Free Republic

President Trump has agreed to speak remotely Thursday at the New York Archdiocese’s first ever virtual Al Smith fundraising event amid the coronavirus pandemic, church officials said Monday evening. The Archdiocese has also extended an invitation to former Vice President Joe Biden, who is Catholic, and is hopeful he will also agree to speak at the 75th annual fundraiser, the first being held remotely and not taking place at a location with speakers and hundreds of guests.

President Trump has agreed to speak remotely Thursday at the New York Archdiocese’s first ever virtual Al Smith fundraising event amid the coronavirus pandemic, church officials said Monday evening. The Archdiocese has also extended an invitation to former Vice President Joe Biden, who is Catholic, and is hopeful he will also agree to speak at the 75th annual fundraiser, the first being held remotely and not taking place at a location with speakers and hundreds of guests.

House Speaker Paul Ryan lampooned President Trump at a charity dinner Thursday night, mocking his Twitter habits, his former top advisor Steve Bannon and his Big Apple roots.

NEW YORK, October 21, 2016 (LifeSiteNews) – Tensions were heightened going into the New York Archdiocese's high-end Al Smith Dinner Thursday night as rival presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton were set to appear side by side just one day after facing off in the heated third and final debate of a particularly polarized campaign. With Clinton and Trump as special guest speakers, the 71st annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York raised a record $6 million-plus. The $3,000-per-plate affair brings out high-profile guests during election years as well as joint...

While each candidate delivered some biting comments while taking a turn behind the dais at the Al Smith Dinner, "there were some very touching moments" in private, Dolan said, describing one right after he asked both of them to pray with him. "After the little prayer, Mr. Trump turned to Secretary Clinton and said, 'You are one tough and talented woman,'" Dolan said. "He said, 'This has been a good experience, this whole campaign, as tough as it's been.'" Clinton then returned the compliment. "She said to him, 'Donald, whatever happens, we need to work together afterward,'" Dolan said.

Last night there was somewhat of a ritualistic dinner held. It was the Al Smith dinner, a white-tie affair, and a ritual that Presidential candidates, very late in the game, have usually taken part in. This year was no different, with both Hillary and Trump sporting their white-tie best. But this is not your usual sort of passe' thing. No, it's a benefit, and as are many benefits in New York it was stuffed with priestly types and an extraordinary price tag -- but, as is frequently the case when there are so many with a priestly bent headlining the...

Trump called out Hillary for her lies and corruption during his speech. He also dropped a few references about the Wikileaks documents Donald Trump: Hillary is so corrupt. She got kicked off the Watergate Commission. How corrupt do you have to be to get kicked off the Watergate Commission. Pretty corrupt. Hillary is and has been in politics since the 70s. What’s her pitch? The economy is busted. Washington is failing. Vote for me. I’ve been working on these problems for 30 years… We’ve learned so much from Wikileaks. For instance, Hillary believes it’s vital to deceive the people by...

Fox Business. Some dinner.. Trump roasting Hillary pretty good.

Alfred E. Smith Memorial Dinner Presidential nominees Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump deliver remarks at the annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York City.

Alfred E. Smith Memorial Dinner: Presidential nominees Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump deliver remarks at the annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York City. I'm told this will be carried live on C-Span and Fox Business News @ 8:30 pm ET From Terry Golway Every four years in late October, the presidential candidates of both major parties dust off their white tie and tails to take part in one of the great closing rituals of the long campaign: a gala dinner at the Waldorf Astoria in honor of a New York governor who gave voice to immigrants...

Last night I was invited to dinner by Al Smith IV, the great-grandson of Al Smith, who was a former New York governor and the first Catholic nominated for president. Al shared some jokes while introducing Obama and Romney. He also poked fun at Cardinal Timothy Dolan, a man of considerable girth, who sat between the two candidates. Al joked that they were separated by a “vast expanse.” The banter throughout the night reminded me of another man of great girth, namely G.K. Chesterton. Standing 6 feet 4 inches and weighing around 290 pounds, Chesterton’s size gave rise to a...

