Biden Roasts ‘Mentally Unfit’ Trump While Honoring the Free Press at the Annual Gridiron Dinner

The Gridiron Club is a renowned organization comprised of journalists and other media professionals that hosts a dinner every year featuring pundits and politicians delivering humorous observations of the state of the media and the nation. Among the regular participants is the President of the United States. And this year President Joe Biden came prepared to mock his friends and foes alike, and even himself.

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Donald Trump

Coming shortly after Biden’s State of the Union Address (SOTU), this was another opportunity for Biden to demonstrate the fallacy of the Republican smear campaign demeaning him as cognitively impaired. The SOTU so effectively put that nonsense to rest that the GOP had to resort to accusing Biden of being pharmaceutically enhanced because they couldn’t otherwise explain his sharpness and vigor. In the meantime, their own guy, Donald Trump, made an ass of himself live “truthing” Biden’s speech…

SEE THIS: Trump’s Live-Bleating of Biden’s State of the Union Address Was Predictably Petty and Pathetic

Biden’s remarks at the Gridiron Dinner will only exacerbate the anxieties of the MAGA cult. Once again, he showed that he is on top of his game. He delivered the comedic material like a pro, and deftly segued to more serious subjects when necessary. And he wasn’t shy about referencing his opponent with what will likely be the event’s most memorable line…

“The big news this week is two candidates clinched their parties’ nomination for president. One candidate is too old and mentally unfit to be president. The other is me.”

That however, was not the only zinger in Biden’s monologue. What follows are few choice excerpts from the White House transcript

“It’s great to be here at the Gridiron dinner, though it’s six hours past my bedtime.”

“Look, it’s been a long night. So, I’ll keep my remarks just a few minutes less than my State of the Union.”

“Kamala and I and the members of the administration here tonight are proud — proud of our accomplishments on behalf of the American people: record job growth, wages rising, rigging the Super Bowl for Taylor Swift.”

“Our big plan to cancel student debt doesn’t apply to everyone. Just yesterday, a defeated-looking man came up to me and said, ‘I’m being crushed by debt. I’m completely wiped out.’ I said, “Sorry, Donald, I can’t help you.'”

“I heard House Republicans were going to do a skit tonight, but they couldn’t get a speaker.”

“And the biggest joke of the night: an impeachment inquiry. Imagine believing something so baseless that has a zero chance of succeeding. But Republicans would rather fail at impeachment than succeed at anything else.”

“I’m running against the same guy that I beat in 2020. But don’t tell him. He thinks he’s running against Barack Obama.”

“In the coming months, Kamala and I will be making the case how Americans are better off than four years ago. […] All without destroying the economy, embarrassing us around the world, or — or itching for insurrection.”

Not bad for someone that Trump and his MAGA media minions malign as a senile commie who can’t string two sentences together. And in his closing remarks Biden displayed another characteristic that he is well known for, but that his opponent lacks: Reverence for the American Constitution, and in particular, freedom of the press…

“As I said in my State of the Union Address, we live in an unprecedented moment in democracy, an unprecedented moment for history. Democracy and freedom are literally under attack. […] The lies about the 2020 election, the plots to overturn it, to embrace the January 6th insurrectionists pose the gravest threat to our democracy since the American Civil War. […]

“All the while, the other guy calls you the free press. Well, he calls you the enemy of the people, even as many of you risk your lives to do your job and sometimes even give your lives to do your jobs. […] Let me state the obvious. You’re not the enemy of the people. You are a pillar of any free society.” […]

“Good journalism holds a mirror up to a country for us to reflect the good, the bad, the truth about who we are. […] As a result, the choices you make really matter. And each story you make makes democracy stronger.”

That respect for the values articulated in the First Amendment stands in stark contrast to how Trump views this subject. In a Sunday interview on Fox News Trump clumsily slapped a backhanded compliment on the media that he despises.

“They’re like the police and frankly, they keep our country honest in a certain way if they do their job properly, and they haven’t been doing it properly.”

Describing the role of the press as that of the “police” reveals Trump’s twisted perception of the media’s function in a free society. He doesn’t see it as a “mirror,” but rather an authoritarian force to exert control. And he doesn’t think they’re doing that good enough. Were he to have his way, he would revoke the licenses of any media that isn’t sufficiently worshipful of him. And he has said so explicitly…

SEE ALSO: Herr Trump Decrees: If Media Doesn’t Air My Speeches They Should Have Their Licenses Revoked

Every American needs to remember that when they vote in November. There is one candidate who abhors the press and the Constitution; who is facing 91 felony charges for crimes against America; who has been found civilly liable for financial fraud and rape. And the other one is Joe Biden.

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