New York Gov. Kathy Hochul had an awkward start to her speech at the Democratic National Convention Monday, and Stephen Colbert noticed.
“The Late Show” host poked fun at Hochul’s mistake when she referred to Vice President Kamala Harris as “the first president of the United States.”
“Hello Democrats!” Hochul said to a cheering DNC crowd in Chicago. “Are you ready to elect Kamala Harris the first pres— president of the United States?”
“Yes!” Colbert responded on his live broadcast from Chicago later Monday night. “Yes, the first president of the United States. Now it seems like that was a mistake, but it’s like George Washington famously said: ‘That little girl was me.’'”
Hochul, who touted Micron’s $100 billion microchip project in Central New York during her primetime speech, is New York state’s first female governor. She stumbled on her words while intending to refer to Harris as the first female U.S. president; the Democratic presidential nominee became the first female VP under President Joe Biden and recently replaced Biden at the top of the 2024 ticket.
The late-night TV host’s joke referenced a 2019 line from Harris during the Democratic primary when she called out Biden’s past remarks opposing busing to end desegregation in schools.
“There was a little girl in California who was part of the second class to integrate her public schools and she was bused to school every day. That little girl was me,” Harris said during the Democratic presidential debate.
Biden said he did not oppose busing, but rather opposed busing ordered by the Department of Education. Biden ended up winning the Democratic nomination and, with Harris as his running mate, became the first Syracuse University alumnus elected president in 2020.
See the clip of Hochul with Colbert’s comments starting at the 2:30 mark:
Ad Choices