Obamas' Glitzy State Dinner Honors Mexico President Calderón (No Crashers!)
Lynn Sweet
Correspondent
Posted:
05/20/10
There were no crashers at the glamorous state dinner that President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, hosted for President Felipe Calderón of Mexico and his wife, Margarita Zavala, on Wednesday night. Beyoncé sang and after a day focused on contentious immigration issues, the presidents toasted the close cross-border relationship.
"Tonight we share the bonds we share as neighbors and as friends," Obama said. "We celebrate all that Mexican-Americans contribute to the United States."
The dinner, the coming out for the new social secretary, Julianna Smoot, included 200 guests feasting on a four-course dinner in the East Room cooked by guest chef Rick Bayless, whose contemporary Mexican dishes were well known to Mrs. Obama from her visits to his restaurants in Chicago. Guests were seated at round or rectangle tables of 10; the head table was for 20.
An additional 100 or so guests were invited to join the diners at a spectacular after-party, in a temporary pavilion erected on the South Lawn, a giant lavish venue made up to look like a ritzy nightclub with black walls, black carpet, stunning floral decorations and strings of monarch butterfly cutouts. The monarchs were highly symbolic on the immigration and personal fronts: The butterflies migrate annually from Canada through the United States to Michoacán, Mexico -- Calderón's birthplace. Besides Beyoncé, Mexican singers Rodrigo y Gabriela also performed on the big stage.
Mrs. Obama wore a blue gown with one strap (she wore a one strap number to the inaugural balls) with a silver belt by designer Peter Soronen; Mrs. Zavala was sleeveless in a dress with an Aztec-inspired collar by Macario Jimenez.
The guest list was full of celebrities. Actress and comedian Whoopi Goldberg told reporters on her way in she was glad to be back. A frequent guest during the Clinton years, she was on the outs during the Bush administration. The dinner, she said, was "kind of like a homecoming after a long drought."
Comedian George Lopez joked: "I'm sitting with the president. They didn't tell me which country."
Actress Eva Longoria-Parker stopped for a discussion with reporters about the new Arizona immigration law, which both Calderón and Obama have denounced. (Local law enforcement authorities in the state will be able to ask people for papers to prove they are in the United States legally. The Obama White House is mulling a legal challenge to the law.) Longoria-Parker said the dinner was well timed "because of the temperature regarding immigration reform. . . . It's a hot-button issue. . . . So much reform is needed." Immigration is a federal issue, she said, and you "can't have states" making laws of this type.
The guests were White House high-level staffers and people from the worlds of sports, politics, business, government and Hollywood. Each invitee was free to invite a guest to bring along. Olympic gold medal speed skater Shani Davis, a Chicagoan, was there with short-track coach Jae Su Chun. New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez brought tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson. One of the world's richest businessmen, Carlos Slim, was at the dinner. So were Peter Orszag, director of the Office of Management and Budget, and his fiancé, TV reporter Bianna Golodryga; and actress Ana Claudia Talancón.
The Obama White House's first state dinner was on Nov. 24, 2009 and the glitzy event was overshadowed by three crashers, two of whom were reality television show aspirants, Tareq and Michaele Salahi. The fallout from the incidents included Secret Service agents being disciplined, the eventual departure of the White House social secretary Desiree Rogers and toughening up on screening guests outside the White House before they are admitted. The crackdowns on screenings were imposed last year, and Wednesday night guests went through several checkpoints before being allowed to enter.
The White House said the lavish party was paid for with State Department money.
Dinner Menu
Jicama with Oranges, Grapefruit, and Pineapple
Citrus Vinaigrette
Ulises Valdez Chardonnay 2007 "Russian River"
Herb Green Ceviche of Hawaiian Opah
Sesame-Cilantro Cracker
Oregon Wagyu Beef in Oaxacan Black Mole
Black Bean Tamalon and Grilled Green Beans
Herrera Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 "Selección Rebecca"
Chocolate-Cajeta Tart
Toasted Homemade Marshmallows
Graham Cracker Crumble and Goat Cheese Ice Cream
Mumm Napa "Carlos Santana Brut" N/V
"Tonight we share the bonds we share as neighbors and as friends," Obama said. "We celebrate all that Mexican-Americans contribute to the United States."
