“Hello, everyone,” former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said this week in his opening toast to the “Brothers for Kamala” virtual dinner, a three-hour event in support of Vice President Kamala Harris' presidential bid, hosted by Robert De Niro, a vocal critic of President Trump.
Mayor de Blasio co-hosted the event with Paul Mercurio, comedian from Stephen Colbert's late-night CBS show.
During the live stream eventAttended by several prominent Italian-Americans, many guests praised Harris while also criticizing former President Trump's immigration policies from the perspective of the children and grandchildren of Italian immigrants.
De Blasio said he made a deliberate visit to the childhood home of a prominent Italian-American government official.
“I just made a little pilgrimage… [to] “I went to Baltimore's Little Italy, the hometown of Nancy D'Alesandro Pelosi, where she grew up,” he said, noting that the former mayor also highlighted his visit at the X, where he posed for a photo with Maryland Sen. James Rosapeppe (D-Laurel) at Pelosi's former home.
“The dinner is an expression of who we are. As Italian-Americans, we want to be a family. [and] Let's all unite behind these great candidates,” Mayor de Blasio said.
De Niro claims Trump could 'destroy the world'
Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. (Jana Paskova/Getty Images)
Mercurio told De Niro that Trump “taps into something” among his supporters that connects them to him.
De Niro once said he wanted to “hit someone” [Trump] “I certainly listened to some of the Trump supporters,” he said.
“There's clearly a way to be with them that's more advantageous for them than Trump, because Trump isn't offering anything,” the actor said.
“I've seen similar things in other countries and societies… They think they can control people like him… God forbid he becomes a 'boss' and all those who thought they could control him will find out otherwise.”
Later, former Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), who describes his maternal ancestry as “fully Italian,” attended the dinner wearing a “White guy for Harris” hat and spoke about the values he believes Harris brings.
Mayor de Blasio quickly showed off a slice of pizza and began eating it with a fork, in an apparent homage to the controversy that followed a similar meal in Staten Island in 2014.
Mayor de Blasio maintained that he remains correct that that is the correct way to eat pie.
Former CIA Director Leon Panetta then took to the stage and said he was supporting Harris because Trump appears to support isolationism, which he said “didn't work before World War II.”
“[There is] “The importance of a president standing up to tyrants rather than appeasing them,” he said.
Afterwards, actor Steve Buscemi said Harris had the right vibe as the descendant of immigrants.
WATCH: De Blasio debates Sean Hannity
Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at the second presidential debate at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia on Tuesday. (Doug Mills/The New York Times/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“Most immigrants are just looking for a better life, better opportunities, and they shouldn't be punished for pursuing that dream,” Buscemi said. “Kamala Harris is smart, strong, kind and inclusive.”
Pelosi attended the dinner and recounted how her family has lived in Baltimore's Little Italy neighborhood for generations, where de Blasio visited.
“My grandfather and others of his generation came here thinking the roads were paved with gold. They never thought they'd come here and actually pave the roads,” said Pelosi, whose father and grandfather, both named Thomas D'Alesandro, served as mayors of Baltimore.
“This race is an important one. [Trump’s attitude toward immigrants] “And there are many other reasons why we should not take this election for granted,” she said.
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Anthony Scaramucci was fired as White House communications director less than two weeks after going on an expletive-filled public rant about other members of the Trump administration. (Reuters/Joshua Roberts)
Pelosi also cited former President Ronald Reagan's speech, emphasizing that she was quoting a Republican, saying in the speech that he understood the Statue of Liberty to be a “beacon of hope.”
She claimed she recited the quote to Republicans who didn't applaud: “I said, 'They don't applaud Ronald Reagan?'
Towards the end of the dinner, a former Trump administration official – who famously split with the president several years ago – showed up.
Former White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci quipped to de Blasio: “Me, you and me. [former Republican Vice President] Dick Cheney rallying to support VP Harris?
“Yes, I can imagine that, because we all understand the systemic dangers that come with the possible reelection of Donald Trump,” he said, pledging to donate $5,000 to the pro-Harris Paysans.
The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
