Two years ago, Hania and I were in Washington the weekend of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, staying in a hotel a few blocks from the Hilton. The night of the dinner we took a stroll and I was surprised by two things.
The first was what seemed then to be excessively heavy security. Connecticut Avenue was closed to traffic north of Dupont Circle, and police cars were parked in the street around the hotel, blocking not only cars but pedestrians.
The other surprising thing was the number of people walking around in formal dress. Journalists not invited to the dinner gathered for parties (Politico was having one on the ground floor of our hotel) and dinners in neighborhood restaurants. Peering through windows, I saw tables filled with women in sleeveless gowns and men in black tie. It looked like Hollywood the night of the Academy Awards except that, instead of after-parties, these were during-parties.