The dinner, the coming out for the new social secretary, Julianna Smoot, included 200 guests feasting on a four-course dinner in the East Room cooked by guest chef Rick Bayless, whose contemporary Mexican dishes were well known to Mrs. Obama from her visits to his restaurants in Chicago. Guests were seated at round or rectangle tables of 10; the head table was for 20.
An additional 100 or so guests were invited to join the diners at a spectacular after-party, in a temporary pavilion erected on the South Lawn, a giant lavish venue made up to look like a ritzy nightclub with black walls, black carpet, stunning floral decorations and strings of monarch butterfly cutouts. The monarchs were highly symbolic on the immigration and personal fronts: The butterflies migrate annually from Canada through the United States to Michoacán, Mexico -- Calderón's birthplace. Besides Beyoncé, Mexican singers Rodrigo y Gabriela also performed on the big stage.Mrs. Obama wore a blue gown with one strap (she wore a one strap number to the inaugural balls) with a silver belt by designer Peter Soronen; Mrs. Zavala was sleeveless in a dress with an Aztec-inspired collar by Macario Jimenez.
The guest list was full of celebrities. Actress and comedian Whoopi Goldberg told reporters on her way in she was glad to be back. A frequent guest during the Clinton years, she was on the outs during the Bush administration. The dinner, she said, was "kind of like a homecoming after a long drought."
Comedian George Lopez joked: "I'm sitting with the president. They didn't tell me which country."
Actress Eva Longoria-Parker stopped for a discussion with reporters about the new Arizona immigration law, which both Calderón and Obama have denounced. (Local law enforcement authorities in the state will be able to ask people for papers to prove they are in the United States legally. The Obama White House is mulling a legal challenge to the law.) Longoria-Parker said the dinner was well timed "because of the temperature regarding immigration reform. . . . It's a hot-button issue. . . . So much reform is needed." Immigration is a federal issue, she said, and you "can't have states" making laws of this type.
The guests were White House high-level staffers and people from the worlds of sports, politics, business, government and Hollywood. Each invitee was free to invite a guest to bring along. Olympic gold medal speed skater Shani Davis, a Chicagoan, was there with short-track coach Jae Su Chun. New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez brought tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson. One of the world's richest businessmen, Carlos Slim, was at the dinner. So were Peter Orszag, director of the Office of Management and Budget, and his fiancé, TV reporter Bianna Golodryga; and actress Ana Claudia Talancón.
The Obama White House's first state dinner was on Nov. 24, 2009 and the glitzy event was overshadowed by three crashers, two of whom were reality television show aspirants, Tareq and Michaele Salahi. The fallout from the incidents included Secret Service agents being disciplined, the eventual departure of the White House social secretary Desiree Rogers and toughening up on screening guests outside the White House before they are admitted. The crackdowns on screenings were imposed last year, and Wednesday night guests went through several checkpoints before being allowed to enter.
The White House said the lavish party was paid for with State Department money.
Dinner Menu
Jicama with Oranges, Grapefruit, and Pineapple
Citrus Vinaigrette
Ulises Valdez Chardonnay 2007 "Russian River"
Herb Green Ceviche of Hawaiian Opah
Sesame-Cilantro Cracker
Oregon Wagyu Beef in Oaxacan Black Mole
Black Bean Tamalon and Grilled Green Beans
Herrera Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 "Selección Rebecca"
Chocolate-Cajeta Tart
Toasted Homemade Marshmallows
Graham Cracker Crumble and Goat Cheese Ice Cream
Mumm Napa "Carlos Santana Brut" N/V