Sacha Baron Cohen Revives Borat to Roast Kanye West and Donald Trump

Sacha Baron Cohen may have retired the undercover component of his infamous Kazakh TV journalist character, but he didn’t pull punches while reviving Borat in the open for a bit at Sunday’s Kennedy Center Honors. 

Ostensibly onstage to pay tribute to U2, Cohen’s character turned his focus to current events—namely the political ouster of Donald Trump and antisemitic downfall of Kanye West. “I know the president of US and A is here,” Borat said to the audience [via The Guardian], which included honorees George Clooney, Gladys Knight, Amy Grant, and composer Tania León. “Where are you, Mr. Trump? You don’t look so good. Where has your glorious big belly gone? And your pretty orange skin has become pale.” After Joe Biden reportedly smiled, Borat addressed Jill, “But I see you have a new wife. Wawawoooah! She is very erotic. I must look away before I get a Bono.”

Cohen, who is Jewish, then took aim at West, who recently praised Hitler, declared himself a Nazi, and was suspended from Twitter for sharing an image of a swastika. “Before I proceed, I will say I am very upset about the antisemitism in US and A,” Borat said. “It not fair. Kazakhstan is number one Jew-crushing nation. Stop stealing our hobby. Stop the steal! Stop the steal!” He added: “Your Kanye, he tried to move to Kazakhstan and even changed his name to Kazakhstanye West. But we said: No, he too antisemitic, even for us.”

The Oscar nominee did manage to incorporate U2 into a few of his jabs, singing their song “With or Without You” with the lyrics changed to “With or without Jews.” Borat reportedly paused mid-song to ask, “What’s the problem? They loved this at Mar-a-Lago. They chose Without Jews.” He also read a message from his parents in the Kazakh language, according to Deadline, which Borat explained translated to: “Please remove your wretched album from my new iPhone 6.” That references the controversial decision for U2 to automatically upload their 2014 album to all iTunes subscribers without their consent.

Borat concluded his remarks by telling Biden he hoped he’d liked the speech, adding, “It is my wish to pleasure you with my mouth.” The 45th annual Kennedy Center Honors will air on CBS on December 28.