No, it’s not. That doesn’t make any sense. The White House Correspondent’s Dinner is not non-metaphoricallly anything like a prom. It only works metaphorically, treating her as the metaphorical high school student in Trump’s administration who’s now finally getting to go out and be the big important person. She gets to be the fancy one, the face of the administration.
Not that someone commenting on the appearance of a female politician is some horrible, unspeakable thing, anyways. It can be problematic, due to historical issues with women being judged by their appearance, but it’s not some huge taboo. Especially at these sorts of “roast” type situations. Those Comedy Central Roasts make fun of the female participants all the time.
No, what this is really about is that she said some uncomfortable things to the press, and some of that press is lashing out at her. They can’t rebut her on the substantive issues, so they’re going for the superficial ones. It’s a common technique, similar in kind to tone policing.
The right is doing similarly, though they are also just looking for any reason to condemn any liberal anywhere. That’s why they keep making these ridiculous standards that they don’t hold themselves to. You see them going along with Trump’s style and attacking women for their appearance all the time, but somehow it’s wrong for these other people? I noticed that theme a lot with the conservative media hosts when I looked at their Twitter.
What I notice with you is that you’re pulling something that wasn’t said at the actual dinner, and assuming the interpretation that makes liberals look bad. But I don’t know you well enough to know if you genuinely think that making comments on women’s appearance is bad–maybe that’s a hot button issue for you.
But I still say it’s a misinterpretation. And that what matters is what she said of substance, not what gotchas you can try and catch this woman on. And, remember, She’s a comedian. She’s not supposed to be PC. She’s supposed to push the envelope.
"Y’all expect us to feel sorry for the mean White lady whose day job it is to tell lies on behalf of a racist sexual predator idiot, and we DON’T. Maybe the jokes wouldn’t have hit so hard if they both hadn’t worked so hard to earn them…
Sarah Huckabee Sanders is the proud mouthpiece for a treasonous White supremacist sexual predator scumbag and she’s damn lucky this is the first time in her disgraceful tenure that her bullshit has been thrown back in her face. About time she gets acquainted with shame."
If her sensibilities are too delicate to stand being called out as a lying collaborator to a seditious administration, she can quit and find a more respectable job, such as selling crack.
Also, it’s a fair sight different that, if she IS making fun of SHS, it’s coming from a woman. If it were a male comic, there would also be screams (metaphorical) that he was a misogynist.
…so to be crystal clear: the material from the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner that you found contemptible wasn’t actually from her “material” on the night, and wasn’t spoken at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner?
And when you said “you searched” that meant when you said the prom statement was “contemptible”, that meant you actually hadn’t heard the statement first hand, and you were just repeating conservative talking points? Did you actually watch Wolf’s performance, or is everything you said just stuff you picked up from Russian bots?
Why is this “more likely?” None of Wolf’s other jokes about SHS talked about her appearance. Why have you chosen to take the worst possible interpretation about the joke? I think that says more about you than it does about Wolf.
I think the topic of unfairly attacking female politicians for their appearance is being eroded, but not in the way that people expected. Now we attack politicians of either gender for their appearance. I heard criticisms of Hillary’s pantsuits during the campaign, but I heard more about Trump’s hair, his weight, and his overly-long neckties. What’s the first thing you think of about John Boehner, his legislative record, or his orange tan?
The press has rebutted her on substantive issues all the time. The White House Correspondents Dinner isn’t the place to do more of it.
That said, I don’t have a problem with Trump skipping the dinner. I’m not a fan of the roast style of humor. And the idea that the president always goes to the dinner because the president has always gone is nonsensical to me.
Trump skips out on them because he can dish it out but can’t take it (skipping them has the added bonus of playing well to his base and I don’t entirely differ from sensing the out of touch nature of them). I don’t care much that it’s due to cowardice, I think it’s good too. And hopefully future presidents will avoid as long as they’re these are Hollywood starfecking type shitshows.
I may have to start a thread about Michelle Wolf at the correspondent’s dinner, maybe it deserves that, but I’ll try commenting here:
As a comic performance, Michelle Wolf’s set was outstanding. Speaking as a comedian of sorts, I was very impressed. I realize the timing and delivery wasn’t entirely perfect, but bear in mind that a command performance like this is unusually difficult; the comic must write bespoke jokes for the event, and doesn’t have the usual period of time to practice them so they can be part of a seamless set. That’s nearlyu as good as you can be in such a circumstance. I didn’t know Wolf before this and now I’d pay to see her live.
Wolf simply did not throw any sort of vicious attack at Sarah Sanders’s apperance. That is plainly false and evey person in politics and the media saying she did is either a liar or is just parroting hearsay without checking the facts. Wolf said exactly two things that alluded to Sander’s appearance:
She said Sanders burns lies to make the perfect eye shadow. That is not an insult about her appearance, it’s a compliment about her appearance to set up an insult about her honesty.
She compared her to Ann Dowd, who plays Aunt Lydia on “The Handmaid’s Tale.” The comparison was not made because Ann Dowd is ugly - she’s normal looking - but because Sanders’s demeanor is reminiscent of the character. Aunt Lydia isn’t memorable for her looks, she’s memorable for her cruelty towards women.
The only reason the media is supported butt-hurt Republicans in criticizing Wolf is because Wolf ripped the media, too.
To her further credit, Wolf has adamantly refused to apologize. This will do her career good, it’s really raised her profile.
Setting aside the politics of the event, she had about three or four good lines. Better than some recent performers at that event, but I didn’t find it all that funny. Maybe a tiny bit better than the typical late-night TV show monologue.
The WH Correspondents dinner is not a roast, it is traditionally a time of good natured, bipartisan ribbing and a celebration of the role of the Free Press. People going to a roast know what to expect and have a chance to respond.
I think Obama’s put down of Trump was more biting, less puerile, and not as likely to have been used to supper the idea that “both sides do it”. On the other hand, most of her act was hysterical.
I’ve always wondered if Obama’s devastating shots at Trump brought us to where we are today. Thanks, Obama.
I agree that the tone used to be much more “good natured ribbing”. There was nothing good-natured about Michelle Wolf’s material. Not that Trump and his minions don’t deserve everything they got; and he makes it worse by being too delicate and thin-skinned to attend.
The first reports I heard described Wolf’s material as profane but I haven’t heard any examples. What did she say that couldn’t be repeated on NPR?
There were also oblique references to the potted plant incident of Harvey Weinstein, and praise for Trump pulling out of the TPP when he said he would while most men don’t pull out when they say they will. etc.
