Opening Act
Courtesy photo
This weekend, politicians are finding themselves in the unusual spot of opening for top musicians. So it was Friday, as Washington Life magazine kicked off the weekend’s many social events with a soiree at the Fairfax Hotel.
The entertainment? Warren Haynes, the legendary guitar player for the Allman Brothers, Gov’t Mule and (sometimes) the Grateful Dead. But first? House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and transition team co-chair John Podesta, who called them the “Italian-American warm-up act for Warren Haynes.”
Pelosi, as is her habit, kept things focused on matronly matters. When Barack Obama takes the oath, she said, “I’ll be thinking of his mother and his grandmother and what they did to instill the confidence in him. As a mother, I’m always thinking of the role of mothers.” (We hadn’t noticed.)
Then it was onto Haynes, who opened with a rendition of U2’s “One” that he dedicated to the speaker.
Pelosi, Podesta and Haynes signed a Gibson Les Paul guitar that will be auctioned off to benefit Headcount, an organization that aims to register voters through live music shows.
Spotted in the crowd: Hunter Biden, Kerry Kennedy, NoVa Democratic heavyweight Don Beyer and Capitals owner Ted Leonsis.
Meanwhile in Georgetown, a different group of revelers set up shop at Washington’s social epicenter, Café Milano, which has been augmented by a tent to accommodate the weekend’s crowds.
Spotted there: Mayor Fenty, ex-mayor Anthony Williams, California Attorney General (and former governor and presidential candidate) Jerry Brown, Chris and Kathleen Matthews and Wolf Blitzer.
