Introduction

Hand-painted Australia Coat of Arms from a dinner menu honoring the Honourable Prime Minister of Australia and Mrs. Howard, 05/16/2006

Presidents have long used social events to foster diplomatic ties and to exhibit American culture. Many White House offices and staffers participate in the planning of these grand events. The White House Calligraphy Office is not only responsible for written invitations and envelopes, but it also assists the Social Office in ensuring that every detail of a White House event is refined and beautiful.

Dinner for King Abdullah II and Queen Rania of Jordan & Luncheon for King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain

“Queen Rania of Jordan came to the White House as did King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain. I needed to master the finer points of protocol that dictated whether I should address a sovereign as Your Highness or Your Majesty.

Queen Elizabeth of England and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia are both ‘Your Majesty,’ but the legion of crown princes and princesses around the world are called ‘Your Highness,’ or sometimes, ‘Your Royal Highness.’

It’s rather amusing that, more than 225 years after the United States declared its independence from the monarchy of Great Britain, American presidents and their spouses pour over protocol briefing books to ensure that they do not make a misstep in addressing foreign royalty,” p.181

Camp David

Dinner for the President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, 03/31/2007

Dinner for the Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, 08/03/2008

Dinner in Honor of Vladimir Putin

Dinner in honor of Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, and Mrs. Putin, 11/14/2001

Dinner in Honor of the Governors of the States and Territories

“[W]e helicoptered back to the White House to prepare for the National Governors Association meeting, which George and I had attended for six years while Bill Clinton was in office. Now it was our turn to play host.” p. 179

Nation's Governors Association

A table is set for the 2008 State Dinner for the Nation's Governors Association hosted by President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush.
Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

Mexico State Dinner

Mexico State Dinner, 09/05/2001

“As September 2001 opened, I was…overseeing plans for our first state dinner, in honor of Mexico’s president, Vicente Fox. State dinner guests are selected by the president, State Department, and the National Security Council. [...]. The next day, Marta Fox and I flew to Chicago to tour an exhibition surveying two hundred years of Latino art in the United States at the city’s Terra Museum of American Art.

Prime Minister Tony Blair

Luncheon for Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom, 05/17/2007

Dinner for Prime Minister Tony Blair and Mrs. Blair of the United Kingdom, 04/06/2002

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip

“After well over one thousand years of kings in England, there is a rare perfection to royal events that is truly breathtaking... The night of the royal state dinner for George and me at Buckingham Palace, I donned a Carolina Herrera burgundy dress... The next evening we reciprocated the hospitality of the Queen and Prince Philip with a dinner at the American ambassador’s residence, Winfield House…” p. 296

National Park Foundation

Luncheon for the National Park Foundation, 02/13/2004

Holiday Dinner

Holiday Dinner, 12/03/2004

Holiday Dinner, 12/14/2004

Dinner for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India

“[O]n July 18, 2005, George and I hosted an official dinner at the White House for the Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, and his wife, Gursharan Kaur. The State Dining Room was transformed into an Indian garden, with overflowing vases of orange and red flowers, saffron-hued silk table cloths, and miniature trumpeting elephants fashioned from hot pink and green mums and roses. [...]. I invited Dr. [Srini] Malini. When she came through the long receiving line wearing a stunning orange sari, George announced to the prime minister of India that she was the doctor who’d told us we were having twins, that she was the first doctor to see our babies.” p. 107-108

The table setting for President George W. Bush is seen prior to the start of the Official Dinner, July 18, 2005 at the White House, in honor of the visit by India's Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and his wife, Mrs. Gursharan Kaur.
Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

Prince Charles of Wales and Duchess Camilla of Cornwall

Luncheon for Prince Charles of Wales and Duchess Camilla of Cornwall, 11/02/2005

Dinner for Prince Charles of Wales and Duchess Camilla of Cornwall, 11/02/2005

Desserts elegantly arranged on silver platters await presentation at the Social Dinner for His Royal Highness Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales, and the Duchess of Cornwall.
Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

Luncheon in Honor of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia

“In any given year, it is possible to count the nationally elected female leaders around the world using little more than the fingers of two hands. Some of the most famous female leaders are women who served decades ago, such as Indira Gandhi, Golda Meir, and Margaret Thatcher. In January of 2006, on Martin Luther King Day, I represented the United States at the swearing in of Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first woman ever elected to lead an African nation [...].

