Leo Varadkar’s Clinton bluff adds awkwardness to US visit
Call it the Revenge of the Trainees. As Leo Varadkar and Joe Biden were muttering their brief speeches in the Oval Office, several young staffers chanted Animal Farm-style: “Thank you, Press! Thank you, Press!
a series of questions arose in protest, all the journalists shouted in unison, the two leaders looked confused beneath the solemn portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt, the weak president. the hottest before Uncle Joe.
Biden looked oddly listless, Taoiseach widened his eyes in disappointment, because he had hoped to get some passionate remarks about returning to his father’s homeland from the paternal president – if only to hit the mark. distract him from the bravado about being an intern when Bill Clinton was president.
Lots of family members – and they don’t have to go to jail
Leo must have wondered if he was somehow punished on a rainy day in Washington when the shamrock on the president’s lapel said more about his Irish heritage.
A roaring wood fire in the background did its best to emulate Joe’s ancestral cabin or shelter, whether in rural Louth or remote Ballina. But it is surrounded by Carrera marble, which somewhat spoils the illusion.
Outside, as he prepared to plunge into the President’s lunch, Taoiseach gave a ceremonial empty talk about the points he had made and how impressed he was by the president’s handling of so many issues. of Ireland.
It all feels a bit out of place, like the hoax of so many US politicians pretending to be Irish of the day.
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Speaker Kevin McCarthy speaks at the Friends of Ireland Luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington DC, yesterday. Photo: Niall Carson/PA
“What did you think when you made that comment about the trainees?” ask Independent Ireland, and Mr. Varadkar looked momentarily startled and confused, as if asked to apologize to Monica Lewinsky. But then he just thanked everyone and started getting in the car.
Indiscretion has become a major topic in British newspapers, but has made little significant impact in the states.
Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy couldn’t help but know it when he hosted lunch at the Capitol with the news that Varadkar had been an intern.
“This is not a foreign land for you,” says McCarthy. “You serve here as an employee.”
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A quick check on Taoiseach’s expression reveals a dispassionate mask. Nor is there any sign of McCarthy having a slight bounce. No, it’s a very Leo tendency, which often fails.
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Niall Horan performs at the shamrock presentation and reception in the East Room of the White House. Photo: Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters
However, Leo’s accidental insult to Bill and Hillary Clinton – both in Ireland next month – was discreet talk at the embassy reception to mark St. Patrick’s Day the night before. .
People murmured in clusters, with unionists establishing their own northeast corner in the garden of the palatial mansion.
It led to a long day yesterday, ending with an evening entertainment at the White House, where Niall Horan was present.
The President said last night he was cheering for Ireland in today’s Grand Slam at Aviva Stadium.
“My distant Irish cousins are here today, including the famous Irish rugby player Rob Kearney,” he said at a gala dinner in the East Room of the White House. He made him stand for recognition.
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Rob Kearney, Joe Biden’s fifth cousin
The president added: “And we know – this is not to offend anyone else in the room – who we are cheering for the Grand Slam.” The crowd cheered and applauded.
The earlier Oval Office chaos was followed by the Speaker’s lunch, where there was another loud noise as a photographer’s chair collapsed beneath him. Joe glanced from his podium with cobra eyes: “Stay with us. We need you, man.
Finally, he spoke, referring to his relatives Blewitt and Finnegan in Mayo and Louth, respectively, and reminiscing about how former Taoiseach Enda Kenny pleaded with President Barack Obama, when Joe was a child. as Vice President, let him “go home”.
He said he was guaranteed there would be hundreds of thousands of welcomes, and then he asked Taoism what the Irish were to do it. Once again the Taoiseach was thrown out, and there was no sign of the president being naughty – he had just heard Taoiseach speak Irish in the Oval Office an hour and a half earlier.
In fact, Mr. Varadkar practiced teanga, speaking Irish one day a week at home.
Taoiseach has to be reminded, as if he were an intern again, but then offers the sought-after “céad mile fáilte”.
The entire audience seemed confused as the president began to reminisce at length and rambling about his grandfather’s kitchen table
Joe nodded and said he was looking forward to “a great experience” in Ireland next month and seeing “a lot of family – and they don’t have to go to jail”.
Northern Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris looked a bit confused by Biden’s signature spat, but wasn’t as flustered as the rest of the audience as the president began rambling and rambling reminiscences of his grandfather’s kitchen table. .
It doesn’t seem to help, unless it’s the deepest sensibilities that the DUP needs to sit down to a meal with groups of brothers and sisters to break bread.
“It’s all about hope,” the president said.
Thankfully, Hope is not a big-eyed intern, just a quality belonging to the younger generation who no longer take it seriously.
https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/festivals/st-patricks-day/leo-varadkars-clinton-gaffe-adds-awkwardness-to-the-shamroguery-for-the-us-visit-42392988.html Leo Varadkar’s Clinton bluff adds awkwardness to US visit