It’s not difficult to shock the audience of the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.
Each year, the elite of politics, journalism and Hollywood meet to share a dinner and listen to the current President crack a few jokes at his own expense. The event also features a monologue from some well-known comedian. Typically one that is known for making political jokes. And inevitably, at least a few of the jokes manage to shock or insult some group within Washington. Whether it’s Don Imus’ crude and mean-spirited jokes directed at the President, or Stephen Colbert’s mocking of Bush’s detachment–each year the dinner is followed by a few days of whiny complaining from the left or the right. Given all that, it’s to be expected that hiring Wanda Sykes as this year’s entertainment was bound to cause some P.R. problems. She’s brutally funny, but her jokes aren’t much fun if you find yourself the target of one of them. Sykes doesn’t much care what people think about her, which will probably turn into a coping mechanism over the next few days. “Tonight marks the ten-day anniversary of my first 100 days.” “I would like to talk about what my administration plans to achieve in the next 100 days. During the second 100 days, we will design, build and open a library dedicated to my first 100 days.” “I want to welcome everyone tonight. Most of you have covered me…and all of you voted for me…my apologies to the Fox table.”
“I have to say that tomorrow is a rough day for Rohm Emmanuel, because I don’t think he’s ever said the word “mother” followed by the word “day.”