At charity roast, Donald Trump delivered what might as well be a campaign eulogy

By Jenna Johnson

https://twitter.com/wpjenna

October 21 at 3:37 AM

NEW YORK — It was supposed to be his opening joke, but it landed with such heavy bitterness that it prompted scattered, uncomfortable laughter.

“A special hello to all of you in this room who have known and loved me for many, many years. It's true,” Trump said as he took command of the dais at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner on Thursday evening, wearing a white tie and a black tuxedo coat that he kept tugging at.

“The politicians,” he continued. “They've had me to their homes, they've introduced me to their children, I've become their best friends in many instances. They've asked for my endorsement, and they always wanted my money. And even called me really a dear, dear friend. But then suddenly, decided when I ran for president as a Republican, that I've always been a no-good, rotten, disgusting scoundrel. And they totally forgot about me.”

Over the next 15 minutes, Trump gave a speech that might as well have been a eulogy for his presidential campaign. .... “Hillary is so corrupt, she got kicked off the Watergate Commission,” Trump said, as the crowd turned on him and started to boo, something that simply doesn't happen at lavish charity dinners at the Waldorf Astoria hotel. The face of one the guests sitting on the stage behind him was suddenly struck with horror. ... “Hillary believes that it's vital to deceive the people by having one public policy and a totally different policy in private,” Trump said, as the booing intensified. .... Trump would go on to accuse Clinton of “pretending not to hate Catholics” and mock the Clinton Foundation's work in Haiti. At one point, he wondered aloud if the crowd was booing him or Clinton, to which someone in the crowd answered: “You!”