Kamala Harris booed at Al Smith Dinner in NYC; Trump botches her first name

Kamala Harris was not in attendance at the Al Smith Dinner in New York City on Friday, October 17. Her absence resulted in a broken tradition that calls for each election’s presidential candidates to indulge in self-deprecating humour and roast each other. Her truancy at the traditional charity event came two days after Fox News Channel aired her anticipated interview broadcast of ‘Special Report with Bret Baier’ on Wednesday.
Former President Donald Trump was one step ahead in unloading his mockery of the Democratic presidential candidate. The official Trump War Room X/Twitter account also doubled down on launching scathing attacks at the sitting VP, calling her a “coward” for skipping the event.
The audience sounded a roaring alarm following Trump’s footsteps, hitting Harris with massive backlash for her absence. When the speakers announced that she couldn’t “make it here in person” and would be joining everyone “via video,” the crowd came alive and instantly booed her.
Also read | ‘If you wanted Kamala to attend…’, Trump mocks Harris’ absence from Al Smith charity dinner
Ultimately, the VP made her presence known by appearing in a pre-recorded video to address the event’s attendees briefly. This annual white-tie dinner in New York, meant to raise millions for Catholic charities, often emerges as the last time the two presidential nominees share a stage in good spirits before Election Day. However, she enlisted Molly Shannon instead to revive her Saturday Night Live character of Catholic schoolgirl Mary Katherine Gallagher.
On the contrary, Trump, who was there in person, chose to skewer Democrats and attack Harris for her absence. He first wrote, “Just found out that Lyin’ Kamala is doing a video message tonight instead of being at the Al Smith Dinner. She shouldn’t be allowed to do a video message. Kamala should be there like almost every other Presidential Candidate in their History, except Walter Mondale, who lost 49-1. They didn’t give me the option of a video message, nor would I have done it. This is very disrespectful to everyone involved. She should be here, or lose the Catholic Vote!”
Later, at the event, he said, “My opponent feels like she does not have to be here, which is deeply disrespectful for the event and in particular for our great Catholic community. Very disrespectful.” He also mispronounced Harris’ first name, as he has done in several instances.
Also read | Melania gets a roaring applause as she joins Donald Trump for Al Smith dinner, all smiles but no kiss or hugs
In July, he admitted that he doesn’t care if he mispronounces her name. “By the way, there are numerous ways of saying her name, they were explaining to me, ‘you can say Kamala, you can say Kamala’, I said, ‘don’t worry about it. It doesn’t matter what I say. I couldn’t care less if I mispronounce it,” he said at the Turning Point USA Believers Summit in West Palm Beach, Florida. “Some people think I mispronounce it on purpose, but actually, I’ve heard it said about seven different ways.”
The Alfred E Smith Foundation benefit dinner is named after the first Catholic nominee. Ironically, in 2016. Trump became the object of the crowd’s boos as he twisted the event’s traditional tone and closed his address with campaign-style counters. Hillary Clinton attended the dinner back then.