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©Associated Press
© St. Petersburg Times, published September 6, 2001
WASHINGTON -- First lady Laura Bush called it a "sentimental first," an intimate and elegant dinner for friends. But from the hot pink bodice on her red lace gown to President Bush's cowboy boots, from the tequila sauce on the dessert to the fireworks on the back lawn, most elements of the Bushes' premier state dinner shouted, "Fiesta!"
Strolling violinists and 12-foot trees festooned with white impatiens framed the Grand Foyer as the Bushes opened the White House on Wednesday to Mexican President Vicente Fox, his new bride, Martha Sahagun de Fox, and just 130 guests.
Some, like tenor Placido Domingo, won the coveted invitation for their Hispanic heritage, others for their political connections to Bush. His home state of Texas exported a sizable crew, led by Gov. Rick Perry. Brother Jeb Bush, the governor of Florida, also made the cut.
Their parents, Barbara and former President George Bush, did not.
"We wanted this to be ours," said the current first lady.
It was a Texas kind of night, and Bush was not the only one to pair his tuxedo with cowboy boots, but at least his were a stately black. Texas artist Luis Jimenez kicked through the East Room receiving line in bright red boots.
Clint Eastwood, the lone Hollywood star, sounded keen on this White House's distaste for celebrity glamor. "I'm not from Hollywood myself," the actor said as he arrived. Washington Redskins cornerback Darrell Green and Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, arrived a day after they announced their retirements.
Mrs. Bush said she had been determined to keep the crowd small and the receiving line from "going on forever" so that the Foxes could say more than a quick hello to the people they met. She claimed Eastwood and Green for her dinner table. The president was seated with Domingo.
Senate Republican leader Trent Lott elbowed into the spotlight as reporters surrounded Eastwood, who did a two-year stint as mayor of Carmel, Calif. "We're looking for a candidate for governor out there in California," Lott said as Eastwood walked away in search of his dinner place card. "Come back, come back . . . !"
Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, the very last to arrive, was assigned a back table with Vice President Dick Cheney, Bush's designated arm-twister on Capitol Hill. Daschle and House Democratic Leader Dick Gephardt were about the only Democrats included. The Bushes' bipartisan gesture extended to the cola wars. Executives from both the Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo were invited.
Making her debut as the nation's hostess, Mrs. Bush knew there were standards to meet. "People expect a beautiful and elegant formal dinner at the White House," she said. The only hand-me-down she used from the Clintons was the gold-rimmed Millennium china that Hillary Clinton had ordered for the White House.
But throughout the mansion, small hints of playfulness contrasted with sober dignity, starting with Mrs. Bush's gown of "lollypop red" by designer Arnold Scaasi. A hot pink underlayer peeked from beneath sequined red lace for an overall effect that Mrs. Bush delighted in as "very festive." Huge stones sparkled at her throat, but three aides to the first lady could not say whether they were diamonds or paste, only that they were borrowed from Scaasi's archive collection.
Sahagun wore a more understated aubergine sheath atop toe-crushing stilettos that, despite their 4-inch heels, left her barely clearing the shoulder of her husband's 6-foot-5 frame.
In the State Dining Room, each floral arrangement of white lilies, roses and hydrangea was filled with 175 limes, evocative of a frothy margarita.
Under the portrait of Abraham Lincoln, guests had to navigate a confounding place setting of three gold forks, three gold knives and an oversized spoon. Bush, who gave up drinking at age 40, made his toast with a glass of 7-Up.
On orders from the president to serve red meat and spicy stuff, chef Walter Scheib picked low-fat bison, encrusted it with pumpkin seeds and served it alongside potatoes whipped with poblano chilies. Pastry chef Roland Mesnier offered guests a drizzle of red chili pepper sauce or tequila sabayon with their mango and coconut ice cream.
The classy after-dinner performance of opera singer Dawn Upshaw was juxtaposed with fireworks, which guests crowded onto the balcony to watch.
"This is a sentimental first dinner for us," Mrs. Bush told reporters in the hours beforehand, as aproned workers scurried about their finishing touches.
"It's just like a party at your own house where, at the last minute, you're washing the windows, wiping the fingerprints off the doors, setting the table."
