Desiree Rogers Evaporates and Falls - Vanity of Human Wishes Writ Large

Republican members of the House Homeland Security committee have invited White House social secretary Desirée Rogers to testify Thursday, a committee aide said Monday night, about how a couple from Northern Virginia slipped into the White House last week for a state dinner, despite not being on the guest list.

Rogers acknowledged to the Associated Press last week that no one from her office was at a security checkpoint Nov. 24 to assist Secret Service agents in determining whether partygoers should be admitted to the mansion. Tareq and Michaele Salahi were waved through the checkpoint and later came face-to-face with President Obama in a receiving line.

Washington Post 12/01/2009

Unnumber'd Suppliants croud Preferment's Gate,
Athirst for Wealth, and burning to be great;
Delusive Fortune hears th' incessant Call,
They mount, they shine, evaporate, and fall.
On ev'ry Stage the Foes of Peace attend,
Hate dogs their Flight, and Insult mocks their End.

Samuel Johnson - The Vanity of Human Wishes




Desiree Rogers will go the way of Van Jones and Rev. Wright. They were very public and very mediocre persons. In their immediate tanks or ponds they were big fish; in the scope of history -snail darters.

Like Gerry Faust, who was the single face on the Mount Rushmore of high school football, in scheme of things they are inconsequential people at best and at worst - impediments.

Desiree Rogers is the White House Social Secretary -for the moment. Ms. Rogers has been appointed on the 'recommendation' of powerful people in need of the direct support of Ms. Rogers' ex-husband -Mr. John Rogers, a wealthy and powerful man. John Rogers is huge in Chicago and Chicago Progressive Politics.

Now, due to pooch-screwing that put the lives of President Obama and the Prime Minister of India in hazard at the first Obama White House State Dinner, for which Ms. Rogers played the diva up to and including the arrival of the Salahis, that run of good luck is about to end. Chicagoans know that Ms. Rogers is a privileged hack given her work at Peoples Gas. She is an appointment for boards desirous of John Rogers' good will. Nationally, she has been protected by the Obama Propaganda Machine - CBS, NBC, CNN, MSNBC, NEWSWEEK, NEW YORK TIMES & etc. Americans are getting to know Ms. Rogers as Chicagoans know the woman - Nice House; No One's Home.

Once the Obama White House launches Desiree Rogers she will land on her rump in a very comfy chair, once again padded with six figures. One chap calling himself/herself Hargrove protested my feature of Ms. Rogers. Hargrove cataloged the talking points of a losing argument - Race/Sexism & Racial Sexism.

Thus:

Hargrove said... “Butting” Desiree Rogers, and using a rear photo of her, to make that sexist point; accompanied by a haughty dismissal of her hard won achievements, is sad. I'll bet if she was a white woman, you would be holding her up as a model for what women can achieve!

It seems like your goal is to devalue Ms. Rogers enough for the reader to assent to implicating her in an error, that occurred at President Obama’s first state dinner, which she was not responsible for.

Only in matters of race is one judged by an error, they didn’t commit, without mentioning the task, which they did perform, and which the error is associated with. Perhaps because the task, The Obama First State Dinner, was an eye-popping, gasp worthy success, with ratings ranging from A to A+! But why acknowledge a glowing success, when you can waste your ink belittling an excellent person.

Do not be deceived, Hargrave (sic) is not the only person who can check a guest list! Members of the Secret Service were designated that responsibility, and they made a mistake. If Hargrave was there, she could have made a mistake too! Even she acknowledged that errors in the list were common when she worked for the Bush Administration.

Stop trying to rewrite the book of blame in this, the Secret Service has already acknowledged that IT WAS THEIR MISTAKE!

Desiree Rogers did herself and the Obama Administration proud, by her outstanding work, and creative vision, on behalf of the Obama State Dinner, and she should be given credit for that.

3:54 PM

She has Hargrove; She will. Ms. Rogers has butted her way into sinecures that could fund villages around our happy planet.

One can not diminish Ms. Rogers without, of course so diminishing the very folks who saw fit to place and appoint her to positions on fringes of government. Ms. Rogers is in the very spotlight she so long has pursued.

As dear Fat Dr. Johnson warned, but then again Ms. Rogers no doubt never read or heard-

With distant Voice neglected Virtue calls,
Less heard, and less the faint Remonstrance falls;
Tir'd with Contempt, she quits the slipp'ry Reign,
And Pride and Prudence take her Seat in vain.
In croud at once, where none the Pass defend,
The harmless Freedom, and the private Friend.
The Guardians yield, by Force superior ply'd;
By Int'rest, Prudence; and by Flatt'ry, Pride.
Here Beauty falls betray'd, despis'd, distress'd,
And hissing Infamy proclaims the rest.

Vanity of Human Wishes

Salahis Attempted to Crash Cleek Club Chicago - I Wanted to Let the Blond In, But Houli Said "Nix on the Twist!"

