actually - the entire segment I saw, which was the last 20 minutes - Alda performed exceptionally well as the conservative candidate - (eloquent defenses of limited government, drilling in ANWAR) - so much so that I was stunned that the West Wing writers could write a compelling conservative case, and that Alda could deliver it.
I would even go so far as to say it was an important TV moment for conservatives. Maybe the first time conservatism was portrayed (mostly) correctly, and liberal issues debunked by a main stream media production.
Maybe our candidates should have the producers write a script for them ;)