Henry Kissinger’s 90th birthday party on Monday night at New York’s most glamorous dining room in Manhattan’s St. Regis Hotel drew an astonishing lineup of luminaries, including former secretaries of state Hillary Clinton and Condoleezza Rice, former French president Valéry Giscard D’Estaing, former chief of staff James Baker, former secretary of state Colin Powell, Gen. David Petraeus, and former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Many of them, such as a visiting French dignitary fresh off a plane from Paris at the age of 103, proved that 90 is the new 30. Former president Bill Clinton, former secretary of state George Shultz, and current Secretary of State John Kerry all came to the podium to toast what Kerry called America’s “indispensable statesman,” as did as Kissinger’s two children, David and Elizabeth.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/06/04/john-mccain-s-surprising-toast-at-kissinger-s-90th-birthday-party.html
“Kerry,” mouthed the photographer, as a line of security guards formed a pathway under the smaller entryway. Teresa Heinz Kerry, in a white blazer, got out of a black sedan, and her husband, Secretary of State John Kerry, came around from the other side. The two walked in together with a gaggle of security and miscellaneous entourage. Just a little earlier, Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, who once vied for the secretary-of-State gig in her own right, had arrived. Nancy Kissinger had sent the word out through her girlfriends over the weekend, “If you have jewelry, this is the night to get it out of the bank.” And they did. The Alfalfa Club dinner crowd in tiaras was the order of the night.
Hillary Clinton (third from right) arrives with Oscar de la Renta (third from left) at the St. Regis hotel in New York City on June 3. (Nina Strochlic)
Inside, guests reported, a mariachi band played, and Kissinger was regaled with a slew of speeches. Kerry called him an “indispensable statesman,” and David and Elizabeth Kissinger separately paid tribute to their dad in front of an audience that included Gen. David Petraeus, former secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Fox News president Roger Ailes, and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
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So, who regaled Kissinger with the best speech? “Bill Clinton, as always,” former ambassador William vanden Heuveland said. The former president was the grand finale, apparently assuring the crowd, “I’m the last speaker, so you can all kind of relax.”
The Board Kerry met with on the same day:
The Foreign Affairs Policy Board was launched in December 2011 to provide the Secretary of State, the Deputy Secretaries of State, and the Director of Policy Planning with independent, informed advice and opinion concerning matters of U.S. foreign policy. The Board serves in a solely advisory capacity, with an agenda shaped by the questions and concerns of the Secretary. Its discussions focus on assessing global threats and opportunities; identifying trends that implicate core national security interests; providing recommendations with respect to tools and capacities of the civilian foreign affairs agencies; defining priorities and strategic frameworks for U.S. foreign policy; and performing any other research and analysis of topics raised by the Secretary of State, the Deputy Secretaries, and the Director of Policy Planning.
The Board meets in a plenary session several times a year and is chartered to have up to 25 members. The Board comprises a distinguished, diverse, and bipartisan membership with a wide range of expertise and background, including past government service, academia, politics, development, and business. Strobe Talbott, President of the Brookings Institution and a former Deputy Secretary of State, serves as the Board’s Chair. He works closely with Secretary Kerry and his Policy Planning Director, David McKean , to coordinate the Board and its meetings.
Current members are:
Mr. Liaquat Ahamed
Ms. Ann Fudge
Dr. Helene Gayle
Ms. Nina Hachigian
Mr. Stephen Hadley
The Honorable Jane Harman
Ambassador Carla Hills
Mr. Alberto Ibarguen
Dr. Robert Kagan
Dr. Rachel Kleinfeld
The Honorable Jim Kolbe
Dr. Stephen Krasner
Ms. Ellen Laipson
Mr. Thomas McLarty
Admiral Michael Mullen
Dr. Vali Nasr
Ambassador John Negroponte
Ms. Jacqueline Novogratz
Ambassador Thomas Pickering
Mr. John Podesta
Dr. Anne-Marie Slaughter
Mr. James Steinberg
Mr. Strobe Talbott
Dr. Laura Tyson
Mr. Rich Verma
See any other war criminals on this list? I do.
On edit: Thank you Catherina for originally providing the link to the Kissinger birthday bash.
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