Comedian Jim Gaffigan, who recently portrayed Minnesota Governor Tim Walz on SNL, took sharp jabs at Kamala Harris and the Democrat Party during the 79th Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, where Harris was notably absent.
Instead of attending the long-standing bipartisan Catholic charity event, Harris opted for a pre-recorded video message.
Gaffigan did not waste the opportunity to mock her avoidance of real public engagement while prioritizing softball media appearances.
“This event has been referred to as the Catholic Met Gala. Twenty-two percent of Americans identify as Catholic. Catholics will be a key demographic in every battleground state,” Gaffigan said as the night’s emcee.
“I’m sorry. Why is Vice President Harris not here?” he continued.
“I mean, consider this. This is a room full of Catholics and Jews in New York City. This is a layup for the Democratic nominee. I mean, in her defense, I mean, she did find time to appear on “The View,” Howard Stern, Colbert and the long time staple of campaigning, the “Call Her Daddy” podcast. You know what I think it is? I think she doesn’t like me,” he added.
Recall that Kamala Harris appeared on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast, notorious for sexually explicit interviews with sex workers. No wonder why Kamala Harris was drawn to the podcast.
Gaffigan continued, taking a swipe at both Harris and President Joe Biden.
“The media has begun discussing the phenomenon of secret Trump voters. I don’t know if you’ve heard about this: people who publicly say they would never vote for Trump, but then, when they go into the voting booth, they do. It’s a small group. They’re called the Biden family,” he said.
WATCH:
JIM GAFFIGAN: “The media has begun discussing the phenomena of ‘secret Trump voters’ — people who publicly say they’d never vote for Trump, but then when they go in the voting booth, they do. It’s a small group. They’re called the ‘Biden family.’”
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) October 18, 2024
Gaffigan didn’t stop there. He poked fun at Harris’s rebranding as a “joyful warrior.”
“Our first presentation tonight will be by Vice President Kamala Harris. You have to admit, the Democrats have done an amazing job rebranding Vice President Harris. The term ‘Joyful Warrior’ was used so many times at the Democratic Convention that I felt like I was at a yoga retreat. Let’s start off in a joyful warrior pose and then go straight into downward-facing Doug Emhoff.”
Her trajectory from a mediocre Vice President to the Democrats’ hopeful standard-bearer was, as Gaffigan pointed out, less about accomplishments and more about optics.
“In just the course of a few months, she went from mediocre Vice President to everyone’s ‘Mamala.’ This is, of course, a historic race for many reasons.”
“If Vice President Harris wins this election, not only would she be the first female president, a Black woman would occupy the White House — a former Trump residence. Obviously, you wouldn’t be renting it to her. I mean, that would never happen anyway. Maybe if Doug did the signing.”
As Gaffigan continued, he zeroed in on the Democrats’ message that Trump’s re-election would be a threat to democracy.
He took a direct shot at Harris’s party, mocking the internal political coup that saw Biden withdraw from the race amid concerns over his cognitive health, paving the way for Harris to potentially take the reins.
“The Democrats have been telling us Trump, Trump’s reelection is a threat to democracy. In fact, they were so concerned of this threat, they staged a coup. Ousted their democratically elected incumbent, and installed Kamala Harris,” Gaffigan said.
“In other words, all her dreams have come true. It really makes you consider the power of prayer, right, Cardinal? Sometimes prayers take 3.5 years and a George Clooney op-ed,” he added.
WATCH:
JIM GAFFIGAN: “The Democrats have been telling us Trump’s reelection is a threat to democracy. In fact, they were so concerned of this threat, they staged a coup, ousted their democratically elected incumbent, and installed Kamala Harris.
“Sometimes prayers take 3.5 years and a… pic.twitter.com/pyFJvzA5ij
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) October 18, 2024
Gaffigan’s remarks weren’t just about Harris’s absence, but about the broader failures of the Democratic Party. His jokes about Letitia James, New York’s attorney general, watching over the crowd like Big Brother, hinted at the overreach of liberal governance.
“I’m glad you guys have a sense of humor about this, because this room is undeniably impressive. The prestige, the wealth, the allegations. I mean, wow. Don’t feel bad if you don’t have any — I have no allegations yet, okay? Which reminds me, Letitia James is here. She had a great year. She’s just back there, watching all of you. She is watching.”
“By the way, can I point out that this is a very nimble thing I’m trying to do? Because if I am too critical of Vice President Harris, I will lose friendships and mess up my career. If I am too critical of President Trump, I will lose friendships and improve my career. Do you know what I mean?”
“Shortly, I’ll introduce President Trump, who will likely talk about how Vice President Harris’s absence proves that she hates Catholics, Americans, and babies,” he said. “Then CNN and MSNBC will say Trump went too far, and Fox News will say he was pitch perfect,” Gaffican said.
This wasn’t just any charity event Harris skipped. The Al Smith Dinner, a historic Catholic gathering dating back to 1945, is one of the most significant bipartisan, non-campaign events, aimed at promoting civility, humor, and patriotism.
The last presidential candidate to skip the event was Walter Mondale in 1984, according to Fox News.
Harris’s decision to bypass it, even as her pre-recorded message played, left a sour taste in the mouths of many, including New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, the dinner’s host.
Speaking on his podcast earlier in the week, Dolan lamented the vice president’s absence: “This year will be imbalanced because sadly, Kamala Harris isn’t coming. It’s a shame because the nature of the evening is to bring people together. The nature of the evening is civility, patriotism, humor. It’s not a campaign speech. It’s not a campaign stop.”
Watch his full speech below:
