“There is a thin line that separates laughter and pain, comedy and tragedy, humor and hurt,” the writer Erma Bombeck once noted. Had she been present at yesterday’s South Boston St. Patrick’s Day Breakfast, she might have amended that to read “no line.”
There’s been so much scorn heaped on the politicians’ efforts to be funny at the breakfast that there seemed less effort than ever to try. No videos, no props, a bare smattering of photoshopped gags. The only sustained shtick came from Congressman Stephen Lynch of South Boston, a former host of the event who suggested his hometown supports President Trump’s musings about seizing Greenland. “We could probably use it for parking…and we can do it peacefully,” he said. “Just fly over there and put out a chair.”
There were a few other very mildly amusing moments. Gov. Maura Healey insisted she wouldn’t pander for political support, then shed her jacket to reveal a bright green T-shirt reading “VOTE FOR ME, I’M IRISH.” She then misheard a spectator to be saying “take off the shirt,” glanced over at Archbishop Richard Henning seated nearby, and replied: “That is not cool. This is his first breakfast, guys, okay, show some respect.”
(Judging from the somewhat stunned look on the archbishop’s face at times as he took in the spectacle, it may be his last one too.)
But for the most part, this was a parade of angry, bitter remarks about assorted political enemies, unleavened by any semblance of humor, telling about the political climate we’re enduring.
Attorney General Andrea Campbell was not smiling as she lashed out at archenemy Diana DiZoglio, the state auditor: “Diana and I aren’t in rooms very often together, but yet it doesn’t seem to stop her from talking about me everywhere she goes. And it’s going to take a lot of talk to somehow convince some folks that this girl from Roxbury and Mattapan is a guardian of the establishment, but you do you and I’ll do my job.”
Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley ridiculed Trump for not participating in the breakfast: “Too bad you aren’t up for the task, Donny boy, too busy starting horrific wars to try to distract from the fact that you’re a pedophile.”
And DiZoglio, as is her custom, delivered her bile musically with a parody of the British singer Raye’s hit song “Where [The Hell] Is My Husband” converted to “where the hell is my audit?” Sample lyric: “Just filed in court that the AG said no/Leaving the voters with nowhere to go/ Access to justice? Just for some/We know where the judge’s paycheck comes from.” That would be a reference to SJC Justice Dalila Wendlandt, who rejected DiZoglio’s push to hire Campbell’s 2022 primary opponent as outside counsel in the audit battle. Good luck with future court filings!
During her anti-Trump soliloquy, Pressley evoked a part of Boston’s immigration history. “You remember when there were signs that said Irish need not apply? This is a moment for solidarity and community, not tribalism.”
Here? Now? In all seriousness, she’s got to be joking.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Some good news for those who appreciate Jon Keller’s commentaries: after a hiatus of several months, he will be returning to WBZ-TV as a special contributor starting tonight (Monday, March 16) on the early-evening WBZ news. Keller will be providing analysis of important political developments on WBZ’s newscasts and moderating major political debates on the station. His Sunday morning “Keller At Large” interview program, a staple of the city’s public affairs TV scene since 1991, resumes this Sunday at 8:30 a.m. with guest Gov. Maura Healey. Keller will continue his weekly column and event hosting for MASSterList as well as occasional articles for Boston Magazine.