
Comedian Michelle Wolf spoke at the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday April 28, 2018.
Comedian Michelle Wolf Delivers 'Scathing' Roast of Trump and His Cronies at Correspondents' Dinner
"She heaped irreverent contempt on D.C. power centers because that's what good comedians do," remarked Glenn Greenwald
At the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday night, comedian Michelle Wolf roasted President Donald Trump and members of his administration in what's been described as a "scathing" speech.
In a series of tweets, journalist Glenn Greenwald criticized the event but commended Wolf for her comedy routine, declaring that she "was hilarious & struck exactly the right tone from start to finish. She heaped irreverent contempt on D.C. power centers because that's what good comedians do (& they deserve it)."
Wolf cracked jokes about the president's lawyer paying off a porn star to keep quiet about an alleged affair ("It's 2018 and I am a woman, so you cannot shut me up--unless you have Michael Cohen wire me $130,000") and Trump's disputed financial troubles ("Trump is so broke...He looked for foreign oil in Don Jr.'s hair").
She said she wanted to address Democrats too, but "Democrats are harder to make fun of because you guys don't do anything."
Her routine also featured jabs at the corporate news media: "There's a ton of news right now; a lot is going on, and we have all these 24-hour news networks, and we could be covering everything. But, instead, we're covering like three topics. Every hour, it's Trump, Russia, Hillary and a panel of four people who remind you why you don't go home for Thanksgiving."
Watch Wolf's complete remarks:
Wolf's speech--particularly the portion targeting the women of the Trump administration--triggered a slew of sharp headlines on Sunday. In response, Greenwald challenged claims that the dinner should not include attacks of the D.C. elite, tweeting:
Journalists John Nichols and Paul Farhi noted the state of the news media in the Trump era, about which Wolf said: "You guys are obsessed with Trump. ...He's helped you sell your papers and your books and your TV. You helped create this monster and now you're profiting off of him."
Wolf also slammed Kellyanne Conway, counselor to the president, and White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders for being dishonest with the American public.
"Man, she has the perfect last name for what she does: Conway. It's like if my name was Michelle Jokes Frizzy Hair Small Tits," Wolf said, adding: "You guys gotta stop putting Kellyanne on your shows. All she does is lie."
Of Sanders, Wolf said:
And, of course, we have Sarah Huckabee Sanders. We're graced with Sarah's presence tonight. I have to say I'm a little star-struck. I love you as Aunt Lydia in "The Handmaid's Tale." Mike Pence, if you haven't seen it, you would love it.
Every time Sarah steps up to the podium, I get excited because I'm not really sure what we're going to get: you know, a press briefing, a bunch of lies or divided into softball teams. "It's shirts and skins, and this time, don't be such a little bitch, Jim Acosta."
I actually really like Sarah. I think she's very resourceful. Like, she burns facts, and then she uses the ash to create a perfect smoky eye. Like, maybe she's born with it; maybe it's lies. It's probably lies.
And I'm never really sure what to call Sarah Huckabee Sanders. You know, is it Sarah Sanders? Is Sarah Huckabee Sanders? Is it Cousin Huckabee? Is it Auntie Huckabee Sanders? Like, what's Uncle Tom but for white women who disappoint other white women? Oh, I know: Aunt Coulter.
While Wolf's comments that were perceived as attacks on the women's physical appearances garnered intense criticism, some were quick to come to her defense.
Jessica Valenti, who writes about women's rights, tweeted:
The New Yorker's television critic Emily Nussbaum broke down the remarks about Sanders in a series of tweets:
Wolf even took to Twitter on Sunday to confirm that her comments were about Sanders' "despicable behavior."
The Washington Post published a full transcript of Wolf's speech.
FINAL DAY! This is urgent.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just hours left in our Spring Campaign, we're still falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
At the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday night, comedian Michelle Wolf roasted President Donald Trump and members of his administration in what's been described as a "scathing" speech.
In a series of tweets, journalist Glenn Greenwald criticized the event but commended Wolf for her comedy routine, declaring that she "was hilarious & struck exactly the right tone from start to finish. She heaped irreverent contempt on D.C. power centers because that's what good comedians do (& they deserve it)."
Wolf cracked jokes about the president's lawyer paying off a porn star to keep quiet about an alleged affair ("It's 2018 and I am a woman, so you cannot shut me up--unless you have Michael Cohen wire me $130,000") and Trump's disputed financial troubles ("Trump is so broke...He looked for foreign oil in Don Jr.'s hair").
She said she wanted to address Democrats too, but "Democrats are harder to make fun of because you guys don't do anything."
Her routine also featured jabs at the corporate news media: "There's a ton of news right now; a lot is going on, and we have all these 24-hour news networks, and we could be covering everything. But, instead, we're covering like three topics. Every hour, it's Trump, Russia, Hillary and a panel of four people who remind you why you don't go home for Thanksgiving."
Watch Wolf's complete remarks:
Wolf's speech--particularly the portion targeting the women of the Trump administration--triggered a slew of sharp headlines on Sunday. In response, Greenwald challenged claims that the dinner should not include attacks of the D.C. elite, tweeting:
Journalists John Nichols and Paul Farhi noted the state of the news media in the Trump era, about which Wolf said: "You guys are obsessed with Trump. ...He's helped you sell your papers and your books and your TV. You helped create this monster and now you're profiting off of him."
