It was a weird night in Midtown. If you weren't there—or didn't catch the clips—the 2024 Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner felt less like a charity gala and more like a high-stakes comedy roast where the person getting roasted most wasn't even in the room.
Jim Gaffigan was the guy with the microphone. Honestly, it’s one of the toughest rooms in the country. You’ve got a thousand people in white tie and tails, $5,000-a-plate dinners, and enough billionaires to fund a small space program. Plus, you’re standing between a Cardinal and a former President. No pressure, right?
Gaffigan at Al Smith Dinner: Breaking the Ice
Gaffigan didn't play it safe. Usually, the MC at these things keeps it light, but he went right for the throat early. He looked out at the sea of tuxedos and basically called them all "Daddy Warbucks" wannabes. "The theme again is 'let them eat cake,'" he quipped.
The room was packed with people like Michael Bloomberg and Robert Kraft, and Gaffigan wasn't shy about pointing out that the front row wouldn't even look at him. He joked that their seats must have cost extra just to ignore the comedian. It was classic Gaffigan—self-deprecating but sharp.
But things got real when he addressed the elephant—or rather, the missing donkey—in the room.
The Kamala Harris No-Show
This was the big controversy. Kamala Harris decided to skip the event, opting to send a pre-recorded video featuring Molly Shannon’s "Mary Katherine Gallagher" character from SNL. It was the first time a major nominee had skipped the dinner since Walter Mondale in 1984. And we all remember how that ended for Mondale.
Gaffigan at Al Smith Dinner didn't let her off the hook. He looked genuinely baffled. "I'm sorry, why is Vice President Harris not here?" he asked. He pointed out the obvious: the room was full of Catholics and Jews in New York City. In his words, it was a "layup" for a Democratic nominee.
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It wasn't just a light jab. It felt like a genuine critique of the campaign's strategy, especially since Catholics are a massive swing demographic in states like Pennsylvania and Michigan.
Roasting the "Coup" and the Candidates
Gaffigan didn't just pick on the person who wasn't there. He took a massive swing at the way Harris became the nominee in the first place. He called it a "coup" against Joe Biden, saying the Democrats were so worried about the threat to democracy that they ousted their elected incumbent.
The room went a bit quiet on that one. It was one of those jokes that lands because it feels a little too true for some people in the audience. He even brought up George Clooney’s op-ed, saying some prayers take three and a half years and a celebrity endorsement to get answered.
Then he turned to the guys on the dais.
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- He joked about playing Tim Walz on Saturday Night Live.
- He promised to be "fair" by making jokes about both Donald Trump and J.D. Vance.
- He asked Cardinal Timothy Dolan who was "more evil" between the two candidates, referencing the Pope's comment about the election being a choice between the lesser of two evils.
The Cardinal just laughed. Gaffigan told him he'd "come back to him" for the answer.
Trump’s Reaction and His Own Set
Donald Trump seemed to be enjoying himself, mostly because Gaffigan was doing a lot of the heavy lifting on the Harris critiques. When Trump got up, he doubled down. He called Harris's absence "deeply disrespectful" to the Catholic community.
Trump’s own speech was... well, it was a Trump speech. He hit his usual notes, mocked Chuck Schumer (who was sitting right there), and made a few jokes about his own legal troubles. "It’s a pleasure to be anywhere in New York without a subpoena," he said. That one actually got a big laugh.
Why This Performance Was Different
Usually, these dinners are about "gentle" ribbing. You poke fun at someone's haircut or their tendency to talk too long. But Gaffigan at Al Smith Dinner felt different because the political climate in 2024 was so polarized.
Gaffigan is a practicing Catholic. He’s got five kids. He knows this audience. When he told the crowd, "I am Catholic because I truly believe that’s what my wife wants," it resonated because it was authentic. He wasn't just a hired gun; he was a guy who actually understood the culture of the room.
He even poked fun at his own jokes not landing. At one point, after a joke about Doug Emhoff, he admitted, "Some of these I wrote during lunch." It humanized him. It made the room feel less like a political battlefield and more like a dinner party where the host is slightly overwhelmed but doing his best.
The Aftermath and Insights
So, what did we actually learn?
First, the Al Smith Dinner is still a massive deal for fundraising. They raised over $9 million for Catholic charities that night. That’s the real win.
Second, skipping this event is a risk. Whether you think the dinner is an outdated relic of "old school" politics or a vital tradition, the optics of not showing up were tough for Harris. Gaffigan’s jokes highlighted that vulnerability.
If you’re looking for the takeaway, it’s this: comedy in a political setting is about more than just laughs. It’s about testing the temperature of the room. Gaffigan proved that you can be sharp, even a little mean, as long as you’re willing to point the camera back at yourself too.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Watch the full set: If you only saw the 30-second clips on social media, you missed the rhythm. Gaffigan's pacing is what made the "layup" joke work.
- Look at the fundraising breakdown: Check out the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation’s website to see exactly where that $9 million goes. It supports everything from neonatal care to housing for the homeless.
- Compare to 2016: If you think 2024 was tense, go back and watch the 2016 dinner between Trump and Hillary Clinton. It makes 2024 look like a Sunday school picnic.
The 2024 dinner wasn't just a comedy show; it was a snapshot of a country trying to figure out how to laugh at itself again. Gaffigan was just the guy holding the mirror.