There were parties and after-parties. The White House Correspondents Association Gala returned to the Washington Hilton on Saturday after a two-year hiatus. Kim and Pete Davidson were in attendance with an estimated 2,000 others. The Paparazzi hid in the shrubbery of the hotel.
Martha Stewart, Miranda Kerr, Diane Lane, and Drew Barrymore were there. Chris Tucker and Billy Eichner are comedians. Gates is a philanthropist. Fat Joe is a rapper. JC Chasez was a member of NSYNC. The actor is Michael Keaton. President Biden is among many federal lawmakers and top government officials.
Whether journalists should party with politicians and celebrities is a legitimate concern and one that the gala's critics have frequently expressed. That concern was put aside as invitations to pre-parties and post-parties, as well as the dinner itself, became objects of intense desire in a Washington that has had little cause for celebration.
Biden told his black-tie audience that he was excited to be here with the only group of people with a lower approval rating. The White House had downplayed expectations for the speech, but someone in the West Wing knows how to make a joke.
We had a horrible plague, followed by two years of Communism, according to Biden, who declined to mention Donald Trump by name. He said that American democracy is not a reality show.
He is the first president since Barack Obama to attend a WHCA event. Calvin Coolidge was the first president to attend. Speak from the heart. You are going to be great, kid. You will do it well.
A dinner at the Gridiron Club caused a number of positive coronavirus cases among Washington elites, but none of the cases seemed to be serious. People from New York, Los Angeles and elsewhere were traveling to attend the party. The pandemic is not over. The country is close to 1 million deaths and hundreds of people are dying every day.
The host of the show opened his monologue by declaring that he was honored to be at the most distinguished superspreader event.
Noah asked the audience what they were doing here. Let's be honest. What are we doing? Did you learn anything from the dinner? Nothing! Do you read any of your own newspapers? You all turn into Joe Rogan after the second person gives you a free dinner.
Noah was the first comedian to host the event since Wolf's controversial performance in which she made fun of Sarah Huckabee sanders. Historian Ron Chernow gave a speech for a sober time the following year. During the Pandemic, many Washington gatherings were limited to backyards with plastic cups of beer.
Even as the new BA.2 subvariant of the coronaviruses started spreading in the Northeast, that started to change. It appears to be more transmissible than previous strains, but many have argued that the availability of vaccines and treatments, as well as the efficacy of one-way masking, means it is a time to return to normal.
Most Americans have some form of immunity from previous infections or vaccinations. Most experts don't think that all cautions should be discarded, but few are willing to keep the state of emergency.
The WHCA dinner had a testing and vaccination requirement, but the parties held before and after the dinner were different. As the night drew to a close, Jonathan Allen's guests were enjoying high-end Bourbon and Domino's pizzas. The reporter brought a bottle of the alcoholic beverage.
The Kennedy Center has an addition called the REACH. At a Friday night party on the Georgetown waterfront thrown by United Talent Agency, the high-powered Hollywood firm, CNN's Brian Stelter mixed with Lisa Kennedy, the former MTV veejay who now hosts a Fox Business talk show. Alejandro Mayorkas was followed by security officers.
On Saturday night, the desire to mask up was low. Neither Biden nor the first lady wore a mask.
Last week, Dr. Anthony Fauci said he wouldn't be attending the dinner because of his own concerns. Noah mentioned that Psaki had caught the coronaviruses for the 10th time.
There were some serious moments.
The correspondents association presented a new prize to honor the two Black women who covered the White House at a time when the press corps consisted almost entirely of white men. It was difficult to not think of the journalists who have died while covering the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
If nothing else, the weekend in Washington was proof of how badly human connection has been lacking for the last two years and how the serendipity of gathering adds a richness to Zoom call. The criminal justice activist talked with the White House chief of staff about commutations.
We have reached the point where we can't keep talking about the same thing. George Conway included a picture of him with the congresswoman. Both were at the Yahoo News table.
The WHCA crowd spilled out, bedecked in black, toward a fleet of black SUVs. The night held the possibility of a few more hours of freedom before returning to the less-than-carefree realities of 2022.
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