Obama Big Hit (and funny) at Reporters' Dinner

This is such an amusing write, I had to share it. Our President's wit is to be admired. What can I say...? He's got the timing...! To brighten up your day, read the whole article here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090510/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_correspondents See video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0GwZFAV1Lw

Happy Mother's Day. thinkingblue

Obama the star at reporters' annual dinner

WASHINGTON – It was the hottest ticket in town, a black-tie dinner gathering of Washington's political and media elite but Dick Cheney couldn't make it.

The former vice president was busy, President Barack Obama joked, working on his memoir "tentatively titled, How to Shoot Friends and Interrogate People."

As the star attraction of Saturday night's star-studded annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner, Obama enjoyed poking fun at his critics and the Republican Party. But his own administration, in power for just over 100 days, was also a target of the president's playful digs and one-liners.

"I believe my next hundred days will be so successful that I
will be able to complete them in 72 days," he said to a roar
of laughter. "And on my 73rd day, I will rest."

His chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, Obama observed, always has a
hard time on Mother's Day.

"He's not used to saying the word 'day' after
'mother,'" Obama said.

The chairman of Republican National Committee, Michael Steele,
was "in the house tonight," Obama noted. "Or as he
would say, 'In the heezy.'"

"Michael for the last time, the Republican Party does not
qualify for a bailout," Obama told Steele. "Rush
Limbaugh does not count as a troubled asset, I'm sorry."

Obama made light of his frequent use of a teleprompter and poked
fun at Vice President Joe Biden's habit of speaking off the cuff.
And about the Democratic Party, Obama said his administration has
helped in "bringing in fresh, young faces — like Arlen
Specter." The 79-year-old Pennsylvania senator, a former
Republican, switched parties last month.

Obama noted that he and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton
had once been political rivals. "These days," he
assured the gathering at the Washington Hilton ballroom, "we
could not be closer."

"In fact the second she got back from Mexico, she pulled me
into a hug and said I should go down there myself."

Near the end of his talk, Obama turned serious and spoke of the
financially struggling media industry, praising journalists for
holding government officials accountable. "A government
without newspapers, a government without a tough and vibrant
media of all sorts is not an option for the United States of
America," he said.

The president was the night's big draw, but not the only comedian.

Comic actress Wanda Sykes, the dinner's entertainer, teased Obama
for giving the Queen of England an iPhone during a recent visit.
And she mocked first lady Michelle Obama for patting the queen on
the back "like she just slid into home plate — way to go, queen!"

Along with the reporters, the $200-per-ticket dinner attracted
plenty of VIPs from outside the Beltway.

Among those attending were Eva Longoria Parker, Ashton Kutcher,
Christian Slater, Natalie Portman, Sting, Mariska Hargitay,
Steven Spielberg and Jon Bon Jovi. Also there was Richard
Phillips, who was held hostage by Somali pirates after his cargo
ship was attacked.

Proceeds from the gala, including donations from several major
media organizations, totaled $98,000 and go toward feeding the
hungry and funding journalism scholarships.
___
President Obama at the White House Correspondent's Dinner

Let's keep our heads, while we continue to
watch THE THEATER OF THE ABSURD!!!