Cardinal Dolan: Harris received ‘bad advice’ to skip Catholic charity dinner

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Sep 25, 2024 / 17:10 pm

Cardinal Timothy Dolan said on Tuesday that Vice President Kamala Harris’ decision to skip the Al Smith dinner, a prominent Catholic charity event in New York, wasn’t a wise political move.

While Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said Harris’ decision to skip the dinner reveals her “anti-Catholic” sentiments, Dolan, who leads the Archdiocese of New York, blamed bad advice.

“Different people are reading motives into it; I don’t know the motives,” he said, speaking on his podcast. “She simply said she’s got to use it for campaigning. This isn’t a campaign event, but it certainly is good visibility, you know, I mean it’s a national audience and everybody covers it; now the news is that she’s not there. So, I don’t know who’s advising her but she’s not getting good advice.”

The $5,000-a-plate charity event taking place on Oct. 17 is hosted by the Archdiocese of New York; the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner has been attended by nearly every major presidential candidate since 1960. 

According to Dolan, President Joe Biden had committed to attending the dinner earlier this year before dropping out of the race. Harris’ campaign team, however, reportedly notified the archdiocese on Saturday that she would not be attending the event. 

Instead of attending the event, Harris’ team has said she will use the time to campaign in critical swing states, according to the New York Post. 

Dolan pointed out on his podcast after the news broke that the last candidate who refused an invitation to the dinner, Walter Mondale in 1984, lost his election in a massive blowout. 

“I don’t want to say its cause and effect,” Dolan quipped, “[but] Walter Mondale went on to lose 49 states.” 

On a more serious note, the cardinal noted that he is “doubly disappointed” by Harris’ decision. 

As head of the Archdiocese of New York, Dolan typically sits between the two presidential candidates on the main dais atop the stage. Dolan said he was looking forward to presiding over an evening in which both candidates got to put aside their differences in the interest of charity.

“We were looking forward to giving both candidates an enthusiastic welcome, which we always do,” Dolan said. “It’s not supposed to be a campaign, it’s kind of an evening of patriotism, joy, friendship, and unity. Well, those are values she’s been talking about, and this evening is supposed to showcase that, so we’re kind of doubly disappointed that she’s not coming.”

Despite this, Dolan noted that he still hopes Harris will change her mind “when she becomes aware of how important this is.”

He said that New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, both Democrats and regular attendees of the dinner, have been “pestering her, saying, ‘You got to come.’”

“They [Hochul and Schumer] say there still might be a chance because this may have just been her handlers saying, ‘No, no we can’t,’” Dolan said.

Trump will still attend

Trump, meanwhile, has confirmed that he will be attending the dinner. 

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Dolan praised Trump’s commitment to the event, saying he has been “extraordinarily good,” participating in the event every election year since 2016.

Trump made headlines at the 2016 Al Smith dinner because of jokes he made about then-Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, which some said went too far and broke with the friendly spirit of the event. In 2020, both Trump and Biden sent recorded video messages for the event, which took place online due to COVID-19.

Catholic comedian Jim Gaffigan, who is scheduled to serve as the dinner’s master of ceremonies, confirmed with the Daily Beast that he will still be headlining the event.  

A missed opportunity

Brian Browne, an adjunct professor of political science at St. John’s University in Queens, New York, told CNA that while Harris’ decision likely won’t make much of a difference to the average Catholic voter, more engaged Catholic voters “could perceive this as a misstep or insult.”

He said that “a modest investment of a few hours” at the dinner would provide an opportunity to demonstrate “bipartisan camaraderie and an ability to present humor, humility, and a human touch.”

“It is a missed opportunity to appear at a historic, traditional, and overwhelmingly enjoyable event that raises much-needed funds for Catholic Charities,” Browne said. “At a minimum, it exposes the Harris campaign as not completely understanding or appreciating the history of one of the friendlier traditions of presidential elections. It fuels the ongoing criticisms that Vice President Harris is scripted, risk-averse, and not ready for prime time.”

Browne, who has attended the dinner several times, described it as “a classic and special New York City experience that showcases and celebrates just how far Catholics have come in the United States.”

Maybe the right decision for Harris?

John White, a professor of politics at The Catholic University of America, told CNA he believes the reaction to Harris’ decision is being blown out of proportion.

“It’s perfectly understandable that Harris would want to spend the remaining days of the campaign in the swing states,” he said. “Moreover, it’s important to remember what happened at the last live Smith dinner in 2016. Trump did not adhere to the spirit of light banter and humor and delved into personal attacks against Hillary Clinton. Undoubtedly, he would do the same again.”

White said: “I don’t think this matters much to Catholics.”

“Frankly, I think the Smith dinner is losing its salience in terms of a political benefit,” he added. “And while Cardinal Dolan likes to recite history, saying Walter Mondale didn’t show up in 1984 and lost 49 states, Richard Nixon did not appear in 1972 — sending Vice President [Spiro] Agnew instead — and he won 49 states.”

Meanwhile, Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, told CNA that the dinner plays to Trump’s strengths and Harris’ weaknesses, creating what he called a “lose-lose situation” for the vice president.

“It seems obvious that her handlers, who are ever so cautious about her public comments, are afraid she might stumble, and therefore come to regret going,” he said. “But playing it safe is like playing not to lose in sports — it is not a surefire way to win. No matter, the lack of confidence her handlers have in her ability to think quickly and succinctly is not unfounded.”

Despite this, Donohue noted that Harris “should know that if she were to attend the Al Smith dinner, New York Archbishop Timothy Cardinal Dolan would ensure that she was treated with respect” despite her policy record, he said, “most of which is inimical to Catholic values.”