Vice President Kamala Harris is skipping Al Smith’s charity dinner in New York this year, breaking with presidential tradition and allowing her to campaign in a state where the outcome is still uncertain.
The dinner for the benefit of Catholic Charities is traditionally used to promote collegiality and good humor, with presidential candidates from both parties appearing on the same night and offering answers to each other.
A campaign official confirmed to CBS News that Harris will not be present in order to maximize her time in the swing states before Election Day. The aide added that Harris would welcome the opportunity to attend as president if she is elected in November.
CNN was first to report the decision.
Donald Trump’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether he would attend the dinner. His appearance at the dinner in 2016 drew boos when many in the audience felt he crossed a line when he called Democrat Hillary Clinton corrupt and claimed she hated Catholics.
This year’s white-tie gala is scheduled for October 17.
Cardinal Timothy Dolanwho plays a key role in the dinner, is highly critical of Democrats and in 2018 wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal headlined, “Democrats Are Abandoning Catholics.”
The Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner is named for the former governor of New York, a Democrat and the first Roman Catholic to be nominated for president by a major party in 1928. He was easily defeated by Herbert Hoover. It raises millions of dollars for Catholic charities and has traditionally shown that those vying to lead the country can get along for one night, or pretend to.
The event has become a tradition for presidential candidates since Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy appeared together in 1960. In 1996, the Archdiocese of New York decided not to invite then-President Bill Clinton and his Republican challenger Bob Dole, reportedly because Clinton vetoed a ban on late-term abortions.
Trump and then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, who is Catholic, both spoke at the 2020 fundraiser, which was moved online amid concerns about large gatherings spreading COVID-19. Amid the pandemic and economic hardship, there were no jokes, and both candidates instead used their speeches to appeal to Catholic voters.
Mr Biden, who is Catholic, has not been there since taking office.
In 2016, Trump started innocently enough. He joked that then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer had liked Trump when he was a Democrat. He joked about plagiarism in reference to the Clintons. But Trump’s comments quickly degenerated into bitterness and insults.
