Country Music Association Awards hosts Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley poked fun at the buggy launch of the Obamacare website during the ceremony Wednesday, as officials struggled to fix the site that’s had more troubles than even the most world-weary cowboy crooner.
But not everybody was into the joke. At the first mention of the health-care plan, the audience cheered and applauded loudly, while some viewers at home seemed surprised by the topic, judging from the response online.
For the health care-themed bit, Paisley feigned an injury, saying he had "twerked" his back and needed to see a doctor. As Underwood tried to sign him up for Obamacare on her laptop, the country star joked about the glitchy Healthcare.gov website: "Why is it spinning? Why is it smoking?"
The pair then launched into a parody of George Strait's "Amarillo by Morning," singing instead, "Obamacare by Morning." They jabbed at the various bugs the website has had since its Oct. 1 launch, in particular the sluggish pace at which many users have reported the site loads pages.
"I'm gonna wind up with hemorrhoids if I sit here 'til dawn," the duo sang. "We'll have cataracts and dementia."
They ended the little ditty with, "Obamacare by morning, over six people served."
That last bit was in reference to notes by the Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which showed that only six people were able to sign up on the first day of that HealthCare.gov was available. (The government has since promised that the website will work well by the end of November.)
At-home viewers seemed mostly amused by the performance:
But not everyone was laughing.