Of the White House Correspondents Dinner, circa 2011

I think it’s a bit of an understatement, but I’m just going to put it out there. Last weekend was pretty eventful. Seriously, jam-packed. Friday was “bandquet” at the Prime Rib. It was as fun as it was delicious. Sunday night the world at large received the news that Osama bin Laden had been shot and killed in a mansion outside of Islamabad, Pakistan. And then there was Saturday…

I think there should be an actual holiday declared for the last Saturday of April, because it was wonderful and magical and exhilarating. While I’m not actually one for celebrity gossip, I had an amazing time running around DC. Because, governmental or religious recognition or not, Saturday was a holiday and the best one of them all: the day of the White House Correspondent’s Dinner.

The day began with Amanda and I running (figuratively) from campus to the White House all the way to Georgetown to see if we could spot Matthew Morrison with his bff Chace Crawford. Amanda is a little bit in love with Matt Morrison. And, though we scoured the city for the two gorgeous fellows for a good part of the afternoon, we did not find them. But not for lack of trying.

In the evening, Rachel, Amanda and I started walking towards Dupont Circle so that we could hang out at the Washington Hilton, for that’s where the dinner is held.  A surprising number of attendees don’t get dropped off in front of the hotel, but actually just walk up Connecticut Avenue, in gowns and tuxes alike.

The event was exciting for me because for one I was included. I got to spend a wonderful evening with Rachel and Amanda. Also… I’ve never really seen famous people before in real life (discounting politicians, just because.) In the end, this is a list of those stars we saw that I was able to identify. Just for kick’s I’ll compile subgroups:

• Political – George Stephanopolous’ hair, Bristol Palin, Newt Gingrich, Donald Trump, Colin Powell, Madeline Albright, Bill O’Reilly
• SNL – Andy Samberg, Bill Heder, Jason Sudeikis, Amy Poehler & Fred Armisen
• The Hangover – Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifinakis, the groom
• Other: Chris Colfer, Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder, Omar Epps, Jeremy Piven, Mila Kunis, Jon Hamm, Chelsea Handler, Selma Hayek, Alisa Milano, Michelle Trachtenberg, Rashida Jones, Kenneth the Page, Paula Abdul, Rosario Dawson, and Ryan Kwanten

The most frustrating part of the evening probably came from having to wait for the President’s motorcade. No one can enter the building and the entrances have to be cleared. This happened not only when he arrived, but when he left as well. And, sure, it’s cool to see the President, but we really only end up staring at his motorcade, willing it to just move already. Regardless, it was a fun night. We’ve got big plans for next year and even grander for 2013.

For your entertainment:

That Girl Looks Like Trash

There are a lot of things I love about GW. There’s also a lot of stuff that GW people like. But sometimes I just don’t get it. I understand that fashion is (kind of) important. You get judged by what you wear. You don’t want to look like a slob. But GW fashion is ridiculous. Everyone seems to wear a variation on the same thing. Especially the girls (pea coat, leggings, Uggs, non-t-shirt shirt, Blackberry, Starbucks).

For a group as uniform in appearance as we are, GW’s a bit judgey about fashion. Which, GW students must be the epitome of class if they’re too good for pants, right? I wouldn’t know, not owning a pair of leggings. Shocker, I know.

But, for as politically active and socially aware as GW students can be (especially PoliComm majors, just sayin’), they are still ridiculous and judgey about clothing and fashion. Case in point. I just… They turned a wonderful and insightful political event of former White House press secretaries into an opportunity to critique professional fashion. Guys… really? I’ve seen girls strutting around thinking this is an okay look. Pick on her!

I’m just saying – it’s kind of preposterous for a 20 year old to pick apart the clothing choices of an adult when said adult is, roughly, 1000% more successful than you. They worked in the freakin’ White House. They corralled unruly journalists (and presidents alike, I’m sure). They were the source of information and poise when talking about the whole Monica Lewinsky thing, 9/11, the beginning of the Iraq War and much, much more. They probably have more things to worry about than what GW students (and C-SPAN viewers) think of their clothes. Most of them run communications firms and… I’m just exasperated.

