Clinton, Paula Jones To Sup At White House Gala
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Jones, Selleck, Norman and Stone are expected to attend
this year's dinner
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WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, April 25) -- Celebrities and
journalists will mingle Saturday night at the annual White
House Correspondents' Association dinner, which also is to
feature at least one unlikely pairing -- President Bill
Clinton and his sexual-harassment accuser Paula Jones, who
will be dining in the same room.
Clinton and his wife Hillary will be among the some 2,600
guests at the Washington Hilton & Towers. Awards for
political news coverage also will be presented at the dinner.
Jones, who has appealed a federal judge's decision to dismiss
her sexual-harassment lawsuit against Clinton, was expected
to attend as a guest of Insight magazine.
Asked whether he is looking forward to eating in the same
room as Jones, Clinton replied, "You know, we practiced all
kinds of answers and most of them, I think, I'll have to give
Saturday night."
Clinton is to give a few one-liners at the event, as is the
custom.
The celebrity publication Insight magazine deflected the
suggestion that the Jones invitation might be tasteless.
"I think it's just a matter of people being, perhaps,
irritated that Ms. Jones decided to come with us," said Insight's Paul Rodriguez.
As usual, news organizations planned to invite stars to the
black tie event -- Sharon Stone, Tom Selleck and golfer Greg
Norman were to make appearances.
Dinner veterans such as Al Hunt of the Wall Street Journal
have noted a change in the event over the years with slightly
less emphasis on reporters socializing with newsmakers.
"We (journalists) think that we're terribly important and,
therefore, you invite big names. And the purpose of it now
is not to go and sit and talk to someone for an evening and
celebrate whatever you're supposed to celebrate. The purpose
now is: Who gets the most outlandish guest," Hunt told CNN.
Correspondent Bruce Morton and Reuters contributed to this report.
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