Bill Zwecker notes the attempts by the Couple Salahi tp gain entre to the Midwest Polo Club - that used to trot out the chukkas for pukka at the Old Chicago National Guard Armory on Chicago Ave. a few semesters back.

Unreported - until this very moment - was the attempt by Michaele and Tareq Salahi to be admitted to the posh and exclusive (membership two -three pending: once Beachwood Reporter's Steve Rhodes pays his downstroke of a twelve pack of Drewry's Beer) Cleek Club of Chicago.

Readers ( Mom and that guy in Toledo) might recall that following an ugly incident at Chicago' Union League Club that film auteur, raconteur and libertine Mike Houlihan* and I formed the Cleek of Chicago - Gentleman's Club (No Lap Dancing and No Laplanders)
http://hickeysite.blogspot.com/2007/12/mike-houlihan-and-files-of-cleek-club.html


Some weeks ago, following Cleek's Kangaroo Boxing Night and Oyster Dinner, Chicago Renaissance Man Mike Houlihan and Myself were enjoying our post-prandial tonsil wettings of brandies ( E&J of Course!) in our tall-backed overly stuffed Baker Chairs and damning the eyes of the Pathan Thuggee over their latest devilment and afront to Our President, when Worthington bowed - presidential I might add - and announced that a striking blond woman and tuxedoed gent were at the front-door.

Houli, sound chap, asked Worthingon to pass the silver salver and "Let's have a screw at the Chappy's card. What?"

Worthington announced that the two-some had not offered their card.

"No Card? They could be the damned Press, Worthington! Only a thoroughgoing skunk and scoundrel of the First Order would deem himself presentable sans ecart entre

I saw that Worthington was deeply troubled by this oversight, as he is generally quite good at his job. Worthington is no Desiree Rogers. Her resume got not a glance here at Club Cleek. I offered, " Don't trouble yourself Worthington on this score. Mr. Houlihan would demand to see Pope Ben's damned card and check it for the Union Bug before he even considered talking to its owner."

"True!"

"Houli, Old Son, should we not give the two the once over as Cleek overhead demands at least one more member and Brother Rhodes, taken up with Porcine Ague or some such botheration, is delinquent on the golden nectar brewed in South Bend, Indiana; Bottled Ambrosia **sporting the ruggedly handsome and reassuring Mountie!"

"No, Hickey. No Card; No Chat; No Chat; No Cleek! Standards Man! This is not an igloo or some tent on a lawn! Ecart entre connaissance et usage d'une langue minoritaire : essai de typologie des facteurs. Le cas de la langue basque! This is Cleek of Chicago!"

" What's the blond Crumpet wearing Worthington?"

" Quiet fetching, Sir and might I add that she is wearing a wanton and roguish smirk that . . .

Houli howled, "I would not care a jot if she were wearing a gown made up of Benjamins, Hickey!"

" Standards?"

" They ain't just tunes by Sinatra, my boy!"

" Quite right, Houli! Worthington, two more E & J's *** and a brace of Olde English 40's . . .What? What?"

" Oh, I dare say, Hickey Old Cock, might not be a good idea -mind you. Those are two toned chino slacks you are wearing?"

"God's Tripes!"

*Chicago Television Premiere of“Tapioca”
On WTTW
WTTW, Channel 11, willpresent the television premiere of Mike Houlihan’s independent feature film,Tapioca, on Saturday night/Sunday AM December 19th at 12:30AM.

Tapioca stars Emmy and Tonywinner Ben Vereen along with Mike Houlihan and his entire family andfriends. In a story as timely as The GreatRecession of 2009, abrasive blowhard Pipes McGonnigle (Houlihan), a TV hawkerfor a Chicago car dealership, loses his job, gets kicked out by his wife, andruns afoul of a Streetwise vendor (Vereen) with supernatural powers, whoconsigns him to life as a bum by way of a hex. Former Sun-Times columnistHoulihan expanded his stand-up act of the same title and cast a host of veteranChicago actors for this comic allegory of redemption set entirely in thegrittiest of urban locations.

Tapioca features SaturdayNight Live alum Tim Kazurinsky, Greg Hollimon from “Strangers With Candy”, MarkBorchardt from “American Movie”, as well as Jimmy Carrane, David Pasquesi, PaulKelly, Michael McNeal, Jack McCabe, and several other Second City veterans.Mary Carney of “Ryan’s Hope” is also featured as a mystical bag lady.

The film premieredtheatrically at the Park City Film Music Festival in Park City, Utah in 2008.Tapioca features an original score by Chicago jazz composer Ryan Cohan andcontributions from Gospel legends Otis Clay and Lena McLin. PulitzerPrize winning political cartoonist Jack Higgins designed cartoons for theflick. Paddy Houlihan directed the film and William Houlihan executiveproduced.

