A doctored photo of presidential candidate Hillary Clinton doing a keg stand and ripping on CNN for poor journalism were some of the highlights 2015 White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
The annual black-tie affair gathered journalists and Hollywood stars alike at the Hilton ballroom in Washington, DC. Editors and reporters mingled with the likes of George Clooney and Kim Kardashian. It’s like the prom, but for nerdy adults that care about politics.
Saturday night was Obama’s 7th go at the comedy-filled night, and he joked that since he was in the “fourth quarter” of his presidency, he was ready to complete his “bucket list” simply by using a phrase that rhymes with ‘bucket’ to achieve his White House Agenda.
"Take executive action on immigration? Bucket! New climate regulations? Bucket!," he said.
The evening wasn’t without jabs at the media. Obama roasted CNN for its excessive coverage of Ebola, Fox News for instilling fear with nonsense reports, and MSNBC for its in-the-gutter ratings.
RT’s editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan attended the event and, despite the bad chardonnay, facetiously lauded the commander-in-chief’s performance.
"Obama’s speech was hilarious - I have respect and envy for the authors. And Obama is an excellent actor – befitting a US president," she tweeted.
Video Of @BarackObama's Speech From #TheWhiteHouseCorrespondentsDinnerhttp://t.co/THi0mPi7uW#WHCD2015
— Cindy Leinwand (@CindyLeinwand12) April 26, 2015
Here’s a round-up of Obama’s most memorable jokes this year:
"Welcome to the fourth quarter of my presidency…The fact is I feel more loose and relaxed than ever. Those Joe Biden shoulder massages — they’re like magic. You should try one."
"Those Joe Biden shoulder massages are like magic." - President Obama, #WHCD
— Ronan Farrow (@RonanFarrow) April 26, 2015
The president also joked that he and his VP were “so close” that some places in Indiana will no longer serve them pizza, referring to the state’s controversial religious freedom bill.
"It’s no wonder that people keep pointing out how the presidency has aged me. I look so old [that] John Boehner's already invited [Israeli PM Benjamin] Netanyahu to speak at my funeral."
Obama dedicated a large portion of his 20-minute speech to 2016 presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton.
"I have one friend ... just a few weeks ago she was making millions of dollars a year, and she's now living out of a van in Iowa."
The president then moved on to discuss Clinton's fictitious secret social media activity, jabbing at her recent bout of scandal concerning her decision to use private email while serving as secretary of state.
"I thought it was going to be her private Instagram account that would give her problems."
Obama even managed to make light of the numerous secret service security breaches at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue this year, such as a high-profile drone crash and fence jumpers getting on to the White House lawn.
"I’m happy to report that the Secret Service — thanks to some excellent reporting by White House correspondents — they are focusing on some of the issues that have come up. And, they have finally figured out a fool proof way to keep people off my lawn."
The Secret Service has "finally figured out a fool-proof way to keep people off my lawn." - @BarackObama#WHCDpic.twitter.com/B0KfGi3erg
— Beth Meroski (@beets25) April 26, 2015
Taking aim at CNN, Obama said that Saturday Night Live’s impersonations of CNN anchors were funny, but unnecessary, since the latter embarrass themselves enough already as it is.
"Usually the only people impersonating journalists on CNN are journalists on CNN."
On the topic of ABC’s new television show titled ‘Blackish’, the president warned that being ‘blackish’ isn’t all it’s hyped up to be.
"Being black-ish only makes you popular for so long. Trust me, there's a shelf life to that thing."
At the end, Obama had his ‘anger translator’ come out to express the president’s real emotions.
Have you met Luther, President Obama's anger translator? #WHCDhttp://t.co/5ShwiopHcq
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) April 26, 2015
Ending on a serious note, Obama thanked the journalists there for their work, acknowledged the lost lives of American journalists Steven Sotloff and James Foley, and said the White House wouldn’t rest until imprisoned Jason Rezaian is freed from his jail cell in Tehran.
Oh, and Michelle’s hairdo. Twitter loved the First Lady’s hair, with her curly locks dominating the number one trend #WHCD 2015 on Twitter.
So pumped to see Michelle Obama rocking natural curly hair (and looking flawless as always) at the #WHCDpic.twitter.com/gh3QRdfY9U
— Isabel Rothberg (@isabelrothberg) April 26, 2015
Meanwhile, other Twitter users were quick to point on what they considered massive hypocrisy of the A-list affair, which coincided with thousands marching in Baltimore to protest the death of black man Freddie Gray at the hands of white police offers while in custody.
There is always a party at the White House while we get lynched.
— Ferrari Sheppard (@stopbeingfamous) April 26, 2015