October 18, 2024
New York City- Kamala Harris became the first presidential candidate since 1984 not to attend the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, sending a recorded video instead. The tradition of a half-joke bipartisan fundraiser for Catholic charities turned into a shit show when Harris’s clip included an eerie cameo from Molly Shannon’s “Saturday Night Live” character Mary Katherine Gallagher.
The video, designed to convey solidarity, went off with most audience members. Though it had a message, Harris’s screenplay got cut off by Shannon’s Gallagher, who briskly wandered into the frame. Harris, clearly baffling, joined in: “Hey, what’s going on? Who was that?” All that ensued was a filthy satire some have called inappropriate for such an important occasion.
Gallagher’s over-the-top antics included comparing the dinner to “one of the biggest dinners next to the Last Supper” and delivering lines like, “Sometimes when I get nervous, I stick my fingers under my arms and smell them like that… but that’s gross,” leaving the audience baffled. Harris gamely attempted to engage, asking for advice on what to say during her speech, only to be met with a bizarre suggestion to quote HBO’s “House of Dragons” as a reason a woman should lead.
Probably most bizarre of all, Gallagher was reminding Harris to not tell the truth in front of everyone because “Jesus will be fact-checking.” The video ended with Gallagher telling Harris to yell “Superstar!” — Shannon’s SNL nemesis.
Having to call it a day and attend via pre-recorded video had people scratching their heads because previous candidates have spoken about the need to show up in person to build solidarity. Immediately on social media, Harris was criticized for not catching the attention of a large segment of the audience.
Harris might have meant the video to be fun, but it backfired. The dinner – meant as a comical break from the typical political spat – ended up being another campaign blunder. And those who don’t, have to wonder why Harris left out this much awaited tradition and what it means for voters in the year 2024.
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