‘Obama’ comedian booed at Republican group for gay, race jokes? Or just mocking the GOP?
Much was made in the news last week about a saucy comedian, Reggie Brown, hired by the Republican Leadership Conference to do his impersonation of President Barack Obama. Brown’s website says the actor is a Chicago native and has appeared on numerous TV shows. It promotes his act as “[C]ustomized material incorporating specific terminology your audience will enjoy expressly for them.”
Despite Brown’s rather good impersonation at the RLC, his microphone’s power was cut, and he was rushed off stage because his material appeared to cross the line into offending territory. The Washington Post quotes RLC President Charlie Davis this way:
“I pulled him off the stage… I just thought he had gone too far. He was funny the first 10 or 15 minutes, but it was inappropriate, it was getting ridiculous.”
But what exactly was offensive about his routine seems to depend on who reported the story. The Post thought it was, in part, because of commentary about Tim Pawlenty that turned into a “gay joke” about Rep. Barney Frank:
“It’s unfortunate that Tim Pawlenty couldn’t make it here. But cut him some slack. He’s having his foot removed from his mouth. Oh, no — don’t worry. Luckily for him it’s covered under ‘Obam-ney-care.’ So, that, along with spinal transplants. Come on, John King served him a ball softer than Barney Frank’s backside.”
Whether that last bit is a reference to Frank’s sexual orientation or to his physical appearance is up for interpretation. Reggie Brown’s Obama character made numerous jokes about a variety of political figures, Democrat and Republican, before he was shut down.
Brown joked about Anthony Weiner, and showed a couple of his uncensored, sexually suggestive photos. He referenced Bill Clinton‘s marriage woes, and also Joe Biden‘s public F-bombs.
Yet Brown’s remarks about Republican candidates drew boos and groans several times, as many comedians do when presenting edgy material.
He referenced Mitt Romney‘s Mormon beliefs by joking about him having a “first lady, second lady, third lady.” He joked about House Speaker John “The Crybaby” Boehner and his “spray tans.” And Brown referenced Newt Gingrich‘s failing campaign, and Donald Trump‘s bizarre hairstyle.
But it was a his last joke about Michelle Bachman that got his act cut short. The Republican-filled audience cheered loudly at the mention of her name and, as he was about to mock her, the microphone went silent and Brown was physically directed to go. In a CNN interview, Brown says he was told at that moment he’d gone over a time limit.
Other write-ups about Brown’s act are saying that his humor was offensive because it was full of “racist” remarks about the President himself. He said:
“My favorite month is February, Black History Month. You see, Michelle, she celebrates the full month. And, you know, I celebrate half….”
“My father was a black man from Kenya. And my mother was a white woman from Kansas. And yes, my mother loved a black man. And no, she was not a Kardashian.”
A third joke about the job of Commander-in-Chief making “Presidents age so quickly” ended with contrasting slides of the Michelle Obama and the President — first an image as they are now, and a second “future” image of Esther and Fred from the 1970s sitcom Sanford and Son.” Was it racist? A cheap shot? Or a joke about the proliferation of similar anti-Obama propaganda online. Audience members seemed to enjoy these gags quite a bit.
Can Republicans not take a joke about themselves? Can Democrats not get an inside joke? Or was the material genuinely offensive? Watch it for yourself, and tell us what you think below.
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