Tom DeLay isn’t alone. While the former House majority leader had a quick fall from grace on Dancing With the Stars—stress fractures in both feet caused him to drop out early—a lot of fancy footwork is going on in political circles (and not just in the health-care-bill negotiations).
President Obama, who danced onstage with Ellen DeGeneres to Beyoncé’s “Crazy in Love,” has a classically trained ballet dancer heading the White House staff: Rahm Emanuel studied dance throughout his Chicago childhood and was offered a scholarship with the Joffrey Ballet. We even hear that Emanuel worked with a private ballet instructor at a downtown DC studio in recent years.
In his years on Saturday Night Live, Minnesota senator Al Franken danced up a storm, including in a memorable sketch where he played Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger.
GOP senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina helped his mother run a dance studio out of their house as a child and still loves doing his home state’s official dance—the Carolina shag.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton busted a move twice on an August trip to Africa, prompting husband Bill Clinton, at a Harlem event, to compliment her on her ability to “boogie.”
Fresh from her Supreme Court confirmation, Sonia Sotomayor cut a rug to celebrate Labor Day weekend at DC’s Irish Channel Pub. Then days after her investiture, in her first outing as a justice at the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts gala, she danced the mambo with actor Esai Morales (see photo on page 107).
According to Peter DiMuro, director of Dance/MetroDC, dancing and politics are a natural fit—even if DeLay’s cha-cha needs some work.
Says DiMuro: “You learn how to partner, to lead, to follow, to collaborate.”
This article first appeared in the November 2009 issue of The Washingtonian. For more articles from that issue, click here.
Tom and Rahm Do It—Who Else Has Dance Fever?
Tom DeLay isn’t alone. While the former House majority leader had a quick fall from grace on Dancing With the Stars—stress fractures in both feet caused him to drop out early—a lot of fancy footwork is going on in political circles (and not just in the health-care-bill negotiations).
President Obama, who danced onstage with Ellen DeGeneres to Beyoncé’s “Crazy in Love,” has a classically trained ballet dancer heading the White House staff: Rahm Emanuel studied dance throughout his Chicago childhood and was offered a scholarship with the Joffrey Ballet. We even hear that Emanuel worked with a private ballet instructor at a downtown DC studio in recent years.
In his years on Saturday Night Live, Minnesota senator Al Franken danced up a storm, including in a memorable sketch where he played Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger.
GOP senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina helped his mother run a dance studio out of their house as a child and still loves doing his home state’s official dance—the Carolina shag.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton busted a move twice on an August trip to Africa, prompting husband Bill Clinton, at a Harlem event, to compliment her on her ability to “boogie.”
Fresh from her Supreme Court confirmation, Sonia Sotomayor cut a rug to celebrate Labor Day weekend at DC’s Irish Channel Pub. Then days after her investiture, in her first outing as a justice at the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts gala, she danced the mambo with actor Esai Morales (see photo on page 107).
According to Peter DiMuro, director of Dance/MetroDC, dancing and politics are a natural fit—even if DeLay’s cha-cha needs some work.
Says DiMuro: “You learn how to partner, to lead, to follow, to collaborate.”
This article first appeared in the November 2009 issue of The Washingtonian. For more articles from that issue, click here.
More>> Capital Comment Blog | News & Politics | Party Photos
Most Popular in News & Politics
What It Felt Like for a Virginia Marching Band to Win Metallica’s Contest
What’s IN and OUT in DC Restaurant Trends for 2024
Introducing 8 of DC’s Most Stylish
Best of Washington 2023: Things to Eat, Drink, Do, and Know Right Now
Washingtonian Magazine
May 2024: Great Getaways
View IssueSubscribe
Follow Us on Social
Follow Us on Social
Related
13 Major Concerts and Music Festivals in the DC Area This Spring
Mary Timony on Her Emotional New Album, “Untame the Tiger”
The Beatles in DC: A New Exhibit in Maryland Looks Back on Early Beatlemania
Northern Virginia High School Wins Metallica’s Marching Band Competition
More from News & Politics
Democrats and Republicans Pass Balls, Not Bills, at Congressional Soccer Game
3 New Memoirs by Prominent Women
Everything You Wanted to Know About Urban Bear Sightings but Were Afraid to Ask, Because Who Wants to Get That Close to a Bear?
Rockville Police Are Searching for Culprits of a $4,500 Pickleball Paddle Heist
Dozens of Vintage Planes Will Fly Over the National Mall This Saturday
PHOTOS: “Rupaul’s Drag Race” Queens Work It at the National Mall
Meet the NIH Detectives Cracking Medicine’s Toughest Cases
5 of DC’s Most Interesting Ideas for Revitalizing Chinatown