John McCain and Barack Obama Together Again at Al Smith Benefit

At the charity dinner in New York City's Waldorf Astoria, which raised a reported $3.9 million for underprivileged children, John McCain and Barack Obama entertained the crowd with some funny jokes, both on themselves and each other, along with Rudy Giuliani, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin, and yes, even "Joe the plumber".

John McCain took the podium first, just as in the 3rd and final Presidential debate the other evening. John McCain was quite funny in his remarks, saying at one point he suspected that some of the largely Democratic crowd secretly supported his bid for the Presidency, then turning to Sen. Hillary Clinton, saying "I'm delighted to see you here tonight, Hillary". McCain joked that Barack Obama did not mind McCain's referring to Obama as "that one" in the 2nd Presidential debate, saying "he even has a pet name for me, George Bush".

At one point, John McCain said "Joe the plumber" would fare better under a McCain administration due to Joe contracting with a "wealthy couple" to plumb their seven houses.

For his part, Barack Obama was funny, also. Al Smith, the man for whom the benefit is named, had a formal name of Alfred E. Smith. Obama joked that he had been told that he resembled another Alfred E., Alfred E. Neuman due to his protruding ears.

Speaking of names, Barack Obama said that his first name was swahili for "that one" and his middle name was given to him by someone who had no idea he would ever run for President.

Obama zinged Sarah Palin, saying he had heard that from the entrance to the Waldorf, one could "see all the way to the Russian tea room" to laughter from John McCain.

He said that he had never tried to put lipstick on a pig, a pit bull, or himself, and in a shot at Rudy Giuliani said that he never dreamed a cross-dressing Mayor could fail to win the GOP nomination for President. "That was a tough primary you had, John" Obama said directly to McCain, seated nearby.

Obama asked McCain if Fox News was part of the media that supposedly adored Obama and said the conservative network had gone as far as spreading rumors that he, Obama, had fathered two African-American children in wedlock, a reference to the rumors surrounding John McCain in the South Carolina primary in 2000, reportedly started by the Bush campaign.

Obama joked about John McCain's age, saying that he didn't know much about Al Smith, but McCain had told him the two men had some fine times back before prohibition.

All told, the evening was apparently a rousing success with the two candidates showing their more playful sides and a lot of money being raised for charity