Kamala Harris to skip Al Smith dinner breaking longstanding tradition, Internet calls her a 'coward'

WASHINGTON, DC: Vice President Kamala Harris would skip the Alfred E Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, breaking off from a decades-long tradition, reported the New York Post.

The Democratic presidential nominee would thus be the first person running for White House to miss the historical event since former failed presidential candidate Walter Mondale in 1984.

On the other hand, former president Donald Trump would be a part of the 79th iteration of the Archdiocese of New York’s dinner scheduled on October 17 at New York Hilton Midtown. Harris, on the day, would hold a final stretch campaign in the swing states ahead of the November 5 election, as per her campaign.

Kamala Harris wants to attend Al Smith dinner as president if elected

Archdiocese spokesperson Joseph Zwilling confirmed that Kamala Harris would not participate in the 2024 Al Smith Dinner.

"We are disappointed that she will not be with us, as this is an evening of unity and putting aside political differences in support of a good cause of helping women and children in need regardless of race, creed, or background," Zwilling said, adding they hoped the VP would reconsider.

Meanwhile, according to the spokesperson, Trump's campaign has ensured the former president's presence in the Archdiocese.

Zwilling further said that Harris' team informed the organizers of her willingness to attend the historic Al Smith dinner as the President of the United States if she won in November.

Al Smith dinner: An opportunity for presidential candidates to roast each other

Presidential candidates attending the Al Smith dinner has become a tradition since  Richard Nixon and John F Kennedy's joint appearance in 1960. The event offered a unique opportunity for the rivals to roast each other during their speeches.

The dinner was first hosted in 1946 and has been held annually since, raising millions of dollars to assist those in need in New York City. It is held in honor of former New York Gov Al Smith, the first Roman Catholic to receive a major party nomination for the presidential race in 1928.

In every presidential election year, the candidates unfailingly took part in the dinner to trade humorous jokes about each other.

Before Harris, Jimmy Carter's Vice President Walter Mondale skipped the dinner while he ran against President Ronald Reagan.

In 1996, both major party presidential candidates did not attend the Al Smith Dinner. Then-president Bill Clinton allegedly vetoing a late-term ban on abortion prompted the New York Archdiocese to not invite Clinton and his GOP opponent Bob Dale.

Notably, Trump and his 2016 Democratic challenger, Hillary Clinton, were the last presidential candidates to take part in the event because in 2020, the Al Smith dinner was conducted virtually for the first time due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In 2016 the MAGA leader was met with boos from the attendees when he said his rival, Clinton, was corrupt and hated Catholics.

In 2020, Trump and President Joe Biden touted their White House race to Catholic voters in a pretaped video.

Internet mocks Kamala Harris for dodging Al Smith dinner

Kamala Harris's decision to skip this year's Al Smith dinner was met with mockery online as netizens suggested it was either because she was afraid to be roasted or because of her lack of policies.

"Coward all the way," a user said.

"She’s is hiding because she has no policies or abilities," another remarked.

"She couldn’t figure out the accent to use, I guess, " said a user.

"She wouldn’t be able to take the heat..," someone else wrote.

"She can dish it out but she can't take it. Loser," read another response.

"So they won’t be serving salad?" another quipped.

"Maybe she’s saving her appetite for something with fewer traditions and more drama!" an individual joked.

"She can’t stand another press asking her questions lol," one person wrote.

"Oh well, she skips policy speeches constantly to. No policy Harris," read another remark.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.