Guest list for the White House state dinner with President Bush and Laura Bush:
Mexican President Vicente Fox and first lady Martha Sahagun de Fox
Foreign Affairs Secretary Jorge Castaneda
Interior Secretary Santiago Creel
Luis Felipe Bravo Mena, president, National Action Party
Amalia Garcia, president, National Democratic Revolution Party
Dulce Maria Sauri, president, Institutional Revolutionary Party
Beatriz Paredes, president, Chamber of Deputies
Fernandez-Cevallos, president, Chamber of Senators
Felipe Calderon, president, committee of political coordination, Chamber of Deputies
Ricardo Salinas, president, TV Azteca
Lorenzo Zambrano, director-general, CEMEX
Emilio Azcarraga, president, Televisa
Carlos Slim, president, Carso Group
Moises Saba, businessman, Mexican textiles
Enrique Krauze, political analyst
Sergio Aguayo, political analyst
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham and Jane Abraham
Tobin Armstrong and Anne Armstrong
Attorney General John Ashcroft and Janet Ashcroft
Sen. Joseph R. Biden, D-Del., and Jill Biden
Rep. Henry Bonilla, R-Texas, and Deborah Knapp Bonilla
Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Columba Bush
Andrew Card, White House chief of staff, and the Rev. Kathleene Card
Vice President Dick Cheney and Lynne Cheney
Douglas N. Daft, chairman and chief executive, Coca-Cola Co., and Delphine Daft
Sen. Tom Daschle, D-S.D., and Linda Hall Daschle
Jeffrey Davidow, U.S. ambassador to Mexico, and Joan Davidow
Sen. Pete V. Domenici, R-N.M., and Nancy Domenici
Placido Domingo, artistic director, Washington and Los Angeles operas, and Marta Domingo
Clint Eastwood, actor, and Dina Ruiz Eastwood
Roger A. Enrico, vice chairman, PepsiCo, and Rosemary Enrico
Donald Burnham Ensenat, U.S. chief of protocol, and Taylor Ensenat
Emilio Estefan Jr., producer and chairman, Estefan Enterprises, and his niece Lili Estefan
Commerce Secretary Donald Evans and Susan Evans
Tony Garza, commissioner, Texas Railroad Commission, and DeAnna Ortiz
House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, D-Mo., and Jane Gephardt
Alberto R. Gonzales, counsel to the president, and Rebecca Gonzales
Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, and Wendy Lee Gramm
Darrell Green, Washington Redskins cornerback, and Jewell Green
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and Andrea Mitchell, NBC News
Stephen Hadley, deputy national security adviser, and Ann Hadley
House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and Jean Hastert
Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., and Dorothy Helms
George Herrera, president, United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Linda Allen Herrera, director of communications, Department of Health and Human Services
Arizona Gov. Jane Dee Hull and Terrance Hull
Brit Hume, Fox News, and Kim Schiller Hume, Fox News
Ray L. Hunt, chairman, Hunt Consolidated Inc., and his son Hunter L. Hunt
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, and Ray Hutchison
Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Ill., and Judith Wolverton
Luis A. Jimenez, artist, and Susan Jimenez
Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., and Tricia Lott
Roger Mahony, archbishop of Los Angeles, and Thomas A. Chabolla, secretariat director for pastoral and community services, Archdiocese of Los Angeles
John F. Maisto, National Security Council, and Maria Maisto
Abel Maldonado, California assemblyman, and Laura Maldonado
D.R. "Dee" Margo, chief executive, John D. Williams Co., and Adair Margo
Housing Secretary Mel Martinez and Kitty Martinez
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Cindy McCain
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta and Deni Mineta
Anthony Munoz, former Cincinnati Bengals player, and Dianne Munoz
Eduardo Najera, Dallas Mavericks, and Jennifer Najera
Sylvia Orozco, executive director, Mexic-Arte Museum, and her mother Aurora Orozco
Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Anita Perry
Secretary of State Colin Powell and Alma Powell
Chief Justice William Rehnquist and his daughter Janet Rehnquist
Condoleezza Rice, national security adviser, and the Rev. Matt Hennessee
Ricardo Romo, president, University of Texas at San Antonio, and Harriett Romo
Pedro Sevcec, anchor, Telemundo, and Raquelin Gonzalez
Gen. Henry H. Shelton, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Carolyn Shelton
Former Sen. Alan Simpson, R-Wyo., and Ann Simpson
Warren W. Tichenor and Rhonda S. Tichenor
Sara Martinez Tucker, president, Hispanic Scholarship Fund, and Greg A. Tucker
Dawn Upshaw, soprano, and Michael Nott
Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman and Kevin Herglotz
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick