Hillary Clinton Goes ‘Between Two Ferns’ in Search of Young Voters

(Bloomberg) -- Hillary Clinton found a place to boost her bona fides with young voters: "Between Two Ferns." 

Clinton's appearance on comedian Zach Galifianakis' satirical talk show on FunnyOrDie.com debuted Thursday, with the host skewering the Democratic presidential nominee on everything from her use of a private e-mail server to the historic nature of her candidacy. 

“Are you excited to be the first girl president?” Galifianakis asked. 

Clinton played along. "Being president would be such an extraordinary honor and responsibility," she said, "but being the first woman elected president, and what that would mean for our country, and particularly what that would mean for not just little girls, but for little boys, too, that's pretty special." 

Remaining in his stubbornly dim-witted character, Galifianakis followed up by asking, "As secretary, how many words per minute could you type? And how does President Obama like his coffee, like himself? Weak?"

"You know Zach, those are really out-of-date questions," Clinton replied. "You need to get out more."

The mock interview was taped in New York on the afternoon of Sept. 9, the same day Clinton was diagnosed with pneumonia, an illness that led to her stumbling at a Sept. 11 memorial event and recovering off the trail for several days afterward. In another cheeky touch, the show's producers added a chyron beneath her name during the video: "Had Pneumonia." 

The video’s rollout comes as Clinton takes new steps to reach out to millennials, many of whom have not warmed to her. Her approval rating among voters under 30 is just 33 percent, according to Gallup.

On Monday, she outlined a series of policy proposals aimed at millennials during a speech at Temple University in Philadelphia as she recalled the roots of her political involvement. “Even if you are totally opposed to Donald Trump, you may still have some questions about me – I get that and I want to do my best to answer those questions,” she said. “I will never be the showman my opponent is, and you know what? That's okay with me.”

Her campaign announced Thursday that it has reserved $30 million in digital advertising through Election Day aimed at reaching young voters.

"Between Two Ferns" and its brand of satiric, self-effacing humor reaches an audience of millions. One of its most viewed episodes featured Obama as its guest. 

—With assistance from Jennifer Epstein.

To contact the author of this story: David Knowles in San Francisco at dknowles9@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mike Nizza at mnizza3@bloomberg.net, Michael B Marois