It was a remarkable moment of promise to see a strong woman inaugurated as the president of an African nation, a woman so determined to lead her country out of the ruin of decades of war and conflict.” p. 360-361

Dinner in Honor of Sandra Day O’Connor

Dinner for Sandra Day O’Connor, 04/12/2006

In Honor of Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan

“Two months later we were back on the South Lawn to welcome Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan. Koizumi, who had become our good friend, would be staying for two days, and that night we planned an official dinner in his honor, with flower arrangements reminiscent of a Japanese garden… More than the black-tie evening, we knew Koizumi was looking forward to the following morning, when we took off from Andrews Air Force Base for Memphis, Tennessee. He is a huge fan of Elvis, so we had planned a trip to the King’s home, Graceland. [...]. After the tour, we stopped for lunch at the famed Memphis barbecue restaurant the Rendezvous, where Koizumi donned big gold sunglasses, hopped up on the stage, and asked a three-piece band to play the Elvis hit ‘I Want You, I Need You, I Love You,’ while his face beamed and he sang along.” p. 373

In Honor of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh

Dinner in honor of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and His Royal Highness Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh, 05/07/2007

Trays of sweet rose blossom desserts are prepared for guests during the State Dinner in honor of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain and His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

In Honor of President Nicolas Sarkozy of France

Dinner in honor of President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, 11/06/2007

“George and I liked Nicolas Sarkozy very much. [...]. It was no accident that he timed his visit to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the birth of the Marquis de Lafayette, the young Frenchman who had become one of George Washington’s closest aides during the Revolutionary War and who is buried in France beneath soil that he himself carried home from the ground around Bunker Hill.”

Pastry Chef Bill Yosses serves a "Lafayette" cake dessert to guests during the Social Dinner in honor of French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

In Honor of Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany

“As I left Europe, I thought of the many friendships we had made with foreign leaders. I would miss German chancellor Angela Merkel and her husband, Joachim Sauer, whose quick minds and lively conversation warmed our visits. We had stayed with them in the German version of Camp David, an old manor house located in the former East Germany that had been fully restored. In return, we had invited them to visit our ranch, where we hiked and talked.” p. 415

Senior Staff Holiday Dinner

“December brought another round of Christmas parties. Our pastry team commandeered the ground-floor China and Vermeil rooms to frost the thousands of Barney and Miss Beazley cookies they baked each season.” p. 402

Barney and Miss Beazley cookies highlight the 2007 Senior Staff Dinner in the Old Family Dining Room at the White House. Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

Gingerbread cookies are on display for a Holiday Reception. Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

Dinner Honoring United States Olympians

Dinner honoring United States Olympians, 07/21/2008

Set-up for Social Dinner in Honor of United States Past and Present Olympians July 21, 2008, in the East Room of the White House.
Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

Africa Education Initiative

“In Ghana, I launched the Africa Education Initiative, which linked U.S. universities with African nations including Ghana, Senegal, Zambia, Tanzania, South Africa, and Ethiopia. As part of the United States’ work in international development, we had made a special commitment to improving education in Africa, where a staggering one-third of young children do not attend school.” p. 362

Dinner in Honor of the President of Ghana

President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush pose in the State Dining Room prior to the State Dinner with President John Agyekum Kufuor of Ghana and Mrs. Theresa Kufuor. Courtesy George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

Laura Bush Foundation Luncheon

“In 2001 I had started, with the help of some very good friends, the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries. Money was raised to provide small grants for school libraries around our country so that they could purchase books and research materials; many times these grants would double or triple a library’s annual book budget.” p. 345

Farewell Luncheon

Farewell Luncheon, 01/16/2009