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You are here: Home / Guest Posts / Hail To the Chief

Hail To the Chief

by WaterGirl|  March 29, 20245:30 pm| 119 Comments

This post is in: Biden Administration in Action, Guest Posts, Open Threads

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I don’t know where TaMara found this awesome photo, but I’m gonna use it every chance I get.

Auto Draft 97
So Bright They Had To Wear Shades

Timely guest post, thank you ema!

I have a story I think BJ readers might like:

I live within walking distance of Radio City Music Hall so, yesterday, I thought I should go there and take some pictures of the three Tenors Presidents for BJ. Unfortunately, it was impossible to make it even into the vicinity of the vicinity of the area because of security, the dump trucks were blocking the entire building, and I don’t have a telephoto lens or a fancy camera, so off back home I went, pictureless.

This morning, I step out of my building on my way to work and I see double barricades, a bunch of dump trucks, and a police officer guarding every nook and cranny on the street. This only happens when Bibi is in town for the UN General Assembly and he stays at a hotel up my street. I thought something similar might be happening, the NYPD officer guarding my building confirmed that President Biden was on my street, and off I went to work.

A quick aside: Why do these people insist on staying at that hotel is a bit of a mystery. I mean, it’s a nice place, don’t get me wrong, but it’s definitely not The Mark or The Carlyle. Maybe it has something to do with security arrangements?

Back to the story. I thought by the time I returned home all will be back to normal. Not even close! Just as I reached one end of my street , not only was everything still there, but an officer informed me that there’s a freeze order in place (meaning, nothing moves, you cannot go in/out even if you live on the street because they’re expecting the President to be on the move soon). This freeze can last anywhere from a few minutes to over an hour so I wasn’t too keen on it. Just as I was planning my next move – dig a tunnel, sneak into an adjacent building and rappel down to my apartment? – the motorcade starts moving, the presidential limousine passes by, people are clapping and cheering, and I’m waving with one hand and filming (askew) with the other.

And, since we more or less ran into each other, I took the opportunity to tell the President a few things (using my inner voice, of course, because what am I, a peasant who yells at passing cars and famous people?). This is what I “told” him:

1) Great job.
2) Good luck in November. BJ is working hard to reelect you, keep the Senate and flip the House.
3) Give Ukraine whatever it needs and then some.
4) Help the Gaza refugees.
5) In your second term, enough with appointing Republican AGs and SCs, they’re unprofessional.
6) Go for 15! (h/t Another Scott) Between Thomas’ corruption and Alito’s “Burn the Witches” legal arguments, the public is losing trust in the legal system.
7) Give extra scritches to Major, Commander, and Willow.

What would you tell President Biden if you had a chance encounter with him?

I hope you like it.

ema

I simply can not hear Hail to the Chief without thinking of this scene and hearing Dave’s lyrics.

Open thread!

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    119Comments

    1. 1.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 5:34 pm

      Still fan-girl-ing a bit over the photo.  I love that they are all wearing the same thing – the similar suits, the white shirts, top buttons open, no ties.  Except for Colbert, who wears the tie.

      Well done, boys.

      Reply
    2. 2.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 5:35 pm

      What a truly cool story, ema! Thanks so much for sharing it.

      Reply
    3. 3.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 5:37 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      I love that photo! Bill peering professorially over the top of his shades is a completely Clinton-esque gesture.

      Reply
    4. 4.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 5:45 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      Thank you!

      Reply
    5. 5.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 5:47 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:  Yes.  Professionally peering out of the top of his shades, with the bad boy slouch

      I have already watched the Dave shower video 3 times.  “Hail to the chief, he’s the one we all say hail to. He’s got the power, that’s why he’s in the shower.”

      That’s like my lyrics to “oh black kitty, bam ba bam” when I sing to Mr. Bear.

      Reply
    6. 6.

      Baud

      March 29, 2024 at 5:48 pm

      I belong up there.

      Reply
    7. 7.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 5:50 pm

      @Baud: Next time!

      edit: How would you look in that “uniform”?  We love you, but we don’t want to spoil the look.

