NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- President Trump will speak remotely Thursday night at the New York Archdiocese's 75th Annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, a largely virtual event this year with some live programming from The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture in NoHo.
The Archdiocese said an invitation has also been extended to Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden to speak, as well, "and we look forward to having him join us."
This year the dinner is dedicated to frontline and essential workers, the Archdiocese said.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan will appear live from The Sheen Center, as will Mary Erdoes, vice chair of the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation.
The national anthem will be performed by Nadine Sierra from St. Patrick's Cathedral.
Then-presidential candidates Trump and Hillary Clinton attended the dinner in 2016, and roasted each other at the podium.
"A hybrid event was originally scheduled at the Wave Hill gardens in the Riverdale section of the Bronx," the Archdiocese said in a press release. "New York State government expressed their understandable concerns about the fifty person gathering, and, in the interest of the safety and protection of our speakers and guests, this year's Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner will now be a virtual event."
As for the event's dedication to frontline and essential workers, the Archdiocese explains, "This year, the legacy of Governor Alfred E. Smith takes on greater meaning. He was the last governor to lead our state through a pandemic. As such, the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation will dedicate this year's event to the frontline and essential workers of New York who worked valiantly to keep the city running and the people of New York healthy and safe when the pandemic touched ground in our city. Their lessons in compassion and heroism raised the bar for what can be accomplished when we come together as city and a country. This too was the message of the 'Happy Warrior' Governor Alfred E. Smith, who worked diligently to protect the interests of those most in need, even when doing so meant reaching across the aisle."
