Washington wasn’t just the scene of the Obama administration’s first state dinner Tuesday night, it was also a moment of epic convergence that only reality TV could produce. Mix one part glitz (Indian saris on the Beltway elite), with one part absurd (Secret Service event security), a twist of the ubiquitous (Facebook) and a HUGE dash of chutzpah (Mr. and Mrs. Tareq and Michaele Salahi) and you have the most audacious instance of party-crashing. Ever.
It takes a certain kind of person to wake up one day and decide to illegally enter the most high-profile social event in the world; with every major American media outlet in attendance, the Salahis knew the stakes were high. And yet there they were, arm-in-arm with Vice-President Joe Biden, smiling broadly with Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel, and chatting with Katie Couric. Why the risk? It would appear Michaele Salahi is in talks to star in the upcoming reality TV bonanza The Real Housewives of D.C. In other words, the biggest security breach since the beginning of the Obama administration was a casting stunt.
What is with these potential reality “stars”??? It seems that some people are desperate enough to do increasingly outrageous acts: conceive eight kids; foist a boy-in-the-balloon hoax on North American cable outlets; and now embarrass the U.S. President and his administration while the world watches. And who blew the whistle on them? Why Michaele Salahi herself, via Facebook updates from the event.
Are the Salahis stupid or brilliant? Perhaps unethical, but certainly inappropriate. Apparently, they own a winery and are a fixture on the Polo circuit, have declared bankruptcy and been involved in more than 16 lawsuits. Regardless, they are now getting their 15 minutes of fame. It remains to be seen if they also get considerably more time in a Federal penitentiary.
What’s certain is that Tareq and Michaele Salahi have received an inordinate amount of publicity at the huge expense of the White House. Security threat or not, the Salahis’ calculated actions hijacked a prestigious event intended to honour the world’s largest democracy: India. It’s doubtful even reality TV producers could ever have imagined the repercussions of their asinine show’s potential cast; reality television has now trumped foreign affairs and international diplomacy. Will the world ever be the same?
Great post Kathleen! And I see that you have a few other new ones. There is almost endless amounts of things that happen in the US that make you ask "What's Up with That?" I guess Canadian stories have a little less shock value.
ReplyDeleteI would guess that the White House stunt was probably too successful, and might be too hot a topic for the reality show to want to pick up on... but you never know.