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Cecily Strong took no prisoners in her White House Correspondents’ Dinner speech on Saturday night, skewering both Republicans and Democrats, as well as the media that covers them. “Feels right to have a woman follow President Obama,” Strong quipped, the first of many Hillary Clinton jokes throughout her set. See video below of her full speech.
Strong wasn’t afraid to go after President Obama, who was sitting just a few feet away. She compared him to Madonna. “Mr. President, you’re a lot like Madonna. You’ve both given this country so much, but in like a year and a half, you’ve gotta stop,” she said. Making fun of the police, she cracked that Obama’s Secret Service detail is the “only law enforcement that gets in trouble if a black man is shot.” On the same topic, Strong said Obama’s hair is now “so white, it can talk back to the police.”
Strong took several shots at the cable news networks, and was an equal opportunity insulter. “I love MSNBC. Even their call letters are long-winded,” said Strong. “Fox News has been losing a lot of viewers lately. May they rest in peace,” she added. Strong wanted to make a Brian Williams joke, but said she couldn’t because “I work at NBC.” And of C-SPAN, the “Saturday Night Live” star said she wanted to address the network’s viewers by purring, “Meow.”
At one point, Strong made all the journalists in the ballroom at the Washington Hilton take a vow not to be sexist in their coverage of Clinton’s run for the White House. “I solemnly swear to not talk about Hillary’s appearance because that is not journalism.” Strong noted that Clinton feels about running for president, like Meryl Streep does about auditioning, “You know I’m gonna win it.” She then told Michelle Obama, “Take care of that [White House] garden… You know Bill Clinton is going to turn it into an above ground pool.”
And there were plenty more jokes at his expense as well as other Republicans and Democrats. Watch Cecily Strong’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner performance below, and tell us what you think.
