Both candidates took time to poke a little fun at each other at the traditional “Al Smith” dinner. President Obama is usually seen as the one that is more relatable to the average every day American.
Meanwhile, Mitt Romney has been seen as a sort of stiff, perhaps even considered an uptight businessman who is unable to relate to the average American. His Mormon religion has also played a role in the disconnect.
Most American’s knew that President Obama can be relaxed, funny, we watched him at the last "Al Smith" dinner. Though, competitive Romney definitely brought his sense of humor to this traditional night of laughs. If there were some skeptics that thought Romney didn’t have a relatable bone in his body, his one-liners sure kept the crowd rolling.
He opened, referring to a conversation he was having with President Obama, saying that- “I am pleased to be here this evening, we were chatting implicitly as if Tuesday night never happened.” The audience laughed and then Romney went on to poke fun at the Cardinal and the Mormon religion.
But, what really got some laughs is when he said- “I was actually hoping the President would bring Joe Biden along…cause he’ll laugh at anything.” Those that attended the dinner appreciated that one; Romney received whistles, laughs, claps.
He poked fun at Governor Cuomo because he is potentially running for President in 2016. Romney was able to also turned the joke towards himself, “The man has put in one term as a Governor, he has a father who happens to be a Governor and he thinks that’s enough to run for President?”
But, one of the greatest one-liners is when Romney spoke about the final months President Obama had left stating, “You’ve got to wonder what he’s thinking…so little time, so much to redistribute.”
Romney poked fun at President Obama stating he probably already had a new ad and compelling slogan, referring to the slight increase in job growth, “You are better off now than you were four weeks ago.”
Romney was even able to continue to poke fun at his Mormon faith saying- “Usually when I get invited to dinners like this it's to be the designated driver.”
He went on to tell dinner guests how he prepared for debates, “First, refrain from alcohol for 65 years before the debate. Second, find the biggest straw man and mercilessly attack it…big bird didn’t even see it coming. And by the way in the spirit of Sesame Street the President’s remarks tonight is brought to you by the letter ‘O’ and the number 16 trillion.”
That one line got a lot of laughs, it seemed that in the spirit of jokes and levity the candidates were able to find a way to throw out the “zingers” and gain humor points with the viewers.
He even made sure to poke fun at the media stating that “My job is to lay out a positive vision for this country and their job is to make sure no one finds out about it.”
And of course Romney's line when he said the headlines tomorrow will be "Obama embraced by Catholics, Romney dies with rich people."
When the laughter's finally settled, Romney took time to sincerely praise President Obama and President Obama's family. Mitt Romney showed his soft side and humanness.
While President Obama had some great lines as well, it seemed more news outlets and online news articles were geared towards Romney’s performance, including myself. It is because most people have not seen the lighter side of Romney. Voters and viewers have not seen the relatable side to him. In Mitt Romney’s closing statement he said he harbors no ill will toward the President or anyone and wrapped by saying, “There’s more to life than politics.”
Maybe this "Al Smith" dinner is not a dramatic “game changer,” but it sure didn’t hurt Romney displaying the lighter side of himself and all the while able to pull out some great “zingers,” which got his message across.