The event was fantastic, though. I really learned a lot about what the actual job of the press secretary is. Because, as much as I love Aaron Sorkin, Allison Janney, and the West Wing, it was nice to hear a real-world perspective. They spoke candidly about their time in the White House during international crises. They spoke about delivering a message without being the one that crafts the content. They spoke about having to rely on themselves and their gut instincts, all while knowing when to ask questions and become a journalist themselves. And, despite what Ari Fleischer said, they kind of are rock stars. Especially at GW.

Let’s get Literal, literal! I wanna get Literal…

The Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows premiere is only a month and a half away and I couldn’t be more excited. Confession: I’ve never before been to a HP midnight premiere. This will be the first time. We’re getting the whole gang together for it. Costumes will be donned, the series re-read, and tickets purchased a month in advance. Look out, Georgetown, you’re going to get invaded by muggles who wish they were wizards.

This summer I confessed to my dad that when I was eleven I waited for my (seemingly inevitable) acceptance letter to Hogwarts. Clearly, it never came, seeing as how I’m sitting in my GW dorm room, but whatever. Maybe I was a little naive. Of course I wouldn’t be accepted to Hogwarts. That school is for British students. And no matter how much I wish I were British, it wasn’t going to happen. My dad mocked me for a very, very, very long time, but I don’t miss having that hope. I did, however, ream him for not having made me a fake letter and having it delivered to me. Would that have been cool, or what? If I ever have kids and they get addicted to Harry Potter, I’m for sure creating a fake wizarding school for them to be accepted to. Or I’ll kindly explain that they’re squibs. It depends on how much I like them.

Regardless, the hope that one day, maybe, I would board the Hogwarts Express with all of the other muggle-born students never really died. Sometimes I catch myself wondering: did the letter just get lost in the mail? For now I’ll just sigh and keep studying my political communications. Maybe one day I’ll be able to work as ambassador for muggle-wizard relations.

I’m Old School Like That

One of the wonderful things about college (academically, at least) are the speakers that come to campus. Recently, GW’s School of Media and Public Affairs procured three new fellows. I just returned to the dorm after seeing our dean, Frank Sesno, hold a discussion with Joe Lockhart. Lockhart is a professional political operative:  he helped found a Washington-based strategic communications firm, has worked on numerous national campaigns and was a press secretary under Clinton. He was witty and interesting and a great source for information about how technology is changing the way that reporters and the public experience news.

According to Sesno and Lockhart, the gatekeepers and grey-beards of old are having trouble filtering what stories will and will not meet public consumption. While at one time (more or less during the Clinton admin) there was an understanding in the press that a story would only go to print if it could be corroborated, that’s not so much the case anymore. We’re now living in a time where people can upload news stories from anywhere at anytime. It’s the 24-hour news cycle.

And it sucks.

Don’t get me wrong, I love how easily I can access information using the internet and I often don’t have the patience to sit down and read the newspaper, and aggregators can be a great way to bundle news that I’ll think is interesting, but it’s not necessarily a good thing. All of this technology, the aggregators for instance, limit my scope of knowledge. Instead of sifting through all of the information a news site puts out, I can read only what I want to know about. That leaves a bit of blank space in which I am entirely uninformed. If that were the case, I would rarely know what was going on in the business world or certain parts of the world.

There’s also something to be said for the instant gratification of it all. We, the young generation who have grown up with iPods and laptops and cell phones are used to everything being accesible at the tips of our fingers. We don’t know how to take a step back. We’re always moving, always looking for new ways to be entertained. We expect to know everything as soon as it happens. But that immediacy isn’t always effective, especially in the age where anyone can publish anything from anywhere. If everyone keeps moving at warp-speed, I feel like something is going to be left behind. Maybe it will be the truth.

It feels almost like information is too easy to come by. When we can easily limit what information gets fed to us, it becomes easier to be apathetic to the types of stories that perhaps don’t interest us, even if they are important. Maybe I’ve romanticized it a little bit in my head, but I want news stories to be accurate and compelling, full of information that is important. I don’t need to know of every affair that’s happened between a senator and whomever or which representative is gay. I want to know when bills are going to be passed and when policy changes happen. Sometimes it just feels like the media is focused on telling the public stories that they feel we, as consumers, are interested in, instead of telling us boring stories, full of minutia, that can impact our lives. Because, really, I don’t care what Kate Gosselin’s doing.

“If I could recruit two more dollars…”

During the never-ending wait for Toy Story 3, amid all of the late night Denny’s runs and despite the grueling hours I put in at the lovely pool (what up, BVFAC?) I still find time to enjoy politics. I started my internship today at the lovely office of Congressman Dennis Kucinich. It was a blast. Yeah, some of the things I was tasked with were menial, but it was never boring. The people there are fun and intelligent and I’ve learned a lot already. I genuinely like the staffers and I’m getting the hang of phoning up agencies (oh, hello FEMA). But sometimes the stories you hear at the office aren’t quite as funny as the ones you hear once you’re home. (Generally speaking, they’re less confidential, too.) Case in point: I get home last night and what does mom have to show me right off the bat: FAVS!!!

Don’t even try to tell me that you don’t remember him.

And that great little nugget of gold led me to this, which is, to me, almost more exciting. Plus, it reminds me of the great little pictorial display of Obama Admin. staffers hanging from Anne’s dorm room walls.  Oh, politics. You have yet to bore me to tears.

Tuesdays with Maury, Wednesdays with John

A long time ago I came to terms with a simple fact: I am a geek.  Not only do I read like it’s my job (in actuality, I probably read with more diligence for fun than I would if I were at work), but I have for as long as I can remember always plod through summer with sheer excitement for school to restart. I like to learn. I have a reading list this summer that I compiled for myself. It has sixty-nine books on it, all of them either non-fiction or literature. I’ve been out of school for 17 days and I’ve already read ten books – none of them on my list.

And, for as much TV as I watch (which, believe me, is a lot), it actually helped me, come college! Even the non-educational, completely fictional, escapist shows that I watch helped me ace quizzes and classes in college. And parents say TV rots your brain. Honestly, ten seasons of Stargate SG-1 and seven of the West Wing helped me pass Astronomy and PoliSci, respectively.

The first few books on my reading list: Faiths of the Founding Fathers, The Oxford Companion to World Mythologies, and Generation Kill. I was looking forward to reading Anne’s book about quantum physics, but I forgot to borrow it from her before we parted ways for the summer.

But, seriously, even some of my favorite cartoons  are geeky. Regardless, I can’t wait for Futurama to come back to TV this summer. Also, is it just me, or does the theme song for Futurama sound reminiscent of the chime-y intro to 17? Decide for yourself:

But the geeky thing about me that really seems to take the cake: I love over-the-phone political surveys. Always have. I think they’re fun. Sometimes I bond with the pollsters. Like yesterday, for example. I bonded with the guy interviewing me over the fact that we were both too young to vote in the 2008 election. Apparently, we’re the same age, and even have the same birth month! Go figure. See, politics can be fun. (Speaking of, you go John Sides!)

Refigeratoring: the action of being a refrigerator.

Summer break has officially spoiled me. I’ve been doing nothing but reading, sleeping, eating, and watching tv for the past week and a half. Okay, well I went on a bike ride or two, played some golf, and photographed a softball game, but still. I just spent 15 minutes on Google playing Pacman (it’s the 30th Anniversary. Of Pacman, not Google).

Oh, right. I also found this disturbing dance routine. It’s not the dance itself, so much as the seven year olds doing the moves. And the fact that this song will forever remind me of my PoliSci professor. And Glee.

“I am 8 years old and my troubles are many…”

Wacky things happen in political arenas all the time. Sometimes fights break out. Which isn’t really a huge surprise – I mean, think about it:  Hundreds of powerful people, cooped up in one place for stretches of time, debating everything under the sun. Sometimes the topics are boring and full of minutia that no one can bring themselves to care about except maybe the one Representative whose district will reap the benefits. But, more often than not, the publicized cases of bickering and fighting don’t come to blows. Usually, people will shout and holler, and rail about why their views are more important and correct. But, on the odd occasion, legislative violence breaks out. Such was the case in the United States Senate in 1856 when Charles Sumner gave a  ”Crime Against Kansas” speech in relation to Bleeding Kansas. Two days after vilifying authors of the Kansas-Nebraska act, Stephen Douglas and Andrew Butler, Sumner was attacked on the floor of the Senate by Butler’s relative, fellow congressman Preston Brooks.

