It’s hard to be the center of attention when a star such as Garth Brooks is around, but “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer may have pulled it off.
Schieffer attended Wednesday night’s 10th annual “Grammys on the Hill” awards and, to honor Brooks, he led several members of Congress, O.A.R.’s frontman Marc Roberge, songwriter Paul Williams and other musicians in a slightly off-beat and jumbled version of Brooks’ hit, “I Got Friends in Low Places.”
“I don’t think we should read any significance into the fact that the man who made his reputation for having friends in low places is being honored in Washington,” Schieffer said.
The CBS newsman came in cowboy boots and a western-style leather belt, with “Schieffer” burnt into the back and a large buckle in front. (He crafted it in high school).
He was joined on stage by, among others, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, on the tambourine, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., on a single maraca, and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. The ensemble tried to coax Brooks on stage, but the singer wouldn’t budge.
“I think he was smart,” Schieffer told Yeas & Nays after the performance.
Brooks, who was honored alongside Issa and Durbin, spoke in support of the Performance Rights Act, a piece of legislation that would force radio broadcasters to pay performers, and not just songwriters, when they aired their songs. Durbin, a strong proponent of the bill, was almost giddy when he was presented with his award.
“Thanks for my first Grammy,” he joked. “You know my former colleague in the Senate, a fellow named Barack Obama, got one of these for reading a book, then he got two of them, so now I’ve got a little more bragging rights with my president.”