      Reply
    8. 8.

      Doug R

      March 29, 2024 at 5:53 pm

      So there’s now 2 “The Beast”(s)?

      That’s the presidential limo that’s shaped like a car but built on a truck frame.

      Reply
    9. 9.

      Baud

      March 29, 2024 at 5:54 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      Would I need to wear a suit?

      Reply
    10. 10.

      HeleninEire

      March 29, 2024 at 5:56 pm

      @Baud: Well. Not until you are elected.  And I am your Secretary of the Treasury.

      Reply
    11. 11.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 5:59 pm

      @Doug R:

      Yes, the first one looked a bit empty. He was definitely in the second limo.

      Reply
    12. 12.

      Scout211

      March 29, 2024 at 6:00 pm

      @Baud: I belong up there.

      🎶🎶 We lift you up where you belong.🎶🎶

      Where is it you belong again?

      Reply
    13. 13.

      Spanky

      March 29, 2024 at 6:03 pm

      @Baud:

      I belong up there.

      You don’t have your own shower?

      Reply
    14. 14.

      Baud

      March 29, 2024 at 6:03 pm

      @HeleninEire:

      I thought you wanted to be Ambassador to Ireland.

      Reply
    15. 15.

      Yutsano

      March 29, 2024 at 6:07 pm

      @HeleninEire: And I am your Secretary of the Treasury.

      Just make me commissioner of the IRS and we’re golden.

      Reply
    16. 16.

      Kent

      March 29, 2024 at 6:08 pm

      Who is the 4th man on the left holding the microphone?

      Reply
    17. 17.

      SuzieC

      March 29, 2024 at 6:08 pm

      Love the photo!  Posted it immediately.  All 3 of Our Presidents are good-looking men, especially compared to the Bloated Orange Beast.

      Reply
    18. 18.

      Baud

      March 29, 2024 at 6:08 pm

      @Kent:

      Colbert, I think.

      Reply
    19. 19.

      Scout211

      March 29, 2024 at 6:09 pm

      @Kent: Who is the 4th man on the left holding the microphone?

      I think that is Stephen Colbert. One of the hosts of the event.

      Reply
    20. 20.

      zhena gogolia

      March 29, 2024 at 6:10 pm

      So cool, Ema!

      Wow, Bill looks very attractive in that picture. I was always kind of immune to his charms.

      Reply
    21. 21.

      🐾BillinGlendaleCA

      March 29, 2024 at 6:11 pm

      @Baud: We know you Baud, you’d show up in your birthday suit.

      Reply
    22. 22.

      dr. bloor

      March 29, 2024 at 6:15 pm

      Trump is in his private dining room right now at Grift-O-Rama, throwing plates and ketchup at a life-size print of that photo.*

      *And missing them, but claiming they were “perfect” throws that rivaled the hole-in-one he had last week on a 550 yard par 5 hole.

      Reply
    23. 23.

      Baud

      March 29, 2024 at 6:15 pm

      @🐾BillinGlendaleCA:

      I’d wear the shades.

      Reply
    24. 24.

      NotMax

      March 29, 2024 at 6:15 pm

      There’s something off with that photo? It appears no one’s feet reach the floor.

      Reply
    25. 25.

      Another Scott

      March 29, 2024 at 6:18 pm

      @Doug R: I think there’s always (when possible) a redundancy (e.g. if something breaks or goes wrong).

      E.g. Biden driving over the Edmund Pettus Bridge a year ago.

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    26. 26.

      Tony Jay

      March 29, 2024 at 6:26 pm

      Awesome work, Ema.

      Reply
    27. 27.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 6:27 pm

      @zhena gogolia:

      Thank you!

      Reply
    28. 28.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 6:28 pm

      @Tony Jay:

      Thank you!

      Reply
    29. 29.

      Mousebumples

      March 29, 2024 at 6:29 pm

      Thanks for the post and story, Ema.

