A Beer At the White House
President Barack Obama, Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates, Cambridge Police Department Sergeant James Crowley, and Vice President Joe Biden share a beer over a frank discussion about Gates’ arrest in Cambridge.
A transcript:
Obama: “First, I want to thank you, Henry, and Sgt. Crowley, for joining me here at the White House today. I realize we can sometimes disagree on our perspectives, but that doesn’t mean we have to be disagreeable. So what do you say, guys? No harm, no foul?”
Gates:
Crowley:
Obama: [Clears throat] “Come on, guys. We’ve got so many important issues to think about in our country instead of dwelling on this, this little misunderstanding.” [Obama stares morosely into the bottom of his beer glass.] “Like healthcare,” Obama grumbles.
Crowley: [Sigh] “What happened is regrettable. I just hope Dr. Gates knows that this misunderstanding happened in the context of the police trying to do their job.”
Gates: “Yes, Sergeant. Context is very important! There I agree with you! So when a black man in America is confronted by police, he does look at that experience in a different context than his white counterparts.”
Obama: [Nodding] “Okay. This is a start. We’ve got some dialogue going.”
From a distance, President Obama sees Vice President Joe Biden approaching the picnic table.
Obama: “Oh, God,” the president mumbles.
Biden: “Gentlemen! Sorry I’m late. But I got here as soon as I could.”
Obama: “Joe, aren’t you supposed to be in one of your meetings? You know, the kind of meetings that are totally closed to the public and take all day. The kind of meetings where you are completely sequestered from any member of the press?” The president glares past Biden at White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, who shrugs his shoulders.
Biden: “Good evening, officer.” Biden turns to Gates. “Hey, Bro. What up, dawg?” The vice president holds his fist out to Gates for a bump. Gates stares blankly at the vice president, then averts his eyes.
Obama: “Now Joe, we were making progress, BEFORE YOU GOT HERE. Understand? These two men were just starting to…”
Biden: “Sure, sure. I understand. I always say there’s nothing that can’t be settled over a good American beer and a malt liquor.”
Gates: “What the hell is that supposed to mean? That or a bottle of Thunderbird, right honky?”
Crowley:
Obama:
Biden: “You should have seen the first time I shared a beer with Barack. He took one sip and started coughing and wheezing like an old lady.” Biden chuckles. “I’ll never forget your face when you were campaigning at that diner in Scranton and you said, ‘Couldn’t I just have a glass of chardonnay and a spinach quiche instead?’”
Obama: “Now Joe, you know I’ve always enjoyed Bud Lite – the number one selling beer among regular Americans – like me.”
Biden: [Chuckles] “Sure, sure. So what have you been talking about? Has Sgt. Crowley finally conceded that he and his fellow officers acted stupidly?”
Crowley: “What??”
Obama: “Joe, you are NOT helping! These two men were just expressing their mutual regrets, weren’t you?”
Crowley: “He’s right. I regret that Dr. Gates didn’t see that we were just trying to do our jobs to protect his property.”
Gates: [Clenching his teeth] “And I regret that a black man can’t be caught in his own damned house in a well-to-do white neighborhood without having to show some identification, and maybe get arrested for CONTEMPT OF COP!”
Gates and Crowley glare at each other across the table.
Biden happily drains his glass of root beer. “So it’s all settled! You know Mr. President, we really need to do this kind of thing more often. There’s no telling how it would improve race relations.”
Obama: [Shaking his head] Yeah, no telling.
Biden: “If I can do anything else to help, Mr. President, let me know.”
Biden gets up and walks away from the table, followed closely by Crowley. Gates stands up, wads up his napkin and throws it onto the table in disgust before he walks away.
End of transcript.
A transcript:
Obama: “First, I want to thank you, Henry, and Sgt. Crowley, for joining me here at the White House today. I realize we can sometimes disagree on our perspectives, but that doesn’t mean we have to be disagreeable. So what do you say, guys? No harm, no foul?”
Gates:
Crowley:
Obama: [Clears throat] “Come on, guys. We’ve got so many important issues to think about in our country instead of dwelling on this, this little misunderstanding.” [Obama stares morosely into the bottom of his beer glass.] “Like healthcare,” Obama grumbles.
Crowley: [Sigh] “What happened is regrettable. I just hope Dr. Gates knows that this misunderstanding happened in the context of the police trying to do their job.”
Gates: “Yes, Sergeant. Context is very important! There I agree with you! So when a black man in America is confronted by police, he does look at that experience in a different context than his white counterparts.”
Obama: [Nodding] “Okay. This is a start. We’ve got some dialogue going.”
From a distance, President Obama sees Vice President Joe Biden approaching the picnic table.
Obama: “Oh, God,” the president mumbles.
Biden: “Gentlemen! Sorry I’m late. But I got here as soon as I could.”
Obama: “Joe, aren’t you supposed to be in one of your meetings? You know, the kind of meetings that are totally closed to the public and take all day. The kind of meetings where you are completely sequestered from any member of the press?” The president glares past Biden at White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, who shrugs his shoulders.
Biden: “Good evening, officer.” Biden turns to Gates. “Hey, Bro. What up, dawg?” The vice president holds his fist out to Gates for a bump. Gates stares blankly at the vice president, then averts his eyes.
Obama: “Now Joe, we were making progress, BEFORE YOU GOT HERE. Understand? These two men were just starting to…”
Biden: “Sure, sure. I understand. I always say there’s nothing that can’t be settled over a good American beer and a malt liquor.”
Gates: “What the hell is that supposed to mean? That or a bottle of Thunderbird, right honky?”
Crowley:
Obama:
Biden: “You should have seen the first time I shared a beer with Barack. He took one sip and started coughing and wheezing like an old lady.” Biden chuckles. “I’ll never forget your face when you were campaigning at that diner in Scranton and you said, ‘Couldn’t I just have a glass of chardonnay and a spinach quiche instead?’”
Obama: “Now Joe, you know I’ve always enjoyed Bud Lite – the number one selling beer among regular Americans – like me.”
Biden: [Chuckles] “Sure, sure. So what have you been talking about? Has Sgt. Crowley finally conceded that he and his fellow officers acted stupidly?”
Crowley: “What??”
Obama: “Joe, you are NOT helping! These two men were just expressing their mutual regrets, weren’t you?”
Crowley: “He’s right. I regret that Dr. Gates didn’t see that we were just trying to do our jobs to protect his property.”
Gates: [Clenching his teeth] “And I regret that a black man can’t be caught in his own damned house in a well-to-do white neighborhood without having to show some identification, and maybe get arrested for CONTEMPT OF COP!”
Gates and Crowley glare at each other across the table.
Biden happily drains his glass of root beer. “So it’s all settled! You know Mr. President, we really need to do this kind of thing more often. There’s no telling how it would improve race relations.”
Obama: [Shaking his head] Yeah, no telling.
Biden: “If I can do anything else to help, Mr. President, let me know.”
Biden gets up and walks away from the table, followed closely by Crowley. Gates stands up, wads up his napkin and throws it onto the table in disgust before he walks away.
End of transcript.