Brooks said, “Mr. Sumner, I have read your speech twice over carefully. It is a libel on South Carolina, and Mr. Butler, who is a relative of mine.” As Sumner began to stand up, Brooks began beating Sumner severely on the head with a thick gutta-percha cane with a gold head before he could reach his feet. Sumner was knocked down and trapped under the heavy desk (which was bolted to the floor), but Brooks continued to bash Sumner until he ripped the desk from the floor. By this time, Sumner was blinded by his own blood, and he staggered up the aisle and collapsed, lapsing into unconsciousness. Brooks continued to beat the motionless Sumner until he broke his cane, then quietly left the chamber.

After that, Sumner took quite some time to recover, not returning to the Senate for 3 years. He often suffered from headaches and nightmares.

Unfortunately, there’s no video footage of this beat-down. I can, however, present you with this video of pandemonium in the Ukrainian Parliament earlier today, brought on by an extension of the lease to Russia for use of a naval port. Check it out:

Brave Little Toaster

Oh, political science, you’re such a fickle friend. Today alone you have managed to send me in to a fit of giggles and chill my blood. Why do I study you, again? Maybe because it’s just so entertaining to listen to my American Government professor pontificate about the Real World or sing “Single Ladies.” Or maybe it’s just because you don’t think before you Google. You did, however, make a valid point today about the trends of news media and America’s attention to politics.  Case in point:

Just, maybe next time, think your examples through before using them.  Because, let’s face it, putting “sex” in the search engine to show how popular it is as a search term, as opposed to “Obama”, “Palin,” or “Haiti” may not be the best idea. Why? Well, let me google that for you. I will admit it was a funny example and you were very contrite and abashed.

The blood-chilling moment in political science today occurs tonight at 9:00 on CNN. What is it, you ask? Well, I hate to have to be the bearer of bad news, but Ann Coulter is tonight’s guest on Larry King Live. If you don’t get why that freaks me out as much is it does, give this* a watch:

*It was the most unbiased source I could find on YouTube and one of the least-offensive interviews I found with her.

Pop Culture Pandemonium

All semester the GW campus has been awash with famous faces.  So far, our campus has been graced by Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates, Joe Wilson, Jill Biden, Michelle Obama (twice), Maroon 5, Sean Kingston, and more.  The last week has brought even more famous faces to campus.

Tuesday night Anne and I strolled a few blocks over the GW’s Elliot School of International Affairs.  There, the School of Media and Public Affairs had teamed up with our student run radio and tv-studios to bring us Helen Thomas.  She lectured for a bit and then opened the floor to questions.  I love her.  She was funny and poised and very knowledgeable.

Then, on Wednesday night, our campus was graced by the presence of Flavor Flav and the rest of Public Enemy.  They drove around campus on a flatbed truck to raise awareness about homelessness. Or something like that. All I know was that I could hear/see them from my window. End story is that it resulted in a 5 minute digression in my political campaigns class to talk about it the following day.  We got totally off topic when I brought up the Fresh Prince and DJ Jazzy Jeff.  Later I routed the discussion to the Rugrats.  As Anne would say, it was really a red letter day for me.

Our final tidbit of pop culture on campus was not an actual personal presence so much as a literary one. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Sarah Palin’s book, Going Rogue was released this week. And, yes, Crawford 202 already owns a copy.  (Amanda noted upon purchase that she feels folksier already and that the book is not so much a piece of literature as it is a toy. I have to agree.) For those of you who doubt it’s greatness, let me direct you to this. It’s an index for her book, since the real copy is egregiously missing one.  Everything in this supplemental index is accurate, even if it may seem satirical.  Crawford 202 has been having a lot of fun with this book.  Many excerpts are most enjoyed when read aloud. We like to read an excerpt, say “Goin’ Rogue” then pass it on to the next person in the circle. Yeah, I know what you’re thinking: We actually are quite mavericky.

Now for some music that’s been stuck in my head since Amanda introduced me to the brilliant DVD: