne, New York

"Vice President Cheney was found to have an irregular heartbeat during an examination due to a persistent cough. His doctor believes the cough may be due to waterboarding a turkey in cold weather in preparation for Thanksgiving dinner." --Bob Hirschfeld, Maryland

"Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf will indeed quit as head of the army and take the oath of office for a third term later this week. This is a bad move; ditching the army is how you become President of the United States not Pakistan!" --Jake Novak, New York

"Oprah Winfrey will campaign for Barack Obama, the first time the talk show host has become directly involved in a presidential campaign. Her appearances with Obama are sure to draw huge crowds—especially since everyone who attends will receive a free car." --Bob Hirschfeld, Maryland

"Republican presidential hopeful Fred Thompson is proposing an income tax plan that would allow Americans to choose a simplified system with only two rates: 10% and 25%. Of course, the current 0% rate for major campaign donors will remain in effect regardless." --Jake Novak, New York

"Democratic presidential candidates vowed not to participate in a Dec 10 debate if the writers’ strike is not settled by then. Though the candidates claim it’s to show union solidarity, in reality a writers' strike would leave them unscripted for the debate." --Bob Hirschfeld, Maryland

"Rudy Giuliani proposed the concept of a 'virtual fence' of high tech monitoring along the Mexican border. He says the technology is very effective since his own estranged children use it to avoid him." --Bob Hirschfeld, Maryland

Previous Jokes

"Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan claims in his new book that he was misled by Vice President Cheney about the leak of a CIA operative. McClellan was unavailable for comment, reportedly spending Thanksgiving in the Caribbean — at Guantanamo Bay." --Bob Hirschfeld, Maryland

"A new report says that 27 million Americans will jam airports this Thanksgiving... 20 million of them will actually be travelers still delayed from last Thanksgving." --Jake Novak, New York

"Did you hear that Hillary Clinton's decided that if she's elected, she'll have only male interns working at the White House? She wants to make sure that Valerie Plame's cover is the only thing that gets blown there." --Barry Rabin, Pennsylvania

"After New York Gov. Elliot Spitzer withdrew his proposal to issue drivers licenses to illegal aliens, Hillary Clinton was asked if she had any regrets about her inconsistent comments on his plan. She responded, 'I never double-talk, but I understand why I do it.'" --Madeleine Begun Kane, New York

"After leaving a press conference earlier this week, Hillary Clinton’s staffers avoided a near catastrophe when four American flags came crashing down in front of the democratic candidate. Even flags are 'piling' on Hillary. In response, Rudy Giuliani said it’s a sign America will come crashing down like two towers in New York City where I was mayor if Hillary is elected." --Michael Hayne, New York

"An LAPD counterterrorism plan to map out local areas which might be likely to become isolated and susceptible to 'violent, ideologically-based extremism' has been shelved. It turns out all the cops already knew where Hollywood is." –Jake Novak, New York

Got jokes? Post them in our comments section or email them to politicalhumor.guide@about.com

Suffering from joke withdrawl? You can browse through our sprawling archive of late-night jokes skewering the likes of President Bush, Hillary Clinton, Rudy Giuliani, and the rest of the 2008 presidential candidates.