Sunday, April 28, 2013

Obama vs. O'Brien at White House Correspondent's dinner

The White House correspondents dinner has become a top-heavy celebrity schmooze party, earning much grousing from members of the working press, but only the New York Times has actually taken the step of no longer sending anyone in an official capacity to cover what has become a froth fest.
     An elaborately-filmed clip made for the dinner featured  Kevin Spacey as his House Of Cards character, which seems to be a catty imitation of John Slattery as Roger Sterling in Mad Men.
     Many outlets reported that Obama's biggest laugh was when he rued the diminution of his youthful good looks by observing that he is no longer the strapping young Muslim socialist he used to be.
     That isn't true. He got a bigger laugh at Mitch McConnell's expense, which shows how reviled Kentucky's senior senate reptile really is in Washington and why his poll numbers are finally sagging in the bluegrass state. 
Some folks still don't think I spent enough time with Congress. "Why don't you get a drink with Mitch McConnell," they ask. Really? Why don't YOU get a drink with Mitch McConnell?


Conan O'Brien, who has been in front of network television cameras for decades, was unable to deliver his lines as effectively as President Obama, but some of his material, which usually is funnier read than heard, was speaker-proof:
  • I just sold my twitter account to Al Jazeera for $500,000,000.
  • If the president laughs, everyone one laughs. If the Fox News Table laughs, a little girl just fell off her bike.
  • You know, some people say print media is dying but I don't believe it. And neither does my blacksmith.
  • After the election [Paul] Ryan said President Obama was reelected because of the high turnout of "urban" voters. Then when he was asked just how he liked his coffee, Paul Ryan said "No milk. Just urban."
  • Also joining us is a congressman from New York, Steve Israel. That's right. He's from New York, and his name is Steve Israel... Now there's pandering and then there's PANDERING. That's like having a congressman from South Carolina named Jesus Gun.
  • Seriously Mr. President... your hair is so white it could be a member of your cabinet.

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