♪ i'm alex witt live in washington, d.c. welcome to our special coverage of the white house correspondent correspondents dinner. the annual event when the commander in chief becomes comedian in chief. >> my fellow americans. gl thank you and good evening. i did not want to be here tonight. >> i'm delighted to be here. >> pause for laughter. >> washington and hollywood. >> this is no ordinary dinner. gl this dinner's gotten out of hand in resent years. >> this is so much cooler. >> welcome to nerd prom. >> well this is the scene inside the washington hilton ballroom right now.

the president, first lady and a sea of high powered guests getting ready for the big moment. before they got inside, the crowd braved the red carpet where we saw on full display, a pretty amazing mix. it only happens here in the nation's capitol america's most powerful rubbing elbows with some of america's most famous. >> what are you most excited about? >> seeing our president. i've never been never seen him in person. and everybody just tells me it's a really wonderful, fun time, so i'm so excited to be hear here. zpl i already met the person i most wanted to meet who was norman reedous, from the walking dead. my one goal was to say hello to him. he was so nice so my work here is is done. >> is oprah going to be here? i heard that and i will absolutely die. >> we were just standing next to martha stewart. >> i was shaking.

i didn't get a picture. >> there's still time. >> we're going to tackle her, don't worry. >> i've been asking people who they most want to meet. is that the person you would most want to meet? >> i have to say it's the president and i'm sure everyone will say, but i'm here and i will just like sort of run anywhere to go meet him. >> and i have a massive crush on ronan farrow and i just got to meet him, so that was special. >> you get to meet people you're fans of or that you follow and they're so nice and kind, so just have fun. >> well, the person who may have the most reason to sweat this evening, "saturday night live" cecily strong, the entertainer for the evening, who's going to have the unenviable task of following president obama. proouen over the past six years he's pretty good at this. >> i'm feeling sorry, believe it or not, for the speaker of the house as well. these days the house of republicans, actually give john

boehner a harder time than they give me. which means orange really is new black. >> we have an exciting couple of hours ahead for you. i'm going to take you through what always proves to be interesting and entertaining evening. the crowd has enjoyed the dinner that has included in case you're hupgry smoked rubbed fillet sered alaskan halibut, stone grits and some other goodies, but they did not come for the food. sounds good but it's for a mass crowd. they came for one big reason. the chance for the president of the united states to take some shots as his opponents, his friends and the people who cover them over day. the white house correspondent dents association will have giving out their annual scholarships and after the toast to the president, he takes off the gloves. we're going to have it all live. joining me for our coverage my excellent panel. beth bowie, senior editor for

msnbc.com. scott blakeman and alicia quarrels and she's going to bring some of the glamour to us here. thank you all for being with me. what is the most exciting thing about tonight? is hollywood factor? is it the, the politicians that are doing their thing? the jokes? what do you think? >> for me, it's the jokes and definitely president obama because he's a very hard act to follow. you know, he just delivers them. chuckles a little bit before his own line then just lays into it. the hollywood factor has gotten criticism. it's about these actors coming into town, but it's fun. why not? >> right. >> well being a comedian of course comedy is the big thing and they may say i'm the luckiest guy in washington this evening, having three dates and it's a historic night. on the night cecily strong becomes the fourth woman to host these awards, ooichl proud to be in the show to add some diverse

thety. >> i know. white men are never really -- >> represented. >> yeah. >> being in the room, you've been there, i've been there a few times before. it is one of the biggest nights. but it's a big social affair, but it's also, it is a to do. it is a scene getting into it. i always tell people at the end, we all leave and kind of exit at the same time and you go outside and there's this massive sea of black cars. you call your driver hey, can you put on your flash erers. ? there's like 42 cars flashing. >> i've been going long enough now to have seen it really changed over the years. it used to be kind of informal. there were these preparties and people wandered from room to room. somebody from abc would go say hi to somebody from nbc, then it became this sort of people magazine's having their party down there and there's a girl outside with the clipboard and unless you're on the ris, youlist, you

can't get in. why aren't i invited to the atlantic party and the abc you know closed door party. so it's really, really changed. it's more like a hollywood party. >> the red carpet is now like a hollywood party. people that don't know, that have been there, the hotel has not been updated. magic johnson owns it. it's the hotel where president reagan was shot. it's always been held there, so it's sbresing this big to do is held in a pretty small, normal hotel. >> it provides fodder for the comedians. the show has changed. actually there's less big hollywood presence this year, but it is you know the folks on the comedy it wasn't always that way. only in 1962 were women start being allowed to go and it wasn't televised until 1993 when elaine boozer got to perform. but it's a lot of you know scrutiny and will the jokes land and not and president obama's

