The annual White Home correspondents’ dinner was held Saturday through which President Biden was joined by politicians, journalists and celebrities for an election yr roast, with the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas warfare and protests over the battle.
The occasion featured a roast of the president by comic Colin Jost, who additionally made jokes focusing on the media and Republican politicians, together with former President Trump and Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida.
“Like a lot of you right here tonight, I fake to do information on TV,” Jost informed the gang, referring to his “Saturday Evening Reside” skit.
A whole lot of pro-Palestinian protesters outdoors the occasion condemned Biden’s help for Israel and Western media protection of the warfare. This, as anti-Israel protests have been held on U.S. faculty campuses in latest weeks.
Chants of “Disgrace on you!” and “Free Palestine” have been heard as friends in fits and lengthy clothes made their approach inside for the dinner. Protesters accused U.S. journalists of not protecting the warfare sufficient and misrepresenting it once they do cowl it.
“Western media we see you, and all of the horrors that you simply conceal,” protesters chanted.
Contained in the occasion, Biden, 81, made jokes about his age whereas additionally utilizing the dinner as a chance to take photographs at Trump, his high challenger for the 2024 presidential election.
“Sure, age is a matter, and I am a grown man working once more a six-year-old,” Biden mentioned, referring to Trump.
“Look, age is the one factor we’ve in frequent. My vp truly endorses me,” the president added, as former Vice President Mike Pence refuses to endorse his former working mate.
Biden additionally joked about accusations that Congress is political theater, and took the chance to quote GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado being kicked out of a theater final yr for groping her date.
“Being here’s a reminder that people assume what’s going on in Congress is political theater,” the president mentioned. “That isn’t true. If congress have been theater, they’d have thrown out Lauren Boebert a very long time in the past.”
Media shops have been extremely essential of Biden as of late for not giving interviews to mainstream shops like The New York Occasions or The Wall Road Journal, amongst others. Biden skipped his Tremendous Bowl interview with CBS Information in February after canceling final yr’s Tremendous Bowl interview with Fox Information.
On high of journalists’ restricted entry to Biden for interviews, he has additionally held fewer press conferences than his predecessors.
As an alternative of giving interviews with conventional information media, Biden has just lately sat down with radio host Howard Stern and late evening host Seth Myers.
“To all of my pals within the press, and Fox Information, I’ve increased requirements,” Biden mentioned on Saturday. “I do interviews with sturdy unbiased journalists who thousands and thousands of individuals truly take heed to, like Howard Stern.”
Jost’s roast included mentions of Biden’s age, Trump’s authorized instances and unbiased presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s possibilities of successful the election.
“I did not know you have been going to point out photographs of me from highschool,” Jost mentioned. “It is not likely truthful. You may’t do it for President Biden as a result of the expertise wasn’t invented when he was in highschool.”
“How refreshing it’s to see a president at an occasion that does not start with a bailiff saying all rise?” Jost added. “And, I wish to level out, it’s after 10 p.m., Sleepy Joe continues to be awake. Whereas Trump has spent the previous week falling asleep in court docket each morning.”
Jost continued, “The Republican candidate for president owes half a billion in fines for financial institution fraud and is presently spending his days farting himself awake throughout a porn star hush cash trial and the race is tied? The race is tied. Nothing is smart anymore.”
Referencing Kennedy Jr.’s stance towards vaccines, Jost joked, “Like his vaccine card says, he would not have a shot.”
The comic in contrast the accomplishments of Biden and former President Obama, saying, “Obama bought [Osama] Bin Laden, you bought O.J. [Simpson].”
Jost additionally informed the president that he reminded him of his grandfather.
“A few of your greatest qualities remind me of his. And, I’ll say, he was 95, and he was nonetheless nice at stairs,” Jost mentioned, referring to cases of Biden falling down on the steps of Air Drive One. “I believe it’s as a result of he did not attempt to run up them.”