Washington: Standup comedian Trevor Noah has mocked the White House and Joe Biden administration for hosting an indoor dinner for the media that he called a “superspreader” event.
“It is my great honor to be speaking tonight at the nation's most distinguished superspreader event,” he said to laughs during the Correspondents' Dinner.
The Daily Show host mocked Washington's elite for hosting the mass indoor gathering on Saturday, just a few weeks after multiple members of the Biden administration and members of Congress contracted Covid-19 following the Gridiron Dinner, another formal Washington event.
“For real, what are we doing here? Did none of you learn anything from the Gridiron dinner? Nothing?” he said.
“I expect this from Sean Hannity (a fellow talk show host), but the rest of you, what are you doing?” Noah said. “You spent the last two years telling everyone the importance of wearing masks and avoiding large indoor gatherings. Then the second someone offers you a free dinner, you turn into Joe Rogan (podcaster)."
Noah illustrated with "many should have known something was wrong when Anthony Fauci – White House's chief medical adviser – “thought it was too dangerous” to attend the event while “Pete Davidson thinks it's OK”.
Taking a dig at Biden, he said “I was a little confused on why me” for having been invited to host the event. “But then I was told that you get your highest approval ratings when a biracial African guy is standing next to you.”
“People have been so hard on you, which I don't get,” Noah said to Biden, before continuing with an inflation-related punchline: “Ever since you've come into office, things are really looking up: Gas is up, rent is up, food is up. Everything...”
According to the US media reports, the last time a president (Barack Obama) and comedian shared the same stage at the White House Correspondents' Dinner (WHCA) was six years ago in 2016.
Donald Trump shunned the event while in office, and the WHCA dinner was sidelined by the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
In conclusion, Noah hit a serious note directing journalists and media attendees on the importance of free press. “I stood here tonight and I made fun of the President of the United States and I'm going to be fine,” he said, repeating what Biden said about how he (Noah) could make fun of a president without repercussions like in Russia.
Biden, in his address, took a jab at Russian leader Vladimir Putin, saying comedian Trevor Noah can roast the President of the United States “unlike in Moscow, you won't go to jail”.
“In America, you have the right to seek the truth and speak the truth, even if it makes people in power uncomfortable,” Noah said. (UNI)
