WASHINGTON: The White House Correspondents' Dinner hosted by The Daily Show correspondent Hasan Minhaj, was held over the weekend. While the traditional get-together is known to be warm where the President and journalists engage in banter, this year's WHCD became the first ever to be missed by the commander-in-chief in 36 years.
Donald Trump's absence, however, did not stop the Indian-origin comedian from making digs at Trump. “Ok, we've got to address the elephant that's not in the room. I think he's in Pennsylvania because he can't take a joke,” Minhaj, who was the main performer of the evening said about his absence. The event came shortly after Trump addressed supporters in Pennsylvania, characteristically attacking the press, calling them “fake news” and speaking against immigration, and open borders.
The dinner, meanwhile, spoke about everything the President has stood against. “No one wanted to do this, so, of course, it lands in the hands of an immigrant,” Minhaj said. “Only in America can a first-generation Indian-American Muslim kid get on this stage and make fun of the President. It's a sign to the rest of the world, it's this amazing tradition, that even the president is not beyond the reach of the First Amendment.” He even hit the media, making dibs at the past events. “A lot of people don't trust you right now, and can you blame them?” he asked journalists. “Remember Election Night? That was your Steve Harvey-Miss Universe moment. The look on your faces at 11 pm on Election Night, it was like walking into a Panera Bread and finding out your sixth-grade teacher has a part-time job there.”
The first Muslim and South Asian American to headline the dinner, Minhaj also took down CNN for overusing the 'breaking news' tag. “Everything isn't breaking news. You can't go to Defcon One just because Sanjay Gupta found a new moisturiser... Every time I watch CNN, it feels like you're assigning me homework. Is Trump a Russian spy? I don't know, you tell me... I'm watching the news. It feels like I'm watching CNN watch the news. Just take an hour, figure out what you want to say, then go on the air.”
The dinner also saw Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, journalists who broke the Watergate scandal that brought down President Richard Nixon speak.