      And thanks for the Dave clip, WaterGirl. That, and the American President, are 2 good (older) presidenting movies. Might need to rewatch in the future if I can find my dvds…

      Reply
    30. 30.

      Tony Jay

      March 29, 2024 at 6:33 pm

      @ema:

      You did the work of curating a solid list. Our job is to show the love.

      You should probably comment more.

      Reply
    31. 31.

      FastEdD

      March 29, 2024 at 6:33 pm

      Still remember when Colbert trolled Shrub. To his face. A thing of beauty, and I think it jump started his career.

      Reply
    32. 32.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 6:36 pm

      @Tony Jay:

      I am a lurker par excellence but I do read, and enjoy, all the comments.

      Reply
    33. 33.

      smith

      March 29, 2024 at 6:36 pm

      @FastEdD: I greatly appreciated how he trolled the whole rightwingosphere for years. A lot of them never figured out that he was mocking them.

      Reply
    34. 34.

      Tony Jay

      March 29, 2024 at 6:38 pm

      @ema:

      And that’s just fine too. Live that dream! 👍

      Reply
    35. 35.

      zhena gogolia

      March 29, 2024 at 6:41 pm

      @FastEdD: That was wonderful.

      Reply
    36. 36.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 6:41 pm

      @Mousebumples:

      Thank you!

      Reply
    37. 37.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 6:41 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      The Big Dog still has it.

      Also he is the only one really using that chair.  The others seem a little constrained, not Bill.

      Reply
    38. 38.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 6:41 pm

      Thank you for the on the ground reporting, ema!

      Reply
    39. 39.

      zhena gogolia

      March 29, 2024 at 6:42 pm

      @ema: It looks like they’re heading toward Central Park? Not that I want to geolocate them.

      Reply
    40. 40.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 6:52 pm

      @FastEdD:

      A friend of a friend was at a taping of The Colbert Report before the WH Correspondents’ Dinner.  In the pre-show Q&A, someone asked Colbert what he planned to do at the dinner.  “I’m going to mock the president to his face.”

      And boy, did he.

      Reply
    41. 41.

      mwing

      March 29, 2024 at 6:55 pm

      Once there were strange sidewalk  arrangements being made at the bar 3 doors down from my apartment, so I asked the local shopkeepers what it was, and it was Joe Biden visiting the Banshee.
      I think this was just before the 2012 election.

      The funny thing is, the Banshee is very well known as a soccer (sorry, football) bar- and so is very  much attended by soccer fans from around the city who are, disproportionately, not citizens and can’t vote.

      Semi-drunk people smoking on the sidewalk at 10 AM on a Saturday, with their faces painted blue, and I’m like oh, I suppose Scotland is playing?

      To be fair to the Banshee, this all works out quite well, it is a good, nonviolent bar.

      Reply
    42. 42.

      sab

      March 29, 2024 at 6:58 pm

      @Scout211: My guess is that the aviator glasses all around was his idea,  although the WH internet folks are also that creative. After all, didn’t they invent, or at least embrace Dark Brandon?

      Reply
    43. 43.

      mrmoshpotato

      March 29, 2024 at 6:59 pm

      I wanna be Ambassador to St. Lucia.

      Reply
    44. 44.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 7:03 pm

      @mrmoshpotato:

      Great!  That leaves St. Barts open.

      Reply
    45. 45.

      sab

      March 29, 2024 at 7:03 pm

      OT We moved Dad to a new better nursing home yesterday. Today he had no cable yet, so he went out in the main room and watched the dogs sleep in front of the fireplace.

      Have I mentionned that this memory care unit is much better than the prior one.

      They also have a lovely white fuzzy cat.

      Reply
    46. 46.

      pluky

      March 29, 2024 at 7:04 pm

      I would guess the Secret Service likes going to the same hotel. They already know the layout, the staff, and what need be done to secure the place.

      Reply
    47. 47.

      Jay C

      March 29, 2024 at 7:06 pm

      @NotMax:

      Naaah, everyone has at least one foot on the stage except Joe, who has both down.

