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Have Fancy Dress & Thirst For Spotlight, Will Crash State Dinner
By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 26, 2009
Modified Nov 26, 2009
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By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 26, 2009
Modified Nov 26, 2009
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While the Obamas' first State Dinner was hailed as a glamorous evening, one thing is looking bad: The security, because a couple from the now-filming "Real Housewives of D.C." managed, somehow, to crash the dinner and mingle with the VIPs. While the Secret Service emphasized that no one was in danger because of the "magnetometers and several other levels of screenings," a spokesman did admit there was "a Secret Service checkpoint which did not follow proper procedure to ensure these two individuals were on the invited guest list."
Gawker describes the couple as "Michaele and Tareq Salahi—aspiring reality show stars, bedeviled vintners, polo enthusiasts and lawsuit magnets" and adds, "You inspire and sadden us in almost equal measure." The Washington Post says:
The Salahis, both in their 40s, showed up about halfway through the guest arrivals. A Marine announced their names, and the couple -- he in a tux, she in a striking red and gold lehenga (traditional Indian formalwear) -- swept pass reporters and photographers, stopping several times to pose for pictures. They then walked into the White House lower hallway, where they mingled with guests on the red carpet before heading up to the cocktail reception in the East Room.
Later, they posted pictures that seem to chart their course through the night: Michaele posing with Marines outside near the White House doors, and with Katie Couric and Rep. Ed Royce (R-Calif.) inside the mansion. In the East Room, the Salahis both cozied up to D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and his wife, Michelle.
It's unclear if the Salahis met the Obamas or their guests of honor, the Prime Minister of India and his wife, but Politico reports that "former Bush homeland security adviser Fran Townsend said that the couple could be guilty of a felony if they told the Secret Service or White House that they were invited knowing full well they weren’t."
Townsend said, “This is not sort of a minor infraction, if you're these two people who got in improperly. It's a potential felony.They would have had to make a false statement to the Secret Service agent and the social secretary's person, both federal officials, that there was a mistake, that they were supposed to be on the list. That's a lie and that's a federal felony, for which they can serve jail time. It's not just a misdemeanor for trespassing. It's a potential felony.”
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Michelle Salahi
party crasher
State dinner
Tareq Salahi
washington D.C.
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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