Beer Summit Takes Place at White House, Joe Biden Goes Too
At last, the infamous Beer Summit has just taken place at the White House. NBC's Brian Williams has the story. For the record, Sergeant Crowley drank Blue Moon, Biden had Buckler, a non-alcoholic beer, Obama had a Bud Light and Professor Gates drank a Sam Adams light. They snacked on peanuts and pretzels, while their families got a tour of the White House. The press didn't get to hear what was said, but President Obama was seen laughing at one point. Clearly, Obama brought in Joe Biden as a buffer for what could be an uncomfortable meeting. Biden is great at that kind of thing. Hillary Clinton is lucky she didn't get dragged into it.
We're sure it's just a rumor that they were both given t-shirts that said "I was invited to dinner at the White House and all I got was pretzels and peanuts." Take a look:
After the meeting, Obama and Crowley commented on the summit.
"Even before we sat down for the beer, I learned that the two gentlemen spent some time together listening to one another, which is a testament to them," Obama said in a statement after the meeting. "I have always believed that what brings us together is stronger than what pulls us apart. I am confident that has happened here tonight, and I am hopeful that all of us are able to draw this positive lesson from this episode."
After the event, Crowley characterized the discussion as "two gentlemen who agreed to disagree on a particular issue. We didn't spend too much time dwelling on the past. We spent a lot of time discussing the future."
Crowley also said he and Gates had agreed to meet again – but not for a beer the next time, "maybe an Kool-Aid or an iced tea," he joked. He also said he first talked to Gates earlier in the day when their two families were taking separate tours of the White House and ran into each other, then finished the tour together.
He called the day "an effort not just to move the city of Cambridge or two individuals past this event, but the whole country beyond this and toward some meaningful discussion in the future."
Apparently the Beer Summit is to be followed by a Kool-Aid Summit and an Iced Tea Summit, both of which sound incredibly boring. We do hope they serve better appetizers next time.
