Stephen Colbert makes fun of Washington every night on The Colbert Report, but on Friday, Beltway insiders turned the tables at the 20th annual Roast for Spina Bifida. The Comedy Central mock news anchor took abuse from M.C. Mark Shields and roasters Senator Orrin Hatch, D.C. delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, White House press secretary Dana Perino, and Representative Rahm Emanuel, President-elect Barack Obama's new chief of staff, who all joined forces for what Emanuel called a “night full of insults, snarky comments about each other, and name-calling.” In between barbs, guests watched highlights of memorable moments from the Report, including clips of Colbert’s run-ins with Holmes, Norton, and Emanuel.
Held at the Hilton Washington, the sold-out event raised more than $450,000 and drew in more than 550 guests, an increase from past years. Cindy Brownstein, C.E.O. of the Spina Bifida Association, said that landing Colbert as a headliner helped raise funds in the current economic downturn. “Having the great roastee we have gives us a leg up this year,” Brownstein said, noting that she expected this year’s event to draw in younger attendees, thanks to Colbert’s fan base. “In recognition, we lowered the price for first-time attendees,” she said, from $500 to $350.
The event's planners also incorporated green elements into the roast for the first time, raffling off a hybrid Lexus RX 400h, using a reusable thumb drive loaded with info about the Spina Bifida Association at each table in place of printed programs, and topping the tables with living ferns, moss, and grasses instead of cut flowers. Guests could take home the centerpieces with a $35 donation.
This was not Colbert's first performance at the Hilton Washington—the main ballroom is where he delivered his notorious 2006 White House Correspondents’ Dinner speech. During his remarks at the roast, Colbert joked, “At least that night people waited till the next day to slam me.”