Video at source and youtube. Of course we're down to the final months of the president's term, as presidents... (LAUGHTER) ...as President Obama surveys the Waldorf banquet room with everyone in white tie and refinery, you have to wonder what he's thinking. So little time, so much to redistribute. (LAUGHTER) And don't be surprised if the president mentions this evening the monthly jobs report where there was a slight improvement in the numbers. He knows how to seize the moment, this president. And already has a compelling new campaign slogan, "You're better off now than you were four weeks ago."...

Tonight was the annual Alfred E. Smith Dinner where the candidates take a humorous break from the campaign trail. But I gotta say, I was pleasantly surprised at how funny Romney was as he delivered line after line, mostly about the president. In fact he landed some pretty hard blows on the president, namely one where in using the Sesame Street reference he said that President Obama’s remarks “are brought to you by the letter O and the number 16 Trillion.” Ouch! And there’s a lot more where that came from. My bet is that even though it was all...

On Thursday, President Obama & Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will give keynote speeches at the 67th Annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York City. The fundraiser, held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, will offer a light-hearted evening for the candidates. Past speakers at the dinner include politicians, journalists, and presidential candidates including former Pres. George H. W. Bush & Michael Dukakis in 1988; Al Gore & Jack Kemp in 1996; and Pres. Obama and then-Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain in 2008. Founded in 1946 by Francis Cardinal Spellman, the Foundation honors the memory of Alfred...

NEW YORK CITY Thursday, October 18, 2012 On Thursday, President Obama & Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will give keynote speeches at the 67th Annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York City. The fundraiser, held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, will offer a light-hearted evening for the candidates. Past speakers at the dinner include politicians, journalists, and presidential candidates including former Pres. George H. W. Bush & Michael Dukakis in 1988; Al Gore & Jack Kemp in 1996; and Pres. Obama and then-Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain in 2008. Founded in 1946 by Francis Cardinal Spellman,...

Angry e-mails from conservative Christian organizations flooded Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan’s in-box in August, after he announced that he had invited President Obama, along with Mitt Romney, to speak at the New York Archdiocese’s biggest charity gala... But something else also kept flooding in: donations. The archdiocese’s Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation, which will host the glittering dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel on Park Avenue on Thursday, is on track to raise more than $5 million in a single night for charities that assist poor and needy children in the archdiocese, a record for the event, said Alfred E. Smith...

Today's commentary teaches the true meaning of the word scandal, not merely what pop culture would have us believe. Through an insightful and enlightening discussion of the Church's teaching on the meaning of the word, Judie Brown explains why President Obama should not dine with Church leaders at an event to benefit Catholic charities. Read on to discover why this is so. Scandal, according to Moral Theology by John A. McHugh, OP, and Charles J. Callan, is derived from a Greek word signifying a snare or trap prepared for an enemy, or a stone or block laid in the road...

VIDEO - The Vortex: Disinvite Obama The Petition We the undersigned respectfully request that the invitation to Barack Obama to be a guest at this year’s annual Al Smith charity fundraising dinner be withdrawn immediately. Barack Obama has proven himself to be an aggressive adversary of the Catholic Church with regard to numerous policies put forth under his administration. These include, but are not limited to, his forceful efforts to advance the intrinsic evil of abortion on demand both domestically and internationally; his antagonistic and ruthless efforts to force the intrinsic evils of contraception and sterilization on poor nations through...

Controversies and Dinners There is a controversy brewing in Catholic and pro-life circles over reports that the President has been invited to attend the annual Al Smith Dinner here in New York. In my opinion, people need to take a deep breath, relax a second, and think carefully about this. It’s important first to understand what the Al Smith Dinner is, and is not, and then what the invitation means, and what it does not. The Al Smith Dinner is organized and hosted by the Alfred E. Smith Foundation, which is closely affiliated with but independent of the Archdiocese of...

What is Cardinal Dolan up to? According to reports, Dolan has extended an invitation to President Obama to the annual Al Smith dinner in New York City. The president, reportedly, has accepted.Historically, the dinner is one of the most prestigious political events in New York City particularly during a presidential election year and candidates from both parties usually attend.Known for its lighthearted political speeches, the major speakers deliver a series of self-deprecating jokes while ribbing their opponent at the same time. In October 2008, Senator John McCain and Senator Barack Obama both attended the dinner, accepting an invitation by Cardinal...