After a late Saturday night of speeches, after-parties, and high-wattage receptions, CNN gave Washington’s power crowd a gentler landing on Sunday, hosting its annual White House Correspondents’ Weekend brunch at the British Ambassador’s residence.
Mark Thompson, CNN’s chief executive, greeted guests alongside British Ambassador Peter Mandelson and Mandelson’s husband, Reinaldo Avila da Silva, welcoming a who’s-who of politics, media, and diplomacy into the lush, manicured gardens of the Kalorama residence.
With temperatures in the 70s, bright blue skies overhead, and the scent of spring flowers in the air, the brunch felt like an oasis — a breezy, sun-dappled contrast to the packed ballrooms and velvet-roped chaos of Saturday night’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner and its slew of after-parties.
Guests sipped frozen cocktails from a slushy bar, grazed on mini CNN-branded tea sandwiches and English sausage rolls, and relaxed to the easy beats of DJ Jimmy. Mandelson’s Labrador, Jock, worked the crowd as expertly as any host, charming guests into games of fetch across the sprawling lawn.
The crowd: Top anchors and correspondents from CNN mixed easily with lawmakers, ambassadors, tech execs, and boldfaced names from across town — the sort of low-key, high-powered mingling that defines WHCD Sunday.
The mood: Relaxed but still electric — with everyone squeezing out the final moments of the WHCD weekend before Washington snapped back to reality on Monday morning.
Spotted: Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Reps. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.), Gabe Amo (D-R.I.), and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.); Canadian Ambassador Kirsten Hillman, Swiss Ambassador Ralf Heckner, Irish Ambassador Geraldine Byrne Nason, and EU Ambassador Jovita Neliupšienė.
CNN’s own stars — Jake Tapper, Kaitlan Collins, Abby Phillip, Wolf Blitzer, Dana Bash, Pamela Brown, Sara Sidner, David Leavy, and Sam Feist — made the rounds alongside Bobby Flay, Andrea Mitchell, Kara Swisher, David Urban, Bob Costa, Eugene Daniels, Jacqui Heinrich, Josh Dawsey, Leigh Ann Caldwell, Scott Jennings, Weijia Jiang, and Luther Lowe.
Also spotted: Tom Nides, Virginia Moseley, Matt Friend, Shayne Coplan, Joel Kaplan, David Ginsberg, John Rizzo, David Rhodes, Senay Bulbul, Daniel Koh, Spencer Garrett, Reema Dodin, Elizabeth Falcone, Caitlyn Stephenson, Niamh King, Olivia Igbokwe, Michael Moroney, Josh Blumenfeld, Keenan Austin Reed, Michael Reed, Ryan Williams, and John McCarthy.
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