At GOP Leadership Conference, Obama Impersonator Tells Racist Jokes

? by Sha Stimuli June 20, 2011, 14:15pm

At GOP Leadership Conference, Obama Impersonator Tells Racist Jokes

The Republicans that invited Barack Obama impersonator Reggie Brown to the GOP Leadership Conference didn't expect the jokes to target some of their own.

The comedian got a bunch of laughs when he poked fun at The president claiming that he only celebrated half of Black History month but the laughter wasn't as loud when he made fun of Barbara Bush and George W. Bush.

Brown's mic was cut off when he apparently took some shots at Republican Newt Gingrich and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty.

However, the funny man from Chicago claims that he was rushed off because of time constraints, not content. His set was supposed to be between 10 and 15 minutes, but with an introductory video they played for him, he was clocked at 17 minutes.

“Not every joke hits,” Brown said. “All-in-all I think it was a great performance, and I got a lot of great feedback.”

Take a look at some of the hilarious political jokes.

View the original article here

Obama impersonator pulled from Republican Leadership Conference stage

 

Barack Obama impersonator Reggie Brown briefly stole the spotlight this weekend at the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans after making a series of racial jokes and taking digs at several 2012 GOP candidates--the stars of the show--before being pulled from the stage.

When the routine mocked the president and other Democrats, it seemed to get a positive reception from the conservative audience--but the crowd let loose a smattering of groans and boos when Republicans became the butt of jokes.

Brown opened by saying Obama only celebrates half of Black History Month because he is biracial, that the president's "mother loved a black man, and no, she was not a Kardashian," referencing the reality-show sisters who have dated and/or married black men. Brown later compared the Obamas to the stars of "Sanford and Son," to wide laughter.

But when Brown started taking on the GOP's base, things grew tenser. He insulted Barbara Bush's appearance, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's Mormon faith, suggested former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty doesn't have a spine, and joked about former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Just when he was about to make a dig about Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) the comedian was ushered off stage.

As media outlets reported, former Republican National Committee spokesman and current GOP strategist Doug Heye responded to the performance via Twitter, writing: "Wonder why many minorities have problems with GOP? Hiring Obama impersonator to tell 'black jokes' at SRLC, for starters. Our own fault."

Brown was asked on CNN Monday morning if he believes he was yanked due to content or for time. "I do believe that I was over time for a few minutes and I also believe the material was starting to get to a point to where maybe they started to feel uncomfortable about where it was going," Brown said.

Event organizer Charlie Davis told The Ticket via email Monday morning: "I pulled him because his content was inappropriate for the conference."

After asking Davis why Brown wasn't pulled off stage sooner if the comments were "inappropriate," Davis followed up, writing:

The RLC is designed to showcase the top Republican leaders and ideas in the country. To talk about limited government, fiscal responsibility and rebuilding the American economy.

Had I been in the room I would have pulled him sooner. We have zero tolerance for racially insensitive jokes. As soon as I realized what was going on I rushed backstage and had him pulled.

You can watch highlights of Brown's set below:

UPDATE 10:35am EST: Event organizer Charlie Davis confirmed to The Ticket that Brown was pulled for "inappropriate" content.

UPDATE 11:55am EST: Davis follows up to say the racial comments were "inappropriate."

(Photo of Brown: Patrick Semansky/AP)

View the original article here

Obama Jokes OK, but GOP Conference Yanks Comedian During Republican Jokes

COMMENTARY | Comedian and Obama impersonator Reggie Brown seemed to only be trying to give the political parties equal time while doing his routine at the Republican Leadership Conference (RLC) in New Orleans over the weekend. He had the crowd roaring with laughter at his off-color Obama jokes. However, the roar turned to outraged booing when he started telling jokes about the 2012 Republican presidential contenders.

Hired for his spot-on impersonation of President Barack Obama, Reggie Brown was sure to be a hit at the RLC. And he was -- at first. According to the New York Daily News, Brown strode onto the stage with "Born in the USA" playing in the background, a slap at the birther movement controversy that had given the President such a difficult time until he petitioned the state of Hawaii to release the long form of his certificate of live birth, thus discrediting the conspiracy theorists that have claimed that he was born in Kenya or somewhere else outside the United States.

Brown told the crowd that his favorite month was February because of Black History Month. He admitted that he only celebrated half the month (a dig at Obama's mixed heritage -- Obama's mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, was, of course, white).

The comedian also talked about the rapid aging process presidents seemed to go through while in the White House. He then produced a "time-lapse" photo of what Obama and his wife, Michele, would look like in the future. The picture was a still shot of comedian Redd Foxx and actress Lawanda Page, the famous feuding in-laws from TV's "Sanford and Son."

The crowd of Republicans erupted with laughter.

But then Brown switched to poking fun at the Republicans running for office. He went after former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and his recent staff resignation incident, saying that his advisors were "dropping faster than Anthony Weiner's pants in an AOL chatroom."

He then nailed Mitt Romney in a polygamy joke and said the reason former Minnesota governor wasn't at the Conference was because he was "getting his foot surgically removed from his mouth," a direct jab at Pawlenty's hedging over his own coined term "Obamneycare" at last week's New Hampshire Republican Presidential Debate. Brown said placatingly, "Don't worry: it's covered under Obamneycare. Along with spinal transplants."

The booing had begun well before Brown took aim at Rep. Michele Bachmann. He didn't get through his first line before his microphone went dead and music began to play to drown him out.

It appears that the humor found at the expense of the President was preferable to that found in conjunction with the gathering's fellow Republicans. Brown quickly learned that he wasn't performing at the White House Correspondents Dinner.

The incident strangely reflected the mood of the Republican conference, where the speakers repeatedly went after the President and his policies with angry and inflammatory remarks. Newt Gingrich even called the President a "national secular European socialist" and the "opposite of freedom." Sticking to red meat political topics, the speakers ignored the entreaties of two of their number from earlier in the conference. Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal and Mississippi governor Haley Barbour both told the gathering that they should not focus everything on Obama, but use a broader strategy to win in 2012.

It is as yet uncertain what Reggie Brown's plans hold for the future (except that he won't be doing any more Republican functions), but it is very likely that he will soon appear on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" and "The Colbert Report," not to mention possibly being tapped to do a few Democratic conferences. Because somebody has to assuage the public's curiosity about how that Michele Bachmann joke ends.

View the original article here