      Reply
    48. 48.

      mrmoshpotato

      March 29, 2024 at 7:06 pm

      @eclare: Have at it!

      Reply
    49. 49.

      Dan B

      March 29, 2024 at 7:06 pm

      @Another Scott: My partner was driving the limo for a dignitary  -VP?- years ago.  The dignitary was in a very ordinary car and my partner realized that an assassin would target his limo.  He didn’t like that.

      Reply
    50. 50.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 7:07 pm

      @sab: That’s great news.

      What about his aide? That he’s had for such a long time.

      Reply
    51. 51.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:11 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      Did I ever share the growly little song I used to sing to my Hamish? (Almost totally black cat, but there was definitely some Siamese ancestry there. He wasn’t the sharpest crayon in the Crayola box, but I’ve never had a bigger lovebug.)

      Reply
    52. 52.

      Dan B

      March 29, 2024 at 7:11 pm

      @sab: Great news!  Plus a floofy kat!!

      Reply
    53. 53.

      Anotherlurker

      March 29, 2024 at 7:12 pm

      Off topic, by a long way.  I was watching the Mets game today and Keith Hernandes was talking abut his kitty, Haji.  Haji is now 21 years old!

      Reply
    54. 54.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:13 pm

      @Baud:

      Would I need to wear a suit?

      Jacket optional, I think.

      Reply
    55. 55.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:14 pm

      @Anotherlurker:

      Why is he called that? Did he make the Mecca pilgrimage?

      The Prophet (PBUH) adored cats. There are some great stories.

      Reply
    56. 56.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      March 29, 2024 at 7:15 pm

      @sab: Watching the dogs actually sounds lovely.

      Reply
    57. 57.

      Kayla Rudbek

      March 29, 2024 at 7:15 pm

      @Yutsano: I’ll take either Director of the USPTO or ambassador to the Netherlands. Or ambassador to any country with good bicycle infrastructure. :)

      Reply
    58. 58.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:16 pm

      @sab:

      I’m so glad! This should take a lot of pressure off you.

      And YAY for bonus kitty!

      Reply
    59. 59.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 7:16 pm

      @eclare:

      My pleasure.

      Reply
    60. 60.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 7:16 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: I don’t think you have.  Please share?

      Reply
    61. 61.

      HeleninEire

      March 29, 2024 at 7:17 pm

      @Baud: Oh yes. My bad. Thank you for the job

      ETA: Have you seen the American Ambassador’s residence in Ireland? It is a mansion in Phoenix Park.

      Reply
    62. 62.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 7:17 pm

      @zhena gogolia:

      Yes, they are.

      Reply
    63. 63.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 7:17 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: No one is talking about the elephant in the room?  What about pants, would they be optional?

      Reply
    64. 64.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 7:19 pm

      @HeleninEire: I was going to be Baud’s Valerie Jarrett if he had won last time.  Wondering about my role this time around.

      Biden doesn’t even have a Valerie Jarrett!  What is he thinking?!

      Reply
    65. 65.

      mrmoshpotato

      March 29, 2024 at 7:20 pm

      @🐾BillinGlendaleCA:

      We know you Baud, you’d show up in your birthday suit. 

      To hell with just pantslessness!

      Reply
    66. 66.

      ema

      March 29, 2024 at 7:20 pm

      @pluky:

      I think that’s the most likely explanation.

      Reply
    67. 67.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:23 pm

      @eclare:

      He was/is an extremely sexy man.

      ETA: A hound dog, for sure, but … you know.

      Reply
    68. 68.

      TBone

      March 29, 2024 at 7:24 pm

      Huge news, if true:  Evidence for Havana Syndrome has been found and, yes, Moscow is being blamed according to this:

      https://twitter.com/CBSEveningNews/status/1773851068843094432

      I want to see evidence!  Fucking got a senior defense official at NATO Summit in Lithuania last year!  Biden was there!

      Reply
    69. 69.

