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Saturday, March 3, 2012

President Obama cracks jokes at elite Alfalfa Club dinner

Well, look who decided to come around! President Obama, whose White House years have been marked by a careful avoidance of so many black-tie Beltway traditions, attended the most elite of them all, the annual Alfalfa Club dinner, on Saturday.

Why? In his remarks at the Capital Hilton, to political and business heavyhitters who’d walked a gantlet of Occupy D.C. protesters to make it to their steak-and-lobster meal, the president explained:

“You’ve heard it from the pundits: ‘Obama is cloistered in the White House.’ ‘He’s aloof.’ ‘He’s in the bubble.’ ‘He’s not connecting.’ And that’s why one of my big goals this year was to get out and be among everyday, ordinary Americans — like the men and women of the Alfalfa Club.”

Ha ha! How everyday-ordinary were they? “I’d like to acknowledge a very good friend of mine,” he added, according to excerpts of his speech released by the White House. “Warren Buffett’s secretary’s boss is in the house.

Yes, it’s one of those jocular affairs. Obama also joked that he had “about 45 more minutes on the State of the Union that I’d like to deliver tonight,” and mused about his own “promising future — as an Al Green impersonator.”

It was the first time since 2009 that the president had attended the officially-off-the-record (but traditionally leaky) A-list conclave. But maybe he’s starting to like this stuff more? Last spring he attended his first Gridiron Dinner — a white-tie, elite media gala — since becoming president.

He was accompanied by the first lady, wearing something long, flowing and possibly red, according to a dispatch from a White House pool reporter who couldn’t get a good look in the dark.

Among the other VIPs reported to be in attendance: John Boehner, Mike Bloomberg, John Kerry, Pat Leahy, Steny Hoyer, Mark Warner, Steve Case, Cal Ripken and José Andrés.

Occupy DC demonstrators throw glitter on guests arriving at the Alfalfa Club dinner. (Jose Luis Magana/AP) Also: Joe Lieberman, who drew catcalls from the Occupy demonstrators who recognized him on his way in. Other tuxedoed guests were showered with glitter by the activists.

And Jeb and George H.W. Bush, frequent Alfalfa attendees, who spent time visiting with Obama on Friday afternoon.

A hallmark of the annual dinner is the club’s jokey “nomination” of a VIP guest as its candidate for president — this year, the former Florida governor.

“It is great to see Jeb Bush, who is accepting a nomination for President tonight,” Obama said. “I have to say, though, it’s not fair to tease your friends like that.”

What is the Alfalfa Club anyway? A power-broker’s fraternity (and sorority, now, since it admitted women in 1994) that now exists solely for the purpose of hosting this dinner. Always held on the last Saturday in January, it was founded in 1913 to honor the birthday of, er, Robert E. Lee. That fact gave Obama a decent zinger the last time he addressed the club in 2009. “If he were with us tonight, the general would be 202 years old,” the president joked, just days after his own historic inauguration. “And very confused.”

Updated. An earlier version of this story was published at 12 a.m.

Read also: Occupy D.C. contemplates McPherson decampment, protest Alfalfa Club dinner, 1/28/12

Read earlier: Alfalfa Club 2011; Bushes but no Obama to annual dinner, as POTUS skips black-tie affair for Axelrod farewell, 1/30/11

Alfalfa Club 2010; politicians joke at dinner; some oldies, some goodies, 2/1/10

Alfalfa Club 2009; Elite officially welcome Obama, 2/1/09

Obama gets laughs at first Gridiron Club dinner as president, 3/31/11

View the original article here

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

President Obama cracks jokes at elite Alfalfa Club dinner (updated)

Barack Obama got to hear some good jokes from Sandra Day O’Connor(left) at the Alfalfa Club dinner, but left before Jeb Bush (right) did his routine. (All three shown in Washington Post file photos from last year; press photographers were not allowed at the dinner.)

UPDATED 7 p.m.

Why the Alfalfa Club dinner? In his remarks to political and business heavy hitters — many of whom had walked to their steak-and-lobster meal at the Capital Hilton along a gantlet of Occupy D.C. protesters outside — the president explained:

“You’ve heard it from the pundits: ‘Obama is cloistered in the White House.’ ‘He’s aloof.’ ‘He’s in the bubble.’ ‘He’s not connecting.’ . . . One of my big goals this year was to get out and be among everyday, ordinary Americans — like the men and women of the Alfalfa Club.”

Ha ha! How everyday and ordinary were they? “I’d like to acknowledge a very good friend of mine,” he added, according to excerpts released by the White House. “Warren Buffett’s secretary’s boss is in the house.”

Also: John Boehner, Michael Bloomberg, John Kerry, John McCain, David Rubenstein, Pat Leahy, Steny Hoyer, Madeleine Albright, Steve Case, Cal Ripken, Valerie Jarrett, and Jose Andres, to name a few. And, randomly, Sally Field, a guest of student-loan titan Catherine Reynolds. Both Joe Lieberman and Mark Warner were there with glitter in their hair, having been glitter-bombed by the demonstrators.

Occupy DC demonstrators throw glitter on guests arriving at the Alfalfa Club dinner. (Jose Luis Magana/AP)

It was the first time since 2009 that the president had attended the closed-door, off-the-record conclave — and the first time in history that Alfalfa had hosted three presidents, with the return of George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush, a regular who seems to love these dinners as much as Obama hates them.

Maybe Obama’s starting to warm to this stuff? Last spring he attended his first Gridiron Club Dinner since becoming president — a similar kind of thing, but with white tie and elite media.

Or.?.?. maybe not. The president usually speaks last at Alfalfa, but the White House got him booked in the middle of Saturday’s dinner. (He also joked that he had “about 45 more minutes on the State of the Union that I’d like to deliver tonight,” and mused about his own “promising future — as an Al Green impersonator.”) After his speech, he and Michelle Obama (in a flowing, violet dress) got the heck out of there, which left some guests grumbling and some speakers scrambling to jettison jokes that needed POTUS in the room to work.

Oh well. At least he got to hear one of the best-received jokes of the night, from outgoing club president Sandra Day O’Connor.

It’s ironic, the retired Supreme Court justice quipped: Mitt is the Mormon — but Newt is the polygamist. (Paraphrasing here, via guests who leaked the night’s best gags.)

But he missed the surprise star turn by the night’s honoree, Jeb Bush. A hallmark of the annual dinner is the club’s jokey “nomination” of a VIP guest as its candidate for president — this year, the former Florida governor, whose easy and witty speech had some Republicans in the room misty-eyed about the one who got away.

With two presidents in the family, he said, you got to deal with a lot of bossiness. “If I say, ‘Who put you in charge?’, Dad says, ‘The American people.’ And George says, ‘The Supreme Court, five to four.’?”

Musing about the 2012 GOP hopefuls, Jeb went on, “The field was so muddled, at one point my brother was thinking about running again. ‘George,’ I said, ‘The Constitution prohibits you from running again.’ He said, ‘Wow, they put my name in the Constitution?’?”

What is the Alfalfa Club, anyway? A power broker’s fraternity (and sorority, since it admitted women in 1994) that now exists solely to host this dinner, always held on the last Saturday in January. It was founded in 1913 to honor the birthday of, er, Robert E. Lee. That fact gave Obama a decent zinger when he addressed the club in 2009, just days after his own historic inauguration. “If he were with us tonight, the general would be 202 years old,” the president joked. “And very confused.”

Updated. Earlier versions of this story were published at 12 a.m. and 5:30 a.m.