Here's Who Attended Samantha Bee's 'Not The White House Correspondents' Dinner'

The White House Correspondents' Dinner was held Saturday night -- a long-standing tradition of celebrating the free press (which President Trump decided not to attend) in Washington.

While the White House Correspondents' Dinner is usually one of the more buzz-worthy events in Washington, the excitement around it this year seems diluted in comparison to "Not The White House Correspondents' Dinner," the television event Samantha Bee hosted at Constitution Hall.

Hailed as the new "comedian-in-chief" by the New York Times, Samantha Bee's weekly show "Full Frontal" has been deservedly praised for it's ability to make us laugh at the dishonesty of Trump's administration when we would otherwise just cry... forever.

Which explains why "Not The White House Correspondents' Dinner" is celebrating the free press, it jokes, "while we still have one."

The show has drawn some big names to sit in the audience, including Gloria Steinem, Keegan-Michael Key, Jessica Williams and comics like Janelle James and Jordan Carlos. Will Ferrell also crashed the party with his George W. Bush impression.

While the enthusiasm for the White House Correspondents' Dinner waned, with media outlets cancelling their events and fewer celebrities showing up to support, the excitement from guests' at Bee's "Not The WHCD" and from those watching from home was off the charts.

Liz Winstead, co-creator and head writer of "The Daily Show" tweeted, "So excited to celebrate these genius people instead of the Peener-in-Chief."

Elite Daily reached out to a few of the comics in the audience for quotes about the experience as they were watching it live.

Jordan Carlos said Bee was so funny in her opening, he was "planning to burn [his] joke book" and Joyelle Johnson said she was "super excited to be going to NOT The White House Correspondents' Dinner to celebrate NOT my president!"

The White House Correspondents' Dinner traditionally focuses on roasting the president, but Bee has set herself and her event apart by making it clear she isn't here JUST to roast Trump. That said, there were a lot of burns thrown in his direction.

Still, the host of "Full Frontal" spared no one, and that's what makes her one of the most skilled political comedy writers in the world and one of the best hosts in late night television right now.