The Obamas’ scandalous lack of interest in embassy parties and ‘Beltway salons’

Heavens to Betsy! The Obamas aren’t going to enough embassy parties, frets Time‘s Mark Halperin, the self-styled voice of Washington’s collective wisdom: In 2008 the country clearly craved new leadership that would sweep into the capital and change the ways of Washington. But politically and personally, the First Couple and their top aides have shown ...

Heavens to Betsy! The Obamas aren't going to enough embassy parties, frets Time's Mark Halperin, the self-styled voice of Washington's collective wisdom:

Heavens to Betsy! The Obamas aren’t going to enough embassy parties, frets Time‘s Mark Halperin, the self-styled voice of Washington’s collective wisdom:

In 2008 the country clearly craved new leadership that would sweep into the capital and change the ways of Washington. But politically and personally, the First Couple and their top aides have shown no hankering for the Establishment seal of approval, nor have they accepted the glut of invitations to embassy parties and other tribal rituals of the political class. In the sphere of Washington glitter, the Clintons were clumsy and the Bush team indifferent, but the Obama Administration has turned a cold shoulder, disappointing Beltway salons and newsrooms whose denizens hoped the über-cool newbies would play.

That’s via Matt Yglesias, who mockingly says it’s "[s]hocking that the über-cool don’t want to go to embassy parties."

I don’t think I need to point out that Halperin’s gripe is ridiculous. I will posit, however, that perhaps the Obama’s aren’t playing a Beltway game. Michelle, for instance, made a much-ballyhooed guest cameo on the Food Network’s Iron Chef America program Sunday night, touting her organic White House vegetable garden. I don’t know about Georgetown salons, but a lot of the eco-friendly folks in various European embassies would probably heartily approve of that sort of thing.

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