THE
A
LIST
A New Administration Shakes Up the Washington Power Structure
B
ig changes are always in store when a new president takes office. The “out-with-theold, in-with-the-new” transition of power is even more historic when a change of party occurs (check) and especially when a two-term presidency ends (double check). Barack and Michelle Obama are also younger than their predecessors (they were born at the end of the Baby Boom era; the Bushes at its very beginning), and, most relevant of all, are the first African-Americans to occupy the White House. It’s already clear that the Obama administration will be doing things very differently, and this is reflected in the men and women the president has chosen to serve on his team. So far, they comprise one of the most diverse and talented groups to take the reins of government since Franklin D. Roosevelt assembled his “Brain Trust,” and those who have been appointed know they have an enormous task ahead as they deal with the economy, foreign policy, defense, and the terrorist threat. Certain offices confer A-List status as a matter of course, whether their occupants are colorful – or duds. That’s why you’ll see the new vice president, attorney general and secretaries of state, defense treasury, and homeland security automatically replacing their Bush Administration counterparts. (We’ll miss the brainy and gracious Condoleezza Rice, but Hillary Rodham Clinton will also be “going places” – in both sense of the term.) Note also the addition of Energy Secretary Steven Chu, a Nobel-Prize-winning physicist, and such key White House personnel as Valerie Jarrett, David Axelrod, and Peter Orszag, whose crucial roles as presidential advisors prompted us to eliminate our usual “waitand-see” period. Even more groundbreaking is the début of the list’s first presidential mother-in-law,
Marian Robinson, and first White House social secretary, Desirée Rogers. (A stylish New Orleans native, former TV host, and business executive, Mrs. Rogers would be a likely candidate for a Washington “Fashion A-List” as well.) Congressional leadership is always well represented, and this year we note the inclusion of Rep. Barney Frank, who has played a formidable role legislating bailouts and stimuli to fix our foundering economy, and Rep. Eric Cantor, the Richmond-based House Republican whip who’s been making quite a name for himself in the loyal opposition. On Embassy Row, we said farewell to Britain’s Sir David and Lady Manning and France’s Jean-David and MarieCecile Levitte and now welcome their respective successors, Sir Nigel and Lady Manning and Pierre Vimont, to our diplomatic pantheon. Media stars on the rise include NBC’s newly-dubbed Meet the Press host, David Gregory, and New York Timesman David Brooks, also a major television presence. Business and philanthropic clans bearing the names Cafritz, Graham, Marriott, Mars, and Rockefeller add an element of élan as they rub elbows, so to speak, with more recent powerhouses named Lerner, Leonsis, Snyder, and Sant. There’s a world-famous tenor (Plácido Domingo), a certified movie star (Robert Duvall) and even a queen: Jordan’s Noor Al-Hussein. While our A-Listers don’t need to be rich, royal, or have a TV show, we count on their magnetism to ratchet up the “buzz factor” whenever they enter a room. All named here have what it takes to be a center of gravity (even many of the “husbands- and wives-of ”) and we salute their distinctive presence on the Washington scene. – Kevin Chaffee
Clockwise from bottom left: Eric Holder and Sharon Malone, Timothy Geithner, Valerie Jarrett, Kuwaiti Ambassador Salem AlSabah, Desirée Rogers, President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, Rahm Emanuel, Calvin and Jane Cafritz, Bob Woodward, David and Katherine Bradley, Vice President Joseph Biden and Jill Biden, Donald Graham, Mayor Adrian Fenty and Michelle Fenty, Rep. Barney Frank, Jane Stanton Hitchcock, Peter Orszag
POLLYWOOD | THE A LIST
President BARACK H OBAMA and First Lady MICHELLE OBAMA
Representative BARNEY FRANK
Vice President and Mrs. JOSEPH R BIDEN JR (Jill)
The Honorable ROBERT M GATES, The Secretary of Defense, and Mrs. Gates (Becky)
His Excellency the Ambassador of Kuwait, Sheikh SALEM ABDULLAH AL-JABER AL-SABAH, and Sheikha RIMA AL-SABAH
The Honorable TIMOTHY H GEITHNER, The Secretary of the Treasury, and Mrs. Geithner (Carole)
Mr. and Mrs. DAVID AXELROD (Susan)
The Honorable and Mrs. DANIEL R GLICKMAN (Rhoda)