done a great job in the past of dealing with issues in his administration in a hoom rouse way. when donald trump handled the birther issue and sort of took care of trump just like that. >> let's listen to the president. some of the past good stuff there. >> of course, we ruled out health care.gov. that could have gone better. in 2008, my sloegen was yes, we can. in 2013 it was control alt delete. >> you know what i think is is most charming about him is he can say something and deliver a sinker, but does it with a smile and kind of a wink wink. we think was that mean or funny? he's good at it. >> he's a very funny guy in private. his friends will say that you know, when he's alone, with his friends, he can crack wise.

a little pro feign. can't really do that in the public. so this is his one chance to let those comic chops go. >> i've written for some politicians and he is truly a lot of comedians say president obama's one of my favorite comedians. it's not just reading the lines. he really has a comedian's timing and knows how to deliver a joke. >> he self-deafppry kates before he goes after anybody else. my ratings are down, what's happening happening, he will talk about himself first, then go after you. >> i was reading about president bush and how he was a guy who actually seemed to enjoy this. remember the kind he showed a little clip of when he had an impersonator on with him? he seemed to really enjoy it. to the extent that someone can.

on the stage in the spotlight like this. >> he loves it, enjoyed it. for a lot of presidents, this is their likability factor. this is the time where they can show america, you may not be happy with me, but i can be funny. i can deliver. for bush, it works, you want to have a beer this guy after you saw him on air. >> then video, bill clinton, his last dinner, he had a funny video, going back to the white house, nobody was there. that may be part of cecily strong's part. she's not a stand up comedian, per se, but it will be interesting to see how she approaches this situation. i think she will hopefully and i think her name recognition is not as high as some guests to use this humor at the outset. >> she's very dry and dead pan, too. some msnbc talent of interviewed her about her pending assignment tonight and one of them said hillary clinton. she said, just didn't see it. never knew she was going to run. what can i tell you.

she's just got a little gesture, very tiney. >> you have to wonder about the zingers. the president is really good at throwing those. do you remember the donald trump zinger? i think we have a clip of that. if you didn't see it here it is. >> all kidding aside, we all know b about your credentials and experience. for example, seriously, just recently, in an episode of celebrity apprentice at the steak house, the men's cooking team did not impress the judges from omaha steaks. and there was a lot of blame to go around but you, mr. trump, recognized that the real problem was a lack of leadership. and so ultimately, you didn't blame little john or meat wolf. you fired gary buesy.

these are the kind of decisions that would keep me up at night. >> and you remember that was the night that osama bin laden was killed by the navy s.e.a.l.s. >> that got the most views ever from the cspan. >> it was a bin laden joke in the original script and he said take out bin laden and later that night, he did. >> he played it that cool, that funny, then the next morning -- >> wow. >> this is the beauty though of the dinner. during the height of monica lewinsky scandal, bill clinton went on and -- there's power in it. >> abts. >> this is a great example. the trump clip. dead pan. it was just this very slow and just worked so brilliantly. >> watching donald trump, i had a bird's eye view of him.

didn't look like he was enjoying it, however, we spoke with him tonight on the red carpet. i think he's going to say alex, you're wrong. here it is. >> i had a great time. in fact, i looked at my wife and said, do you believe it? so many jokes, it was so nice i had so much fun, then what happened was the next day, i woke up and the papers said i had a horrible time. i had a great time. >> i'm glad we can set the record. >> do you buy that? >> he loves being the center of attention. >> nothing worse than not being mentioned. whether it's an awards show in hollywood or this dinner in washington. >> 20/20, he should have just smiled and laughed through it. you just don't scowl during it. >> hair on his scalp. >> you know he's going to come after you, so just laugh. >> is there anybody we think the president will target tonight? the dolt trump type or someone else? >> may target all the people running for president because none are there, except

potentially governor casic of ohio. >> or donald trump. >> the iowa faith and freedom summit, which could be funnier than tonight. so i think he may go after them because they're not there. >> and we have celebrities. they will sometimes make it into the routine. does the white house get an advanced notice? they must. of who's bringing who and they'll go after. >> i think they get a rough, general idea. it provides all sorts of great fodder to say, hey, so and sos in the audience, loved that movie you did that really stunk. it's kind of the roast. the roasting part of this. >> they get a full list of who's coming and there's people they have relationships with, the modern family cast is is is always there and the president will do these skits with the stars. the white house and writers know who's in the room. >> the president of course has the advantage. because the only situation comedy where everyone comes to see the opening act, the