      Chetan Murthy

      March 29, 2024 at 7:24 pm

      @WaterGirl: Reading a little about her history, perhaps Biden had someone like that earlier in his career?  But he’s pretty old, so whoever it is might be long-retired, or even have passed on.  Jarrett seems to have been a senior figure in both the Obamas’ lives from early-on (before they were married).

      Reply
    70. 70.

      mrmoshpotato

      March 29, 2024 at 7:24 pm

      @Dan B:

      My partner was driving the limo for a dignitary -VP?- years ago. The dignitary was in a very ordinary car and my partner realized that an assassin would target his limo. He didn’t like that. 

      Was he just driving an empty limo?

      Reply
    71. 71.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 7:25 pm

      @Anotherlurker:

      Wow!  To me he will always be Elaine’s bf in Seinfeld.  “I’m Keith Hernandez.”

      Reply
    72. 72.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:26 pm

      @TBone:

      Where do they find the time? I saw a day or two ago that Moscow was also responsible for most of the disinformation about the Princess of Wales in the last few months.

      Reply
    73. 73.

      Chetan Murthy

      March 29, 2024 at 7:27 pm

      @TBone: [Echoing Adam S.] We’ve been at war with the fucking Russkies since before 2014; we just didn’t want to admit it.  Maybe this will wake us up.  Sigh.

      Reply
    74. 74.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 7:27 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      Chris Rock said, not joked, you never leave your woman alone with Bill Clinton.

      Reply
    75. 75.

      Baud

      March 29, 2024 at 7:28 pm

      @TBone:

      Republicans will need to go the extra mile to protect Putin.

      Reply
    76. 76.

      Chetan Murthy

      March 29, 2024 at 7:29 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: I imagine they can do a lot with all the Russians who aren’t employed manufacturing, installing, maintaining all that sewerage and indoor plumbing infrastructure for the entire Russian population outside the big cities.

      Reply
    77. 77.

      TBone

      March 29, 2024 at 7:30 pm

      @Baud: they can fuck off for many, many miles while I listen to the lamentations of their women.

      Reply
    78. 78.

      Scout211

      March 29, 2024 at 7:31 pm

      @TBone: Very intriguing.  Here’s  another teaser for the 60 minutes report.

      Reply
    79. 79.

      Baud

      March 29, 2024 at 7:31 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      I don’t think spreading misinformation takes a lot of resources.

      Reply
    80. 80.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:32 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      This was “The Hamish Rap.”  I used to growl it to him and give him nuzzles and scritches when he was flopped out in my lap.

      I like your face and I like your nose.
      I like your paws and I like your toes.
      I like your back and I like your fur.
      I like your neck and I like your purr.
      I like your tummy and I like your tail,
      And I like the place where you used to be a male.

      Reply
    81. 81.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:32 pm

      @HeleninEire:

      How Joycean.

      Reply
    82. 82.

      TBone

      March 29, 2024 at 7:33 pm

      @Scout211: thanks, I’ve always been suspicious about these reports (suspected they were real because I’m biased).  But I need hard evidence.  I’ll be following this closely.

      Reply
    83. 83.

      mrmoshpotato

      March 29, 2024 at 7:33 pm

      @Baud: Especially with the Internet, and Fuckerberg gladly accepting rubles for ads.

      Reply
    84. 84.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:34 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      I dunno, but I expect Baud was vastly flattered by your pachydermal simile.

      Reply
    85. 85.

      HeleninEire

      March 29, 2024 at 7:34 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: Yup.

      Reply
    86. 86.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 7:35 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      I saw that too, Moscow trying to drive a wedge between the public and the RF.  Chaos is Russia’s goal, in whatever sphere.

      Reply
    87. 87.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 7:37 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      Hahaha…that’s great.

      Reply
    88. 88.

      Kayla Rudbek

      March 29, 2024 at 7:38 pm

      @TBone: everything old is new again Army Mad Scientist podcast

      Reply
    89. 89.

