Behind the velvet rope at White House Correspondents' Dinner (with Tammy Haddad)

**SPEAKER_1** (0:00)
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**Tammy Haddad** (0:14)
This dinner is so important because on this weekend, all of these folks are talking to each other. They don't really get the chance to do that.

**Dasha Burns** (0:25)
Hello, hello, and welcome to The Conversation. I'm Dasha Burns, and on this show, I talk to the most compelling and sometimes unexpected power players in Washington. And this week, ahead of the White House Correspondents' Dinner, I can't think of anyone who fits that bill more than Tammy Haddad. Tammy has worn a lot of different hats. As a former TV producer, she's spent time in just about every network, from Fox News to CNN to NBC, and she's made her mark on major programs like Larry King Live and The Today Show. But now, she's known for being a social connector among DC's most influential crowd. The New Republic called her a, quote, professional party host, event organizer, and full service convener of the Washington A-list. So when it comes to one of DC's hottest events, like the White House Correspondents' Dinner, Tammy is the host with the most. This year marks her 33rd annual Garden Brunch, an event she's made so iconic it's simply referred to as Tammy's Brunch. Tammy doesn't just know the who's who of Washington, she makes the guest list and hosts the party they're all attending. And in our interview, she brought the photos to prove it. So leave a comment if you can count just how many name drops there are in this episode. Spoiler alert, she holds a record. Here's my conversation with Tammy Haddad.
Tammy Haddad, I can't think of anyone better to have a conversation with this week than you.
It is White House Correspondents' Dinner week.
It's weekend, but it's week, because there's so much going on. And you are the social queen of DC. So I want to get into everything White House Correspondents' Dinner with you. But first, for people that may not know you, let's give a little bit of a Tammy background for folks. You started off as a TV producer and then ended up being like the manager of the social circuit here in Washington.

**Tammy Haddad** (2:12)
Well, I didn't plan on any of that. I think it's because I was a producer. I worked at MSNBC, NBC News. I worked at CNN and Fox. So I've been around forever. Honestly, I think I've just become a center of some of the social light here because I made some of these folks famous. Some of the people you're on TV with. So I think that's why.

**Dasha Burns** (2:33)
They owe their careers to you a little bit.

**Tammy Haddad** (2:35)
I don't think that, but I definitely was there. And that's one of the great things and people don't get about that whole weekend, is that it's connecting with people, developing relationships, getting new jobs, new people to marry, new people to hang out with. That's the best part of being in DC., right? We're in this community.

**Dasha Burns** (2:52)
And this is a moment when that community really comes out in full force. So let's talk about the dinner itself. It's the biggest night here in Washington. It's affectionately referred to as nerd prom. Can you just set the scene for those who may not know, who've never been around town for this moment? What is this dinner? How did it start and how did it become such an important part of Washington?

**Tammy Haddad** (3:15)
Well, it started because it was a response to President Harding, who had invited everyone over to his house in, I think it was in Ohio, right? And he was just entertaining reporters. And the reporters said that they wanted to entertain him when he came to DC, right? So they created the dinner, but then there was no White House Correspondents. It was Congressional Correspondents Committee. Yes. And then the White House Correspondents were pooh-poohing the Congressional Correspondents. No, no, no.
We have to have our own organization.

**Dasha Burns** (3:49)
Of course, it started with some DC drama.

**Tammy Haddad** (3:51)
Of course. Always. That's the best part of the whole thing. And we're all so competitive, so it makes complete sense. But the first dinners had celebrities and the networks, the radio networks had, so that was CBS, just to remind you, Paramount. And I think NBC was the third one.
And they would want to bring their various talent out to show the president. So it would be like an hour and a half show to entertain all of them. And I'm going to remind you of an incredible moment.