WL ROLLS OUT THE RED CARPET FOR THE 2007 A-LIST

Call it the Big Whoosh: the air that seems to fill the room (or empty it) when an Important Someone enters it. It's the "frisson" - French for shiver, shudder, thrill - that accompanies a person who appears larger than life, whatever their size. It's the heart-stopping sensation spectators feel when a previously humdrum space comes alive with heightened expectation. Surprisingly, not all major politicos or highranking officials could be described this way, although people of power do have a certain advantage. It's arguable, but the present Mr. Bush seems more memorable for his joviality than for his ability to convey confidence and intrigue. Former President Clinton still sends sparks flying. Sen. Barack Obama most definitely makes waves even before he opens his mouth. Handsomeness and beauty aren't enough, and, at least in Washington, great wealth alone doesn't turn heads as it did in the days of Paul Mellon and Marjorie Merriweather Post. Celebrity doesn't always convey the effect even with the contribution of skilled stylists and hairdressers. Perhaps the quality sought, or found, in these public faces is the suggestion of their importance in the history of our time. Their presence is a bellwether. Any A-list thus will include people with their pulse on the moment and possibly the future as well. A White House chief of staff, a farseeing philanthropist, an ambassador whose country is aligned with our own are apt to turn heads. Such a relatively short alphabetical compilation must take into consideration the shifting winds of the political spectrum, so that the "ins" will include some personages come to life in recent elections. The "outs" may be only temporarily retired. This is, after all, a town where comebacks are almost as commonplace as rising and falling stars.

