Pool Reports of March 16, 2024

In-town pool report #1: Gathering

I'm your in-town pooler this evening for the president's short trip across town to the Gridiron Dinner, which he's attending (and delivering remarks) for the first time as POTUS.

Pool is gathering now.

In-town pool report #2: Departing WH for Gridiron Dinner

The motorcade left the White House at 7:0en route to the Gridiron Dinner at the Grand Hyatt.

As the pool was getting into the press vans, newly minted WHCA member Morgan Stephens of Bloomberg narrowly escaped getting hit by a hawk swooping down from the sky. Who says nothing exciting ever happens on these pool shifts?

From the White House:

Traveling with the President via motorcade en route to the Grand Hyatt Washington:

Bruce Reed, Assistant to the President & Deputy Chief of Staff
Steve Ricchetti, Assistant to the President & Counselor to the President
Annie Tomasini, Assistant to the President & Deputy Chief of Staff
Karine Jean-Pierre, Assistant to the President & Press Secretary
Jon Finer, Assistant to the President & Principal Deputy National Security Advisor
Ryan Montoya, Assistant to the President & Director of Scheduling & Advance
Richard Ruffner, Assistant to the President & Director of Oval Office Operations
Dilpreet Sidhu, Special Assistant to the President & NSC Deputy Chief of Staff

In-town pool report #3: Arrival at Grand Hyatt Washington

Apologies for the typo in the last pool report. The motorcade left the White House at 7:07 pm and arrived at the Grand Hyatt Washington at 7:10 pm.

Sizable crowds gathered along the streets on the short drive, with some folks waving to the motorcade.

In-town pool report #4: Gridiron Dinner running behind schedule

The Gridiron Dinner program is running behind schedule, per WH staff. Will send another pool report when POTUS begins his remarks.

In-town pool report #5: POTUS speaking now at Gridiron Dinner

Pool entered ballroom at 10:35 pm, shortly after POTUS began his remarks.

"One candidate's too old and mentally unfit to be president," he said early on of the presidential race. "The other guy's me."

More quotes to come in a separate report. For now, this is from the WH:

The President is delivering remarks at the Gridiron Dinner.

Sitting with the President at his table:
Kaja Kallas, Prime Minister of Estonia
Leo Varadkar, Taoiseach of Ireland
Vice President Kamala Harris
Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff
Merrick Garland, Attorney General of the United States
Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Department of Energy
Acting Secretary Julie Su, Department of Labor
Secretary Xavier Becerra, Department of Health and Human Services
Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Department of Homeland Security
Jeff Zients, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff
Administrator Michael Regan, Environmental Protection Agency
Director Shalanda Young, Office of Management and Budget
Katherine Tai, United States Trade Representative
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, United States Ambassador to the United Nations
Administrator Isabel Guzman, Small Business Administration
Arati Prabhakar, Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy
Bill Burns, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
Karine Jean-Pierre, Assistant to the President and Press Secretary
Oksana Markarova, Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States
Christine Wormuth, Secretary of the Army
General Randy George, Chief of Staff of the Army
Jeff Bezos, Amazon Executive Chairman

In-town pool report #6: Back at WH, POTUS quotes and lid

POTUS began his remarks at 10:32 pm and the pool entered the ballroom a few minutes later. The motorcade left the Grand Hyatt at 11:13 pm and arrived back at the White House at 11:16 pm.

Some quotes from POTUS remarks, which ended at 10:41 pm:

"The Republicans would rather fail at impeachment than succeed at anything else."

Of Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, who was sitting at the head table with Biden on the eve of St. Patrick's Day: "He took one look at Congress and he asked for another Guinness."

"Over the coming months, Kamala and I are going to be making the case for how Americans are better off than four years ago. How we got through the pandemic, turned around the economy, reestablished American leadership in the world — all without encouraging the American people to inject bleach. Or without destroying the economy, embarrassing us around the world or itching for insurrection. Look, I wish these were jokes, but they're not. As I said in my State of the Union address, we live in an unprecedented moment of democracy — an unprecedented moment in history. Democracy and freedom are literally under attack. Putin's on the march in Europe. My predecessor bows down to him and says, 'Do whatever the hell you want.' An American president actually said that. Joining us tonight is the prime minister of Estonia and the Ukrainian ambassador to the United States. ... We will not bow down, they will not bow down and I will not bow down."

"Freedom is under assault. The freedom to vote, the freedom to choose and so much more. The lies about the 2020 election, the plot to overturn it, to embrace the Jan. 6 insurrection pose the greatest threat to our democracy since the American Civil War. In 2020, they failed, but ... the threat remains. A poison coursing through the veins of our democracy. Disinformation everywhere. There's a toxic cycle of anger and conspiracy."

"Every single one of us has a role to play in making sure American democracy endures. This year, you, the free press, have a bigger role than ever. Let me state the obvious: You are not the enemy of the people. You are a pillar of any free society."

WH called a lid at 11:21 pm. Good night, folks.