Sacha Baron Cohen portrayed Borat to shred Donald Trump and Ye (formerly Kanye West) at the Kennedy Center Honors on Sunday.
US president Joe Biden was perhaps the most powerful A-lister at the ceremony for lifetime achievements in the arts, but Baron Cohen seized centre stage as the boorish and bigoted Borat, the Kazakhstani journalist character he made famous in movies.
Trump’s recent hosting of a dinner with Ye and the Holocaust-denying Nick Fuentes, plus the rapper’s unhinged rants about Jews and declaration of support for Adolf Hitler, provided lots of material for the Jewish comedian.
“I must say I am very upset about the anti-Semitism in the US and A,” Baron Cohen said in character, per The Guardian. “It is not fair. Kazakhstan is number one Jew-crushing nation. Stop stealing our hobby. Stop the steal! Stop the steal!”
“Your Kanye, he tried to move to Kazakhstan and even changed his name to Kazakhstanye West. But we said no. He too anti-Semitic, even for us,” Baron Cohen’s Borat added.
The comic, who’s also an activist, sang With or Without Jews to the tune of U2′s With Or Without You.
“What’s the problem? They loved this at Mar-a-Lago. They chose Without Jews,” Baron Cohen’s Borat sniped.
Baron Cohen previously poked fun at the former president.
“I am told the president of yours today is here. Where are you, Mr Trump?,” Baron Cohen said as his alter-ego Borat, per the Daily Mail.
Catching a glimpse of Biden, Borat declared: “You don’t look so good ... your big belly is gone. And your pretty orange skin has gone pale.”
Eyeing first lady Jill Biden, Baron Cohen’s Borat observed: “I see you have a new wife. She is very erotic. I must look away before I get a Bono.”
Baron Cohen was honoring U2, for which Bono is the famous frontman. The Kennedy Center Honors will air December 28 on CBS.
