Before every State of the Union, the House chamber becomes a fascinating theater of social networking among the nation’s most influential individuals — and today’s presidential speech, while not an official SotU, was no exception.
The most gregarious lawmakers, including Reps. Loretta Sanchez (D-CA) and Jean Schmidt (R-OH), clustered in the front of the aisles to greet incoming senators and secure a plum position to shake the president’s hand (think of this as the Michele Bachmann / Joe Lieberman seat).
Rep. Carolyn McCarthy was one of the few House members who made a point to buttonhole senators during the wait for the president to arrive. In McCarthy’s case, she stood at the side of Sen. Robert Menendez (NJ), the Democratic campaign chief who could hold the key to her primary effort against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) next year.
When the president’s Cabinet members began entering the chamber, cheers seemed to break out every minute.
Freshly confirmed Labor Secretary Hilda Solis, a longtime House member, got several rounds of impassioned applause and happy shouts of “Hilda!” from her former colleagues. Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) gave her a heartfelt hug, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) delivered Solis a kiss, and even House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) embraced Solis with congratulations. (White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, also former House members, got their fair share of hearty welcomes as they entered the chamber in their new roles.)
Near the front of the room, where most senators sat, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner engaged in an intense tete-a-tete with Sen. Richard Shelby (AL), senior GOPer on the Banking Committee. Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, recovering from cancer surgery, got hearty cheers from members of both parties.
During the speech, the applause came fast and furious from both sides as well … with the exception of one House Republican whom I could not identify, who managed only two slow claps as Obama entered before sitting in stony silence.
Perhaps the most unlikely ovations came from Sens. Arlen Specter (R-PA) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), who took to their feet when President Obama hailed the passage of the stimulus law — which Grassley didn’t even vote for. Their Republican colleagues, meanwhile, stayed firmly planted in their seats.