      Another Scott

      March 29, 2024 at 7:39 pm

      @TBone: I won’t be watching, myself.

      2020 National Academies Report.

      NIH Studies from 2024:

      The researchers note that if the symptoms were caused by some external phenomenon, they are without persistent or detectable patho-physiologic changes. Additionally, it is possible that the physiologic markers of an external phenomenon are no longer detectable or cannot be identified with the current methodologies and sample size.

      ForeignPolicy.com – Cheryl Rofer:

      Here’s the problem. Aside from the reported syndromes, there’s no evidence that a microwave weapon exists—and all the available science suggests that any such weapon would be wildly impractical. It’s possible that the symptoms of all the sufferers of Havana syndrome share a single, as yet unknown, cause; it’s also possible that multiple real health problems have been amalgamated into a single syndrome.

      FWIW.

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    90. 90.

      TBone

      March 29, 2024 at 7:43 pm

      @Baud: I used to troll Rump relentlessly when I was on social media.  Copy and paste, and paste, and paste, over and over… didn’t spend anything but time and giggles.

      Reply
    91. 91.

      TBone

      March 29, 2024 at 7:45 pm

      @Another Scott: I have “invisible” illness.  Subjective symptoms.  I will be watching.

      Reply
    92. 92.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:50 pm

      @eclare:

      I was in the room at the 2008 1988 DNC in Atlanta when Bill gave his famously interminable nomination for Michael Dukakis*, and I just melted. Pretty sure I released an ovum during his speech.

      He.was.just.that.attractive.

      *Best line was a week or so later when he was a guest on the Tonight Show. Carson observed, “It wasn’t exactly your finest hour,” and Clinton shot back, “Hell, it wasn’t even my finest two hours.”

      Reply
    93. 93.

      Chetan Murthy

      March 29, 2024 at 7:51 pm

      deleted

      Reply
    94. 94.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 7:55 pm

      @Chetan Murthy:

      Thank you, of course. Fixed. Time flies whether you’re having a good time or not, I guess.

      Reply
    95. 95.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 7:56 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:

      Hahaha…what a great story.

      Reply
    96. 96.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 8:02 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: Oh, you’ve got me beat by a mile!  But Mr. Bear still likes it when I sing to him. :-)

      Reply
    97. 97.

      Dan B

      March 29, 2024 at 8:02 pm

      @mrmoshpotato: It was Bush senior and there was a woman in the limo.  My partner was making $2.25 an hour.  Good pay for a decoy.  Right?

      Reply
    98. 98.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 8:03 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: hahaha

      Reply
    99. 99.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 8:05 pm

      @Dan B: I’ll bet he was mad!

      Reply
    100. 100.

      mrmoshpotato

      March 29, 2024 at 8:08 pm

      @Dan B: Dunno.  Not sure I’d want that job at any price.

      Reply
    101. 101.

      Dan B

      March 29, 2024 at 8:10 pm

      @WaterGirl: He was and still is.

      Reply
    102. 102.

      Scout211

      March 29, 2024 at 8:20 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: In 2006, I was actually on the same stage as Bill Clinton for a campaign event (you know, those people who stand behind the speaker and cheer at appropriate times).  He definitely has charisma, or as the cool kids say these days, “the rizz.”

      But what I was most impressed with was his skills as a speaker.  He kept the audience captivated and spoke for a long time with no notes.

      Reply
    103. 103.

      NotMax

      March 29, 2024 at 8:23 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne

      Fan of Johnny Quest?
      ;)

      Reply
    104. 104.

      eclare

      March 29, 2024 at 8:32 pm

      @Scout211:

      As Barack said, Bill is the Secretary of Explaining Stuff.  I remember when he spoke at the 2012 Democratic convention, breaking down exactly what block granting Medicaid meant.  Brilliant.

      Reply
    105. 105.

      Josie

      March 29, 2024 at 8:34 pm

      My middle son was on a Constitution team in high school that went to nationals in Washington, D.C. President Clinton met with them on the tarmac and spoke to each individually. Kyle came home in a daze. He said the man looked you directly in the eyes as he spoke with you and made you feel that you were the most important person to him at that moment. He was and is not easily impressed with politicians, but that was an outstanding experience for him.