Wolf also slammed Kellyanne Conway, counselor to the president, and White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders for being dishonest with the American public.
"Man, she has the perfect last name for what she does: Conway. It's like if my name was Michelle Jokes Frizzy Hair Small Tits," Wolf said, adding: "You guys gotta stop putting Kellyanne on your shows. All she does is lie."
Of Sanders, Wolf said:
And, of course, we have Sarah Huckabee Sanders. We're graced with Sarah's presence tonight. I have to say I'm a little star-struck. I love you as Aunt Lydia in "The Handmaid's Tale." Mike Pence, if you haven't seen it, you would love it.
Every time Sarah steps up to the podium, I get excited because I'm not really sure what we're going to get: you know, a press briefing, a bunch of lies or divided into softball teams. "It's shirts and skins, and this time, don't be such a little bitch, Jim Acosta."
I actually really like Sarah. I think she's very resourceful. Like, she burns facts, and then she uses the ash to create a perfect smoky eye. Like, maybe she's born with it; maybe it's lies. It's probably lies.
And I'm never really sure what to call Sarah Huckabee Sanders. You know, is it Sarah Sanders? Is Sarah Huckabee Sanders? Is it Cousin Huckabee? Is it Auntie Huckabee Sanders? Like, what's Uncle Tom but for white women who disappoint other white women? Oh, I know: Aunt Coulter.
While Wolf's comments that were perceived as attacks on the women's physical appearances garnered intense criticism, some were quick to come to her defense.
Jessica Valenti, who writes about women's rights, tweeted:
The New Yorker's television critic Emily Nussbaum broke down the remarks about Sanders in a series of tweets:
Wolf even took to Twitter on Sunday to confirm that her comments were about Sanders' "despicable behavior."
The Washington Post published a full transcript of Wolf's speech.
At the White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday night, comedian Michelle Wolf roasted President Donald Trump and members of his administration in what's been described as a "scathing" speech.
In a series of tweets, journalist Glenn Greenwald criticized the event but commended Wolf for her comedy routine, declaring that she "was hilarious & struck exactly the right tone from start to finish. She heaped irreverent contempt on D.C. power centers because that's what good comedians do (& they deserve it)."
Wolf cracked jokes about the president's lawyer paying off a porn star to keep quiet about an alleged affair ("It's 2018 and I am a woman, so you cannot shut me up--unless you have Michael Cohen wire me $130,000") and Trump's disputed financial troubles ("Trump is so broke...He looked for foreign oil in Don Jr.'s hair").
She said she wanted to address Democrats too, but "Democrats are harder to make fun of because you guys don't do anything."
Her routine also featured jabs at the corporate news media: "There's a ton of news right now; a lot is going on, and we have all these 24-hour news networks, and we could be covering everything. But, instead, we're covering like three topics. Every hour, it's Trump, Russia, Hillary and a panel of four people who remind you why you don't go home for Thanksgiving."
Watch Wolf's complete remarks:
Wolf's speech--particularly the portion targeting the women of the Trump administration--triggered a slew of sharp headlines on Sunday. In response, Greenwald challenged claims that the dinner should not include attacks of the D.C. elite, tweeting:
Journalists John Nichols and Paul Farhi noted the state of the news media in the Trump era, about which Wolf said: "You guys are obsessed with Trump. ...He's helped you sell your papers and your books and your TV. You helped create this monster and now you're profiting off of him."
Wolf also slammed Kellyanne Conway, counselor to the president, and White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders for being dishonest with the American public.
"Man, she has the perfect last name for what she does: Conway. It's like if my name was Michelle Jokes Frizzy Hair Small Tits," Wolf said, adding: "You guys gotta stop putting Kellyanne on your shows. All she does is lie."
Of Sanders, Wolf said:
And, of course, we have Sarah Huckabee Sanders. We're graced with Sarah's presence tonight. I have to say I'm a little star-struck. I love you as Aunt Lydia in "The Handmaid's Tale." Mike Pence, if you haven't seen it, you would love it.
Every time Sarah steps up to the podium, I get excited because I'm not really sure what we're going to get: you know, a press briefing, a bunch of lies or divided into softball teams. "It's shirts and skins, and this time, don't be such a little bitch, Jim Acosta."
I actually really like Sarah. I think she's very resourceful. Like, she burns facts, and then she uses the ash to create a perfect smoky eye. Like, maybe she's born with it; maybe it's lies. It's probably lies.
And I'm never really sure what to call Sarah Huckabee Sanders. You know, is it Sarah Sanders? Is Sarah Huckabee Sanders? Is it Cousin Huckabee? Is it Auntie Huckabee Sanders? Like, what's Uncle Tom but for white women who disappoint other white women? Oh, I know: Aunt Coulter.
While Wolf's comments that were perceived as attacks on the women's physical appearances garnered intense criticism, some were quick to come to her defense.
Jessica Valenti, who writes about women's rights, tweeted:
The New Yorker's television critic Emily Nussbaum broke down the remarks about Sanders in a series of tweets:
Wolf even took to Twitter on Sunday to confirm that her comments were about Sanders' "despicable behavior."
The Washington Post published a full transcript of Wolf's speech.