president. last year, joel mchale was talking about how he's sitting there scribbling mrs. obama said what are you doing, he was crossing out jokes. you have to see -- >> quick on your feet because if the president's gone there, you don't want to do the repeat. >> cecily has been work ging, kind of working alongside president obama's writer to make sure they're not overlapping jokes. not sharing information, but not targeting the same things. >> let's listen to more of the president's routine in from last year. >> seattle sea hawk richard sherman is here tonight and he gave me some great tips on thousand handle it. jake tapper. don't you ever talk about me like that. i'm the best president in the game. what do you think, richard? was that good? little more feeling next time? >> that has to be just the ultimate badge of honor, right?

get ingting a shotout from the president that way. >> absolutely is. >> that's so cool. >> so, we got president there chatting away. you wonder if he gets nervous? anybody have any insight on that? >> first first of all, he's always in the public eye, getting up there. this would be hard if you could devote weeks to preparing for it. as you say, one year, he's having a meeting about killing bin laden, so this is in the course of the high stakes presidency and he always does it. i have to say, even though he's had great talent following, every year he has outshined the comedian. >> you're on your seventh one as he is tonight. yikes are people going to like it as much this year. >> yeah. >> i think he has fun with it, actually. i remember when he said michael -- it's time for -- have fun, show a different side of themselves. so i think he has fun with it. he's got a great team of writers and he can deliver in a manner like nobody's business.

this is his platform. >> i wonder how long before the dinner he gets it and is is is able to look it over? because he's also running the country. keeping up with everything else. so he does deliver it well. well, everybody, you stay with us because we are just getting started here on our live coverage of the white house correspondents dinner. cecily strong a gig that has proven tough for many a strong person. >> now i know there's some polls out there saying this man has a 32% approval rating but guys like us we don't pay attention to the polls. we know that the polls are just a collection of statistics that re reflect what people are thinking in reality. and reality has a well-known liberal bias. >> you're watching the white house correspondents dinner live on msnbc. do you believe i said msnbc?

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some on the news mentioned the president getting gray but he's had his share of stress health care fight, iran north korea x his mother-in-law moving in with him. i think that would break most men. >> well that was jay leno when he was the featured performer and tonight, it's going to be cecily strong in the hot seat following the president up to the podium she talked this week about her feelingings when first asked. >> i was excited at first and then i went right to being terrified, but it had been made public, so i couldn't back out. zwl well, our panel back with me. i'm going to go to you, the comedian here because she's not a stand up comedian. she's known for doing her

characters on snl. talk about the challenge she has. >> it's a mixed bag. it's a very daunting room. ballrooms, it hasn't been renovated. 2800 people who are not coming to see her, as wonderful as she is they want to see her opening act, president obama. you know, anybody that level of fame are used to people coming to see them, so that's one thing. also, you're dealing with a very diverse crowd. democrats, people in the media. targets is difficult. but i also teach a comedy workshop. jon stewart took my shop. >> wow. >> so it's, i feel for her. this is the hardest thing. it's harder doing a club for nine people and not getting paid, so it's a great opportunity. i don't feel sorry for her. it's a difficult situation, but i'm sure she's going to shine tonight. >> let's take a listen to what she had to say about an issue just about every comedian has

done this has talked about. >> are that's all i've heard. >> i know. >> is how bad the room is so i've been warned a lot. coming from second city and doing a lot of improve, i've had some bad rooms, so that can't really shake me. >> i wondered why it's such a bad room. we're all having a good time. there's drinking going on. i personally had laughed even if those who were roasted later said oh, my gosh, they were terrible. why do you think it's such a tough room? >> i don't know what she meant, but it is for all sorts of reasons. it's incredibly loud. by the time the comedian starts people have settled down. there's a new documentary out, nerd prom, and it's showing ann compton begging the room to be quiet so that they could honor these scholarship recipients who are alleged lyly the reason this dinner is giffin and nobody's paying attention or ann compton, they're talking to each other

and that's why everybody's there, but it makes for the people on the stage feeling like they're not talking to anybody. >> another point, you have to follow the president, so that could be very very difficult because most of the presidents dlir well. also, it depends on who's in the room. people you target are they going to laugh, be upset. are the jokes going to fall flat on tv? she said she's not going to try to be mean. fun funny. not going for the mean. she's got seth meyers, who's hosted before, very successfully and she's looking at him as a mentor, so i think she'll do fine. >> not going to be bloody. >> it's a technical thing, the room is is not that well miked. this goes back to 2006 with stephen colbert, the most fears will, brilliant, best performance and inaccurately portrayed as he bombed. you just don't hear the laughs that well. gl since you like him so much, let's go back to a clip. here it is. >> i stand by this man. i stand by this man because he

stands for things. not only for thing, he stands on things. things like aircraft careriers and rubble and recently flooded city squaurs. and that sends a strong message that no matter what happens to america, she will always rebound with the most powerfully staged photo ops in the world. >> but see, that's the challenge. you're trying to poke fun, but you don't want to go too deep and if you do, that's when the room gets kind of quiet. maybe a few boos. >> i heard some of bush's aides left during it but he does this brilliant character and did do this brilliant character, so it worked on many levels and he was not trying to insult the president. and i think other presidents would have taken it in the spirit because president obama got some tough jokes over the year

years, too, so i think it was spot on, a great performance and funny and respectful. gl i think cecily will have a different advantage because she comes from a journalism family. her father was the bureau chief in illinois for the ap. that's how she found out about the gig. she got a text. somebody text her father hey, can you daughter do that gig? hosting the white house correspondents dirn. >> one of the youngest performers at 31. only the fourth woman in 100 years and as mitt romney would say, i have blinders full of women comedians that would be fantastic for this event. it is pretty shameful it's only been four and hopefully, this will be a trend to have more diversity as well. >> from stephen colbert, let's listen to what cedrick the entertainer did. here's part of that. >> the president, you know said the president wanted to talk to

me. i got a call from you know, the president. prz i said, is this the president? yeah, this is george bush. i'm like, what's your little name. he said w. i knew i had my man. >> see, that's kind of a sweet spot. everybody's laughing. the president's laughing. not poking too deep of fun there. >> it was easy to poke fun, president that president bush, sort of welcomed the portrayal of him as a little bit of a goof ball who can't say nuclear and says nuclear. that's kind of easy sfuf. stuff. it's getting into the flooding of the square in katrina. the fake photo op on the aircraft carrier. that's where the rubber meets the road with that president. he liked it much better when it was about his pronunciation and his goof ball antics. >> the other side is the media. 50 white house correspondents in the initial one in 1923.

you run into -- fox news and obviously, a lot of people laugh, but you know so it's absurd how far to go and last year he had some very biting cnn and airplanes, so sometimes, you wonder did my colleagues help, in comedy the problem is you only get one shot. >> you've got to politicians you can poke fun at and what about the celebrities? let's listen to that. >> michael douglas is here. where's michael? michael douglas. willing to manipulate the market for his own personal gain. where does hollywood come up with these crazy ideas? >> are you a mixture of hope of fear, that you want to be singled out and talked about? >> i think it's hope and fear. i remember covering one year i

think fox had lindsay lohan with kim kardashian. what a mixture this is. so, you know you're going to be talked about. better be ready to be a target either way. this is just a big deal. like you said earlier, when i lose donald trump, we were talking about him. >> i'm wondering about the big pop culture moment the interview with bruce jenner when he announced he was becoming a woman. that would be very dicesy thing to joke about. i'm curious whether or not thairn going to turn that up. >> award show recently so you know it's a difficult area, but again -- >> you've written for these kinds of ooents. would you write a joke, just curious, would you go for it? >> when you're writing for elected officials, it's different. i wrote for a mayoral candidate, he dropped out short lyly after.

