Cardinal Dolan ‘upset’ that Harris skipping Al Smith Dinner

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York, said he was “upset” that Vice President Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, is skipping out on the Al Smith charity dinner on Thursday. 

“This year will be imbalanced because, sadly, Kamala Harris isn’t coming,” Dolan said on an episode of his podcast Tuesday. “It’s a shame because the nature of the evening is to bring people together. The nature of the evening is civility, patriotism, humor. It’s not a campaign speech. It’s not a campaign stop.” 

Trump is expected to attend the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner on Thursday, while Harris is campaigning in Wisconsin as the Democratic presidential nominee turns her focus to the “blue wall” states, which Hillary Clinton neglected in the final weeks of her failed 2016 campaign. 

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Cardinal Timothy Dolan speaks during the intercessory prayer service for Ukraine at the Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral of St. Volodymyr in 2022.  (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Dolan argued the dinner is “worth keeping, worth doing,” given it could raise $9 million for charity. 

“We’re upset that she didn’t come because we’ve missed an evening to access something sorely needed now that even she articulates rather eloquently: that we’ve got to turn the page on bitterness,” Dolan said of Harris on the podcast. “And the Al Smith, you know, traditionally tries to do that.” 

“It’s not a roast. There’s teasing, big time teasing,” the archbishop said of the dinner. “A lot of laughs. But, but it’s – it’s a grand evening. … A lot of people think it’s a Catholic campaign stop. Not really, no. I would say the evening is reflective of New York demographics.” 

“It’s not a Republican crowd. It’s not a Democratic crowd,” he said. “It’s kind of evenly split.” 

Vice President Harris arrives at Trenton-Mercer Airport, in Mercer County, New Jersey, on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024, en route to a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.  (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

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Dolan said there’s a possibility of Harris appearing virtually. 

“The Vice President is going to be campaigning in a battleground state that day, and the campaign wants to maximize her time in the battlegrounds this close to the election,” the Harris campaign told Fox News, explaining her absence. “Her team also told the organizers that she would very much like to attend their event as president. This would make her one of the first sitting presidents to attend.” 

Donald Trump speaks during a Univision town hall on Oct. 16, 2024, in Doral, Florida.  (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Hosted annually since 1946, the charity dinner has raised millions of dollars for New York’s women and children, according to the foundation’s website, and “has featured renowned cultural, business, and political figures, including most major party presidential nominees during election years since 1960.” 

Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) PAC sent out an email Thursday noting that Harris would be the first presidential candidate to skip the annual Al Smith charity dinner since 1984. 

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“Her radical policies are fundamentally at odds with Catholic teachings, and her history of anti-Catholic rhetoric has further alienated this crucial voting bloc,” the pro-Trump PAC wrote.