Sick and Tired

Is Washington ready for Wanda?  That’s the question posed by Politico style reporter Patrick Gavin over the weekend and one that underscores the incredibly sensitive nature of selecting the “official entertainment” for the White House Correspondents’ Dinner each year.

When it was announced earlier this year that Sykes would be the headliner for the 2009 dinner, it seemed a non-controversial choice on the surface.  While traditionally the actress/comedian has not been a politically active force by Hollywood standards, she was vocally opposed to California’s Proposition 8 and it’s fitting symbolism for President Obama’s first major Washington dinner.

But as the event draws nearer, expect the nerves to grow.  There’s a thin line between edgy comedy at these events and that which borders on the offensive — either politically or in terms of taste.

A quick look at the topics Sykes addressed during her 2006 comedy special, “Sick and Tired,” include:  “Stripper Therapy,” “My Uterus,” “Animal Love” and “Don’t Give A F#@k.”

A far cry from the material you could expect from Rich Little but also much more blue than that of Stephen Colbert, whose stinging rebuke of President Bush and the national press corps caused more consternation in DC than an Andrew Dice Clay routine would have.

What should we expect from Sykes this year?  You can catch some of her performances on YouTube and judge for yourselves but Jennifer Loven, AP White House correspondent and this year’s president of the association did not sound overly concerned with the possibility for trauma in her comments to Politico:

Loven acknowledges that there are risks involved, but she says she thinks Sykes will be “great.”

“I think it’ll be fun to have somebody edgy,” said Loven. “You always run a risk. It’s not our routine. We don’t have — and don’t want — control over the routine. … It’s an issue of trust: trust and cross your fingers that it doesn’t cross the line. We’re not censors. … It’s her job to figure out what’s right for the room.”

Loven said that when Sykes asked her if the routine needed to be clean, she responded, “Well, the president is sitting at the head table, so you do what you think is appropriate.”

Comedian Drew Carey was the featured entertainment (after the president, of course), and the requisite celebrities were on hand as well – Harrison Ford, Christie Brinkley, etc. But it was heavy metal icon Ozzy Osbourne (invited by Fox News host Greta Van Susteren) everyone was clamoring to see. His MTV reality show “The Osbournes” had become a cultural phenomenon and the muttering poster boy of rock ‘n roll excess was more famous than he had ever been in his head-banging heyday. Even the president couldn’t resist the pull of America’s sudden and most unlikely celebrity. “The thing about Ozzy is he’s made a lot of big hit recordings,” Bush said as he gave the singer a shout-out during his remarks. “’Party With Animals,’ ‘Sabbath Bloody Sabbath,’ ‘Face in Hell,’ ‘Black Skies’ and ‘Bloodbath in Paradise’ … Ozzy, mom loves your stuff.” Osbourne responded by standing on his chair, arms raised and shouting as the audience howled and applauded.

The sight of this conservative president and the Prince of Darkness sharing this moment really tells all you need to know about what this dinner has become in recent decades. It somehow manages to capture the zeitgeist just right at times. Here are some of the other highlights from recent years:

Clinton’s Farewell

Bill Clinton’s eight years in office has been described in many different ways but boring is certainly not one of them. While his presidency was dominated by big dramas like Whitewater, the health care debacle and the Monica Lewinsky scandal and subsequent impeachment trial, Clinton came to his final White House Correspondents’ Dinner in 2000 seemingly determined to prove that he hadn’t lost his sense of humore through it all. Indeed, his last year in office ended up as one of his best (who can forget the theatrical “solo” walk at the Democratic convention?) – and he set the tone for it at the dinner.

The use of pre-produced videos were nothing new in Clinton’s days but his team had always used them more effectively than most, starting with the “Man From Hope” bio produced for his 1992 campaign. Clinton rolled out the device once more at the 2000 dinner, with great effect. Casting the president as a down-and-out lame duck who has been deserted by nearly everyone in the White House, including his Senate-bound wife, the video showed Clinton aimlessly roaming the halls of the executive mansion, giving press briefings to a sleeping Helen Thomas and pruning shrubs. Still, the president found joy – and success – by the end of the video: discovering eBay, launching golf shots at political oppenents’ cars and finding a way to cheat the vending machines for some free ice cream. In other words, a perfect metaphor for his presidency.

Stephen’s Scolding

If Clinton’s final appearance was a celebratory one, the 2006 event led to widespread cringing. President Bush, whose popularity had dropped precipitously since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, tried to set the tone by poking some fun at himself alongside impersonator Steve Bridges (who served as Bush’s “internal voice”). The dueling W’s got most of the press coverage coming out of the night but what had everyone in Washington buzzing in the days afterward was Stephen Colbert’s stinging indictment of both the president and the press. Appearing in character (a faux Bill O’Reilly), Colbert was a big “get” for the dinner as one of the rising stars in political humor. Following in the footsteps of Jay Leno and Jon Stewart, it was the newcomer’s turn to wow Washington. And wow them he did. Colbert started out by likening himself to the president, alluding to the perception that both made decisions from their “gut,” not beholden to the “reality” based “factinista.” “I believe in this president,” he said.

“Now, I know there are some polls out there saying that this man has a 32 percent approval rating. But guys like us, we don’t pay attention to the polls. We know that polls are just a collection of statistics that reflect what people are thinking in ‘reality.’ And reality has a well-known liberal bias.” Colbert then turned his sights on the press which, as an entity, had recently come under withering criticism for its coverage of the buildup to war in Iraq – most notably when it came to administration claims of weapons of mass destruction. Colbert explained the “rules” of covering the president: “The president makes decisions. He’s the decider.

The press secretary announces those decisions and you people of the press type those decisions down. Make, announce, type. Just put them through a spell-check and go home. Get to know your family again. Make love to your wife. Write that novel you’ve got kicking around in your head. You know, the one about the intrepid Washington reporter with the courage to stand up to the administration? You know – fiction.”

Colbert touched a nerve and the next year, the dinner featured ancient comedian Rich Little as the performer. Laura’s Turn It’s not always easy for a president to just cruise through the gauntlet of spring dinners. In addition to the main event in May, there’s also the Gridiron and the Radio and Television Correspondents dinners that, while not required, are often attended by the chief executive. Sure, they have plenty of writers to prepare the material but, let’s face it, they still have to perform. In 2005, President Bush took the year off from the spotlight and handed it over to the first lady, who simply “killed” in show business terms.

When the the president stood up and began rattling off some tired, old jokes, Laura Bush approached the stage and took over. “Ladies and gentlemen,” she announced, “I’ve been attending these dinners for years, and just quietly sitting there. Well, I’ve got a few things I want to say for a change.” The first lady commenced a round of jokes that were at times just as cutting as most professional comedians. “I am married to the President of the United States,” she complained, “and here is our typical evening. Nine o’clock, Mr. Excitement here is sound asleep, and I am watching Desperate Housewives. With Lynne Cheney. Ladies and gentleman, I am a desperate housewife. I mean if those women on that show think they’re desperate they ought to be with George.” Needless, to say, the first lady was a big hit.

Non-WH Correspondent Moments

Because the dinner season all tends to run together, a few memorable events have taken place at events other than the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Most of these took place at the Radio and Television Correspondents’ Dinner (which is open to press coverage), not at the Gridiron Dinner (supposedly closed). Here are some examples from the RTC Dinner: