Jay Leno's routine at the White House Correspondents' Dinner (video)

So, the early reviews are not great: Jay Leno's routine felt stale -- much as we love a good John Boehner suntan joke or Eric Massa tickle joke -- and low-energy. The late-night star seemed glued to his notes. If you expected him to come out swinging after his controversial year, you were disappointed. Some highlights, though:

"All through the election [the press corps would] ask: 'Is Obama black enough? is Obama too black?' It's never the other way around: 'Is John Boehner orange enough? Is he too orange?'"

"It's always surprising to hear critics describe the president as cold and aloof. I have never found him to be that way. He loves to socialize -- health care, car companies... "

"As you know a lot of Republicans could not be here because it is dollar drink night at the bondage club, so unfortunately... That's my favorite story: Republicans in a lesbian bondage club. It's ironic: Republicans don't want lesbians to get married, but they do like to watch them tie the knot,"

"Eric Massa claimed that Rahm Emanuel confronted him in the congressional gym shower and of course, people were shocked: Congress has a gym? Does anyone in Congress look like they work out? Did it take Barney Frank 30 years to get that body? What's Harry Reid benchpressing these days, five pounds now?"

"You mention this situation in the Gulf of Mexico, there's talk now that this disaster could be bigger than that huge disaster they had up in Alaska. Really? Bigger than Sarah Palin?"

That last one drew an "ohhhhhh..." from the audience. Want more? Heck, you can watch the whole thing if you want, thanks to our friends at C-Span. starting at roughly the 35:25 mark.

Also: White House Correspondents' Dinner 2010 full coverage.

By The Reliable Source | May 2, 2010; 12:24 PM ET
Categories: White House Correspondents' Association Dinner
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Comments

I watched it on CSPAN. Leno bombed, he was terrible, he sped through his jokes, no one seemed to laugh, he seemed uncomfortable. He wasn't funny, he looked old, fat and tired. Leno has lost his spark. Ever since he went to 10:00 PM he just isn't funny anymore. That was the worst Leno performance I ever saw. I was really looking forward to him and he was a big letdown, Obama was funnier.

Posted by: info4 | May 2, 2010 10:55 PM | Report abuse

Unfortunately everything about Leno at the Dinner was off... he wasn't funny, his comedic timing was off and he looked uptight.

Maybe it is time for him to move on and do something else.

Posted by: danglingwrangler | May 3, 2010 5:08 PM | Report abuse

Leno has become the Bob Hope of this generation. I agree, Obama had better writers and he delivered his lines better too.

Posted by: eaglesmomma | May 4, 2010 8:15 PM | Report abuse

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Jay Leno's routine at the White House Correspondents' Dinner (video)