haunts me to this day. it's, that is the you never know in comedy. i'm a comedian. you never know until you do it and then see what happens. >> brodey is in attendance tant. i think that's one you stay away from. we've got laverne cox. so many people have supported bruce. i think it would be too soon and strange to do it. >> the thing about colbert, i laugh ed laughed at some of his stuff that year as well, it didn't just fall flat with the president. the crowd took -- with a lot of this. >> let's review the rules. here's how it works. the president makes decisions, he's the decider. the press secretary announces those decisions and you people of the press type those decisions down. make anoubs announce type. just put them through a spell check and go home. get to know your family again. make love to your wife. write that nofl novel in your head. you know, the one about the

intrepid washington reporter with the courage to stand up to the administration? you know, fiction. >> he there could have been a little more boisterous laughter there. sometimes, can be a little thin skin perhaps. >> this is exactly the character he plays on tv. this is no different than who he is and what he was. you have to laugh at yourself sometimes as journalists. thin skin. >> 2006, what's interesting, so different now. no one -- you know, didn't get a lot of coverage. and actually, type of audience colbert did amazingly with his audience f watching and still did well but the thing is is, it wasn't covered until a few days later when bloggers picked up on it and did go after the press, so maybe the media wasn't that happy and didn't want to cover it at the time. >> maybe as you were pointing out, cecily will be genting with the press.

well, our live coverage continues ahead. we're going to expect the president to take the podium shortly. while he has wroked this event in the past, who has been funniest commander in chief? we're going to look at that ahead. >> media really ticks me off. the way they try to embarrass me by not editing what i say. well, let's get things going or i'll never get to bed. >> thank you, mark. i'm absolutely delighted to be here. >> i am ashley judd and you are watching the white house correspondent correspondents dinner 2015 live on msnbc. c! now's the time to send in the scotts turf builder weed and feed, man! it kills weeds while it feeds and strengthens your grass. feed your lawn. feed it!

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as it's raining men. in my first -- we past health care reform. in my second term, i guess i'll pass it again. >> well you could expect more of that from president obama when he takes the podium in just a few minutes in his annual opportunity to give a bit back to those who cover him all year. some of the biggest names from hollywood and journalism are attending. it always gets a lot of laughs. but it takes more than just a sense of humor to impress one of the most powerful audienceses. ab withes. we get a look at the headliner, the jokes. >>. >> it's one of the biggest, most star studded events in washington. the white house correspondents

dinner. >> most of you covered me. gl it's quick, one-line reactions. >> darrell hammond, famous for his presidential impressions, headlines the dinner in 2001. >> it's an honor and privilege to perform the president of the united states. that said -- >> mover and shakers of the world and it's the hardest room i ever played because they're kind of looking at each other because thai like you're not laughing at that are you, trump? the most important part is that if the -- >> we're going to have to deal with the technical difficulty there because that's a really good package and we're going to have to bring that back later. but again, the president's going to take the podium shortly and while he's always done well here, is he the funniest president ever? well, back with me beth scott

and alicia. what's the answer? yes, no? >> that's a hard one. >> i would say yes if terms of his performance in the last few years. i don't think any president has been funnier and not just funny for a guy who's president, but really with real comedic skills and shops. >> it's a tie between george w. bush and president obama. totally different people. totally different deliver rirks sense of humor but they're both dynamic when theiry're at the dinner. >> i'm starting to look ahead at the next president. ted cruz not funny. marco rubio, not very funny. is hillary clinton funny? it's really hard to see any of them in this role. >> president bush was famously uncomfortable at this event, but he did manage to do well especially when he brought in om help. let's look at that. >> so i want to tuck about some serious issues such as, okay,

here it comes. nuclear proliferation. nuclear proliferation. nuclear proliferation. >> nuclear proliferation. >> all right. all right. maintain. be cool. let's give this a try. we must enhabs hans noncomplianced protocalls sanction not only at iaea formal sessions, but through intersessional contact. >> we must enhance noncompliance protocalls. sanction that not only at eieio formal sessions. but through intersexual conduct.

>> nailed it. >> i remember that. that was one of the funniest moments i thought. he du does a good job of making fun of himself, but how do you rate him as a comedian? i'm a liberal political comedian. i do not agree with the president. he's a decent man, george w. bush. there was one incident one right and he did actually in 2003 did not have a comedian. they had ray charles perform because it was after the innovation of iraq and one thing, he did do a video one year where it was him looking at the office for weapons of mass destruction and couldn't find them. now, you could laugh at that but i as someone who thought the iraq war shouldn't have

happened, didn't find it that funny. so it's a very subjective thing. what i would say about president bush he should have used that humor more in his administration. i would recommend that for all presidents. the more you can incorporate humor, the more you can deal with the crazyness of congress. >> remember the technical glitch? i knew we'd get it fixed. let's play it again. here's what it's all about behind the scenes making the jokes. >> it's one of the biggest, most star studded events in washington. the white house correspondents dinner. >> most of you covered me. all of you voted for me. >> it's quick, one line great reactions. >> saturday saturday "saturday night live" veteran famous for his presidential impressions headlined the dinner in 2001. >> it's an honor and a privilege to perform. for the president. of the united states.

that said. >> those are the movers and shakers of the world and it's the hardest room i ever played because they're kind of looking at each other, like you're not laughing at that are you, trump? the most important part is if the king doesn't laugh, the subject's don't laugh. >> but the king gets to crack his own jokes at this dinner. >> the press and i have different jobs to do. my job is to be president. your job is to keep me humble. frankly, i think i'm doing my job better. >> john favro was president obama's chief speech writer at his side for five of these dinners. gl anyone from daily show to "saturday night live" to all kinds of other places people have sent in jokes. >> and they get to try out their material on the president himself. >> usually, it's one of the more fun meetings. we spend a lot of time laughing. >> no matter who is telling

them, the best jokes often convey what everyone is thinking. >> i believe the government that governs best is the government that governs least and by these standards, we have set up a fabulous government in iraq. mr. president, look at your hair. if your hair gets any whiter, the tea party is going to endorse it. >> and the president has to show he can laugh at himself. >> for the first time, i am releasing my official birth video. ♪ >> at the end of the day, if we're trying to decide between two jokes, t not which will help him kind of push an issue, it's which is funniest. >> they have sure come up with some great ones. remember, right, delivery. the way we all react to it and they're keepers. they're classics. >> not only that, but president obama's beautifully said

earlier, he's made this dinner a chance to address issues. the birther thing. a lot of issues, he disarms people with humor. >> well and when he did that birth, donald trump was one of the biggest proponents and he was sitting there, ooh. >> it was that week president obama had released his long form birth certificate because of trump. it had just gotten so out of control the president had to do it. that's why he spent the whole dinner going right after it. >> do you remember when president, might have been the same year, he talked about his issues of telepromter and relying on the telepromter. he made fun of himself and i love that about when he's on stage. does it well. >> you expect president clinton to do well at a dinner like this. here is part of one of his apooernss when he took aim after the journalists who covered him. >> just imagine if today's press corps covered yesterday's wars.

here are a few headlines. paul revere's warning. too little too late? lincoln speaks at gettysburg. fails to articulate exit strategy. >> do you think beth that the clintons combative relationship with the press made this a pretty tough event for him, particularly as the monica luns ski scandal grow? >> yes and no. it's true there's always been some fight wg the clintons, includeing hillary and reporters, however, that's true of all these presidents. president obama doesn't love the press either. i think actually this event is an opportunity for them to almost they could poke at the press a little bit, but it's like a peace offering. it's like, look guys, as president obama said i've got a job to do, you guys have a job to do.

we can kind of have a little friction most of the time, but tonight, let's unite around the thipgs where we have common ground. i thought the sound bite from president clinton shed a little undercurrent of anger. like you could hear him feeling resentful to the press. if he feels recentful, he keeps it very cool. >> this can change how a country sees you. and president clinton said that after the scandal during the height of it, his appearance tat white house correspondents dinner changed the way america saw him. he said it changed the whole entire time. t about delivery. >> they had don imus one of the years and when very, very far. does very well. but it always humanizes you. whatever resentment they may have to the press, when they're there, making each other laugh, a short simply in washington, we need more of it. it does help you. >> i want to let everyone know, what we're seeing is the

beginning of the actual program itself and again this is a scholarship dinner. i mean, they are going to give out awards to -- 17 young aspiringing journalists are going to get this and a total of $89,550 is going to be given out and the applause is always jai nor mouse for these kids. you're coming up on stage, getting these awards talk about the pinnacle of your life up to this point. >> but beth was talking about earlier, the documentary that came out, kind of criticizing this. and what it's become. the fact that we're not giving more money to these students that the focus is not on the students, it's become a big deal. people are saying what is this really about. >> and most of these students evidently can't even get in to the afterparties. they've shown up and are not permitted. think about all the wealth that's in that room. >> going on the last four days. >> you should think with the type of power plays you've got,

they might almost do anything to a fund-raiser like a silent auction. school and that kind of thing. do an auction and see if tables could compete and get more money. >> i do it at my temple. >> yeah, that's a good thing. so maybe the focus will eventually get to that point. a couple of little details in terms of this by the numbers. you know how many people are in this ballroom? there are let's see, the number of, yeah, 2600. we've got 2636 people. they have tables of ten. so, there's 262 tables approximately. another 4,000 people scheduled to attend parties just in washington hilton itself. what i was saying earlier about the -- >> >> run out of there. yes. >> and not only that, the shape of the ballroom as people have been talking about, some of the tables are so far back, they're in virginia. >> you're good. >> because of security you have to go through the whole secret

screening. trying to get out. it's really a funnel. as soon as the lights come up you're out of there. >> it's going to -- but it is such a huge event. a number of outlets covering this. 151. you could just see that on the red carpet. >> 20 years ago, it was not televised at all. this has been the tradition, 1993 was the first year. >> for the past ten years i think, it's gotten bigger and bigger and bigger every year l with more outlets, more interest. so, it's become the event. >> so the question is will the president stake his claim to the funniest president ever with tonight's performance? we're going find out any moment when he takes the podium and from his past appearances, we know he has some favorite targets. >> fortunately, john mccain couldn't make it. recently, he claimed he had never identified himself as a maverick. and we all know what happens in

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[inflating noise] watch your personal dvr library wherever you go with the x1 entertainment operating system.® i admit it. last year was rough. sheesh. at one point, things got so bad, the 47% called mitt romney to apologize. >> big laughter here in the studio on that one. that was the president, of course, last year. what does he have in store for tonight? we'll find out any moment when he takes to the podium. joining me for our coverage, my excellent panel.

senior editor for msnbc.com, scott blakeman alicia corals and i want to thank you for being with me. >> wonder what he's going to talk about. >> we were talking about it in the commercial break. >> maybe what's going on with iran and whether republicans want to get approval of any iran jokes the president does. i think, you know sadly, a couple days ago, the tragedy with the drone strike. a year or two ago, president obama did a funny joke about drones. can't do that tonight. >> i'm guessing he's going to go after some of the republicans running in 2016. he's been going after scott walker. he seems to be accusing him. he said at one point, maybe when scott walker bones up on foreign policy, we can discuss what's going on. scott walker got huffy and tweeted. it seems like for some reason the president has his eyes on scott walker. >> he does have some topics of

course, he knows people are going to be sure laugh getters for him. in fac, let's play one of them. you're going torecognize this one. here it is. >> in the next 100 days my partners in outreach will be so successful that even john boehner will consider becoming a democrat. after all, we have a lot in common. he is a person of color. although not a color that appears in the natural world. >> do you think he's going to go there ghenagain this year? >> orange is the new black. yes. that was the famous line. i think he probably is going to go there. it will be interesting to see if he goes after us the media. remember the year that conan o'brien hosted and he went after each and every media outlet, calling msnbc, we're the nerds.

>> this is the least 93rdnerdy. most people in the media are glamorous. comedians, we're nerdy. i think he will go after the unannounced candidate for president and the announced candidate for president. >> you also have to be very careful. there are clearly some areas he's going to be very sensitive about. you know in the past they have taken heat if they have gone just a little too far. do you think this president has ever been a little too far or is he good at being measured. >> i can't think of a time. >> he can be edgy but hilariously funny. i think it's worked beautifully. >> with twitter being such a thing now, i have noticed in the last couple years, republicans will jump on certain things he says in the comedy portion and say it's not funny. they'll try to suck the whole humor out of it.

twitter is a natural environment for that. >> yeah. >> what happened to al franken who hosted the dinner when he ran for senate he had to deal with people saying i can't believe you said that? it's comedy. >> it's about being loit hearted. the big moment is just about here. president obama about to take to the podium continuing a legacy of laughs from commanders in chief over the years. we'll have it for you live. >> always look forward to these dinners where i'm supposed to be funny. intentionally. >> you're watching the white house correspondents dinner, msnbc. scotts turf builder weed and feed, man! it kills weeds while it feeds and strengthens your grass. feed your lawn. feed it! why do we do it? why do we spend every waking moment, thinking about people? why are we so committed to keeping

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suggested that the bill contains a few secret provisions. and that's ridiculous. there aren't a few secret provisions in the health care plan. there are like hundreds. >> well that is just a taste of what we're in for just a few minutes from now as the president is preparing to take the stage at the white house correspondents dinner. top of the hour here and our special live coverage continues. back with me beth phooey scott blakeman a political comedian, and alicia quarles. i want to thank you all for being with me of course. let's get to a couple things before we get to more of what the president has done in the past, i want to talk about the first lady who took to the podium. we all know who we're talking about, laura bush. is she the only one