The Honorable BEN S BERNANKE, The Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, and Mrs. Bernanke (Anna) The Honorable and Mrs. JAMES H BILLINGTON (Marjorie) Representative and Mrs. JOHN A BOEHNER (Debbie) Mr. BENJAMIN C BRADLEE and Ms. SALLY QUINN Mr. and Mrs. DAVID G BRADLEY (Katherine) Justice and Mrs. STEPHEN G BREYER (Joanna) Mr. and Mrs. DAVID BROOKS (Sarah) Mr. and Mrs. CALVIN CAFRITZ (Jane) Mr. and Mrs. WILLIAM N CAFRITZ (Buffy) Representative and Mrs. ERIC I CANTOR (Diana) Mr. and Mrs. STEVEN B CASE (Jean) Mrs. EUGENE B CASEY (Betty) His Excellency the Ambassador of Italy and Mrs. GIOVANNI CASTELLANETA (Leila) The Honorable and Mrs. RICHARD B CHENEY (Lynne) The Honorable STEVEN CHU, The Secretary of Energy, and Mrs. Chu (Jean) The Honorable WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON and the Honorable HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, The Secretary of State Mr. GREG CRAIG and Ms. DERRY NOYES Representative and Mrs. JOHN D DINGELL (Deborah) Mr. and Mrs. PLﾃ，IDO DOMINGO (Marta) Mr. and Mrs. ROBERT S DUVALL (Luciana) The Honorable and Mrs. RAHM EMANUEL (Amy) The Honorable ADRIAN M FENTY, The Mayor of Washington, D.C., and Mrs. Fenty (Michelle)
Mr. DONALD E GRAHAM Mr. DAVID GREGORY and Ms. BETH WILKINSON Mr. CHRISTOPHER E HITCHENS and Ms. CAROL BLUE Mr. JIM HOAGLAND and Ms. JANE STANTON HITCHCOCK
The Honorable ERIC H HOLDER JR , The Attorney General, and Dr. SHARON MALONE Representative STENY H HOYER Mrs. VALERIE JARRETT General and Mrs. JAMES L JONES (Diane) Mr. and Mrs. VERNON E JORDAN JR (Ann) Justice and Mrs. ANTHONY KENNEDY (Mary) Senator and Mrs. EDWARD M KENNEDY (Vicki) Mrs. ROBERT F KENNEDY (Ethel) Senator JOHN F KERRY and Ms. TERESA HEINZ Mr. and Mrs. JAMES C LEHRER (Kate) Mr. and Mrs. THEODORE J LEONSIS (Lynn) Mr. and Mrs. THEODORE N LERNER (Annette) Mr. and Mrs. J WILLARD MARRIOTT JR (Donna) Mr. and Mrs. FORREST E MARS JR (Deborah) Ms. JACQUELINE BADGER MARS Senator and Mrs. JOHN S MCCAIN III (Cindy) Senator A MITCHELL MCCONNELL and the Honorable ELAINE LAN CHAO Gen. MIKE MULLEN, The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Mrs. Mullen (Deborah) The Honorable JANET NAPOLITANO, The Secretary of Homeland Security The Honorable and Mrs. WILLIAM T NEWMAN JR (Sheila Johnson) Her Majesty QUEEN NOOR AL-HUSSEIN
From top: Leila Castellaneta, George Stephanopoulos and Alexandra Wentworth, Liz and George Stevens, Roger Sant, Justice Antonin Scalia, Ted and Annette Lerner, Victoria Reggie Kennedy and Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Katharine Weymouth, Justice Stephen Breyer
Mr. PETER ORSZAG The Honorable NANCY PELOSI, The Speaker of the House of Representatives, and Mr. PAUL PELOSI The Honorable and Mrs. COLIN L POWELL (Alma) Mr. and Mrs. EARL A POWELL III (Nancy) Senator and Mrs. HARRY M REID (Landra)
His Excellency the Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Sir NIGEL and Lady SHEINWALD (Julia) Mr. and Mrs. DANIEL M SNYDER (Tanya) Mr. GEORGE R STEPHANOPOULOS and Ms. ALEXANDRA WENTWORTH Mr. and Mrs. GEORGE C STEVENS JR (Liz)
Mr. JOSEPH E ROBERT JR
The Honorable and Mrs. LAWRENCE H “LARRY� SUMMERS (Elisa)
The Chief Justice and Mrs. JOHN G ROBERTS JR (Jane)
His Excellency the Ambassador of France,
Ms. MARIAN ROBINSON Senator and Mrs. JOHN D ROCKEFELLER IV (Sharon Percy) Mrs. DESIRÉE ROGERS Mr. and Mrs. DAVID RUBENSTEIN (Alice) Mr. and Mrs. ROGER SANT (Victoria) Justice and Mrs. ANTONIN SCALIA (Maureen)
PIERRE VIMONT
Senator MARK R WARNER and Ms. LISA COLLIS Ms. KATHARINE WEYMOUTH Mr. and Mrs. GEORGE F WILL (Mari) Mr. ROBERT WOODWARD and Ms. ELSA WALSH The Honorable ROBERT B ZOELLNICK, President of the World Bank
From top: Betty Casey, Sen. Harry Reid, David Gregory and Beth Wilkinson, PlĂĄcido Domingo and British Ambassador Sir Nigel Sheinwald, Queen Noor Al-Hussein, Rep. Steny Hoyer, Paul Pelosi and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Sheila Johnson, French Ambassador Pierre Vimont
THE RADIOACTIVE LIST Guests Do a Double Take When They Enter a Room GEORGE ALLEN A misspoken “macaca� moment ended this former Virginia senator’s hopes for another term. MARION BARRY Will the former “Mayorfor-Life’s� woes (controlled substances, a kidney transplant, unpaid taxes) ever end? ROLAND BURRIS Barack Obama’s Senate replacement was canny enough to get appointed, but can he keep his seat? ALAN GREENSPAN The former Fed chairman is getting blamed for not sounding his warning about “irrational exuberance� a lot sooner, louder, and longer.
“SCOOTER� LIBBY Liar or scapegoat notwithstanding, there’ll be no pardon anytime soon for Vice President Cheney’s former chief of staff. DONALD RUMSFELD The former defense secretary can’t even walk down a public street without being accosted by irate opponents of the war in Iraq and the torture of prisoners there. LAWRENCE SMALL An “imperialistic and insular� management style and excessive perks doomed the Smithsonian secretary’s reign despite his impressive fundraising achievements. DAVID VITTER Getting exposed as a client of a notorious madam hasn’t stopped the Louisiana senator’s moralizing against gambling, abortion, and same-sex marriage.