      Reply
    106. 106.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 8:35 pm

      @NotMax:

      Not a fan, no. But I get the reference, which is better than my usual pop culture/nostalgia average :-)

      Reply
    107. 107.

      Jeffro

      March 29, 2024 at 8:38 pm

      @WaterGirl:Biden doesn’t even have a Valerie Jarrett!  What is he thinking?!

      Clearly you are not up on all the latest and greatest RWNJ conspiracy theories!

      EVERYONE (except trumpov) is Biden’s Valerie Jarrett!  And also NO ONE is!  Unless Obama says so!  But Biden is also totes way gone with dementia.  Plus he’s a worldwide super-criminal mastermind!!  (argle bargle times infinity)

      Reply
    108. 108.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 8:38 pm

      @Scout211:

      What a cool memory for you! And yes, the man is a natural, conversational orator.

      Reply
    109. 109.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 8:43 pm

      @Josie:

      That must have been a terrific experience for your son, and for sure that’s one of Clinton’s greatest political attributes, the ability to make any given person feel like the most important person on the planet in that moment. A lot of politicians fake it, and some get pretty good at it, but the real thing is a priceless gift.

      Reply
    110. 110.

      SiubhanDuinne

      March 29, 2024 at 8:47 pm

      @eclare:

      Bill is the Secretary of Explaining Stuff

      I’ve always loved that line, and I seriously think it should be a Thing. If Pete Buttigieg weren’t doing such a fine job wrangling Transpo and Infrastructure, he’d be a shoo-in for that rôle.

      Reply
    111. 111.

      Craig

      March 29, 2024 at 8:48 pm

      @eclare: 20 years ago I happened to be working at a very small fund raising event for an organization channeling money from Indian tech entrepreneurs into education opportunities for poor people in India. Clinton spoke to a room of 40 people, mostly women. During the meet and greet afterwards my friend and I just marveled at the eye lines of people in the rooms. Every woman from 20s to 60s kept looking at that dude with a ‘Imma fuck that man’ look. I’ve rarely seen such raw charisma.

      Reply
    112. 112.

      Craig

      March 29, 2024 at 8:54 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: yeah when I saw him, tiny room, 45 minutes, no notes, reached out to 3 different people in the room. Amazing talk.

      Reply
    113. 113.

      WaterGirl

      March 29, 2024 at 9:09 pm

      @Dan B: Captain expendable.  Not fun.

      Reply
    114. 114.

      Hoppie

      March 29, 2024 at 9:34 pm

      @sab: Carpe Miem is what they did….

      Reply
    115. 115.

      Soprano2

      March 29, 2024 at 9:37 pm

      We stayed at the Intercontinental Barclay hotel that’s near Radio City Music Hall last summer when I sang at Carnegie Hall, so I was close to you! It was a nice hotel. Pricey bar, though.

      Reply
    116. 116.

      Soprano2

      March 29, 2024 at 9:42 pm

      @sab: I saw your posts this morning. I’m glad you have a better placement for your father.  It’s a cautionary tale for sure. It’s so hard to know what’s the right thing to do.

      Reply
    117. 117.

      Betty

      March 29, 2024 at 10:02 pm

      @eclare: Not with all those rich snobs. There are much better places in the Caribbean.

      Reply
    118. 118.

      columbusqueen

      March 29, 2024 at 11:59 pm

      @Chetan Murthy: His sister Valerie is the equivalent to Jarrett.  She managed all his campaigns up to ’08.

      Reply
    119. 119.

      sab

      March 30, 2024 at 1:34 am

      @Soprano2: I know. We should have moved him months ago, but I was afraid he would hate a change. Had I known it was inevitable we would have been long gone.

      His aide is still with him, and she is also much happier. It takes a lot of pressure off her to have him in a safer place.

      Reply

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