Ann Geracimos

• The President of the United States George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush
• The Vice President of the United States and Mrs. Richard B. Cheney (Lynne)
• His Excellency the Ambassador of Kuwait Sheikh Salem Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and Sheika Al-Sabah (Rima)
• The Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board and Mrs. Ben S. Bernanke (Anna)
• The Honorable and Mrs. James H. Billington (Marjorie)
• Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin C. Bradlee (Sally Quinn)
• Mr. Joshua B. Bolten
• Mr. and Mrs. David G. Bradley (Katherine)
• Justice and Mrs. Stephen G. Breyer (Joanna)
• Mr. and Mrs. William N. Cafritz (Buffy)
• Mr. and Mrs. Steven B. Case (Jean)
• His Excellency the Ambassador of Italy and Mrs. Giovanni Castellaneta (Leila)
• Mrs. Robert H. Charles (Oatsie)
• The Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao and Senator A. Mitchell McConell
• The Honorable William Jefferson Clinton and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
• Mr. and Mrs. Leo Daly (Grega)
• The Honorable and Mrs. John J. Danilovich (Irene)
• Representative and Mrs. John D. Dingell (Debbie)
• Mr. and Mrs. Placido Domingo (Marta)
• Mr. and Mrs. Robert S. Duvall (Luciana Pedraza)
• Representative and Mrs. Rahm Emanuel (Amy)
• The Honorable Adrian M. Fenty, Mayor of Washington, D.C., and Mrs. Fenty (Michelle)
• Mrs. Nancy McElroy Folger (Bitsey)
• The Secretary of Defense and Mrs. Robert M. Gates (Becky)
• Mr. and Mrs. Joe J. Gibbs (Melissa)
• The Honorable and Mrs. Daniel R. Glickman (Rhoda)
• Mr. and Mrs. Donald E. Graham (Mary)
• Senator and Mrs. Charles T. Hagel (Lilibet)
• Mr. and Mrs. Christopher E. Hitchens (Carol Blue)
• Mr. and Mrs. James Hoagland (Jane Stanton Hitchcock)
• Mr. Robert L. Johnson
• Mr. and Mrs. Vernon E. Jordan. Jr. (Ann)
• Senator and Mrs. Edward M. Kennedy (Vicky)
• Mrs. Robert F. Kennedy (Ethel)
• Senator and Mrs. John F. Kerry (Teresa Heinz)
• Mr. James V. Kimsey
• Ms. Polly Kraft
• Mr. and Mrs. James C. Lehrer (Kate)
• His Excellency the Ambassador of France and Mrs. Jean-David Levitte (Marie-Cecile)
• His Excellency the Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
• Northern Ireland Sir David G. Manning and Lady Manning (Catherine)
• The Secretary of the Treasury and Mrs. Henry M. Paulson. Jr. (Wendy)
• Mr. and Mrs. J. Willard Marriott. Jr. (Donna)
• Ms. Jacqueline Badger Mars
• Mr. John F. Mars
• Senator and Mrs. John S. McCain. III (Cindy)
• His Eminence Cardinal Theodore McCarrick
• The Honorable and Mrs. John D. Negroponte (Diana)
• The Honorable and Mrs. William T. Newman. Jr. (Sheila Johnson)
• Her Majesty Queen Noor al-Hussein of Jordan
• Senator and Mrs. Barack H. Obama (Michelle)
• The Honorable Mary M. Ourisman and Mr. Mandell J. Ourisman
• General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Mrs. Pace (Lynne)
• The Speaker of the House Representative Nancy Pelosi and Mr. Paul Pelosi
• Mr. and Mrs. John D. Podesta (Mary)
• The Honorable and Mrs. Colin L. Powell (Alma)
• Mr. and Mrs. Earl A. Powell. III (Nancy)
• Senator and Mrs. Harry M. Reid (Landra)
• Chief Justice and Mrs. John G. Roberts. Jr. (Jane)
• The Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
• Mr. Joseph E. Robert. Jr.
• Senator and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller. IV (Sharon Percy)
• The Honorable Selwa S. "Lucky" Roosevelt
• Mr. and Mrs. Karl C. Rove (Darby)
• Mr. and Mrs. Timothy J. Russert. Jr. (Maureen Orth)
• Mr. and Mrs. Roger Sant (Victoria)
• Mr. and Mrs. B. Francis Saul. II (Tricia)
• Justice and Mrs. Antonin Scalia (Maureen)
• The Honorable and Mrs. R. Sargent Shriver. Jr. (Eunice Kennedy)
• The Honorable and Mrs. Lawrence M. Small (Sandra)
• Mr. and Mrs. Daniel M. Snyder (Tanya)
• Mr. and Mrs. George R. Stephanopoulos (Alexandra Wentworth)
• Mr. and Mrs. George C. Stevens Jr. (Liz)
• His Excellency the Ambassador of Russia and Mrs. Yuri Ushakov (Svetlana)
• The Honorable and Mrs. Mark R. Warner (Lisa Collis)
• The Honorable Paul D. Wolfowitz
• Mr. and Mrs. Robert Woodward (Elsa Walsh)

The Red Carpet

George Stevens Jr.	Buffy and Bill Cafritz

Bill Clinton	Sen. Chuck Hagel

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton	Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice

Italian Amb. Giovanni Castellaneta	Colin Powell

Michelle Fenty and Mayor Adrian Fenty	Grega Daly

Jim Kimsey	Joe Robert Jr.

John and Irene Danilovich	Ann and Vernon Jordan

Katherine Bradley	Leila Castellaneta and First Lady Laura Bush

Mary Ourisman	Sen. Mitch McConell and Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao

John and Diana Negroponte	Rep. Nancy Pelosi

Placido Domingo and Lucky Roosevelt	Queen Noor

President George W. Bush	Rhoda and Dan Glickman

Rima Al-Sabah and Kuwaiti Amb. Salem Al-Sabah	Roger and Vicki Sant

Russian Amb. Yuri Ushakov	Svetlana Ushakov

Debbie Dingell and Rep. John Dingell	General Peter and Lynn Pace

Tim Russert	Christopher Hitchens

Sally Quinn	Sen. John McCain

Victoria Kennedy	Paul Wolfowitz

Jacqueline Badger Mars	Sen. Ted Kennedy