The Houlihans have screenedTapioca at The Texas Black Film Festival, First Take Film Festival, The OtherVenice Film Festival, and won Best Feature Film at the Geneva Film Fest.Vanguard Cinema has placed Tapioca in worldwide DVD distribution. Mike says,“Tapioca is proof that you don’t need a million dollars to make a cool littlemovie.”

Dan Soles, WTTW Program Director,said, “Tapioca spins a fresh Scrooge, an apt Chicago comedy for our Christmaspresent.”

**"First Case of Drewrys Ale Goes to Roosevelt
One Carload Shipped to Lima Today

President Roosevelt is to get first case of Drewrys Canadian Ale to be brewed in the United States. This is not done merely by way of advertising. Drewrys is the first Canadian Ale to be produced in America and it it fitting that the President who made this possible should be recognized by this feature.

The story back of this gesture may be interesting even to the President himself. Over six months before Mr. Roosevelt was elected, Mr. M. J. Black, the President of Drewrys Ltd. of Canada and representative of various English interests abroad, came down to the States with his mind decided that Roosevelt would be elected and that the sale of malt beverages would be permitted again, and backed his judgment with his company's capital.

It soon became evident, however, that an American company was necessary to operate on American soil. Therefore the Drewrys Limited. U. S. A., was formed and enfranchised and fully financed within itself. And this American Company after a most careful survey of the brewing facilities of America, formed its affiliation with The Sterling Brewers of Evansville, Indiana, whose long record of cleanly, careful, wholesome brewing measured up well to the Canadian standard of Drewry quality. Evansville immediately put in its fermenters and aging tanks. The Drewry Ale brewed according to the Canadian standards, where, also according to the Canadian standards, it has been aging and mellowing in since. It Is now ready at long last.

One carload will arrive here for you tomorrow. Their distribution to your various good dealers will follow immediately and by the day after tomorrow it ought to be ready for you. The Lima Beverage Co. No. Main St. Main 2171 Distributor DREWRYS ALE SINCE 1877" - Lima (Ohio) News, Aug 15, 1933

***E & J Brandy Review - absolutely ripping!

Alcohol: 80 Proof (40% alcohol by volume)

Color: Dark copper.

Aroma: Sweet nose, like Belgian candy sugar, surprisingly mild aroma. Very inviting smell.

Flavor: Bites like a bugger. Makes you wince. This first thing this brandy does when it hits your palate is that it digs-in and attacks your sensitive mucous membranes with a pungent, hot, and oily mouth attack. Finishes with a hint of cashew nut and a sharp, strong, flower-petal flavor smack. A unique flavor profile that would be interesting and even appreciated if this brandy didn't burn so much initially.

http://www.epinions.com/content_2361696388

Tête de Nœud Mlle. Desiree Rogers Goes to Ground

The breach in White House Security by the Bravo sponsored idiots and American Idols - The Salahis is turning the spotlight on Diva Nit-Wit and Serial Sinecure Hopper Desiree Rogers.

Desiree was rumped into seats here in Illinois the Land of Blago and Burris
thanks to her marriage to John Rogers of Ariel Capital Management and no PC Progressive Political Ploy plays without Mr. Rogers' nod.

Ex or No, Desiree has John Rogers' Imprimatur - from Illinois Lotto Ball Watcher, to People Gas Thug, to All State Insurance Whatever, to the Obama White House. Chicagoans have had a long look at this 40 Watt Progresive Eye Candy from the time that she blew up Mount Greenwood while guiding Peoples Gas and double billing consumers. Desiree Messalina'd all of the competant Peoples Gas Executives within her field of vision and scooped Peoples Gas Charity Giving into her pet projects and personal pedestals.

Now, Desiree has her tête in a wringer and will prove to be a major mal de tête

Voila! Desiree tête de nœud!

Of course Rogers was at the dinner as well, even pausing at one point to speak with reporters about which designer dress she was wearing (Comme Des Garcons).

But Hargraves wasn't at the gate, because she had resigned last June. She told Newsweek that when Rogers came in with the new administration, she changed her job, and revoked most of her responsibilities, essentially demoting her to a date entry clerk, prompting Hargraves to quit.

"I knew she [Hargraves] left but did not know they did not replace the job in the same way," a former White House official speaking on the condition of anonymity told ABC News, "That's really too bad - it really helps them to have this person because it is such a bear of a job but so important."

"It was Cathy who would input all the names, take all the responses, give them to the calligraphers who would address the invites, do the place cards," the former official said, "On game day she was a key link to Secret Service because she was posted at the East Portico with them because she was the most intimately knowledgeable of the list."

Hargraves said had she been there that night, the reality-tv hopefuls never would have made into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Desiree Rogers declined ABC News' request for an interview.

Tamara Holder Links Gate Crashers, Plaxico Burress and Eric Holder's Flawed Legal World

Chicago Criminal Attorney Tamara Holder nails it down - Trying the 9/11 Terrorists/White House Gate Crashers and Illinois Lotto Ball Watcher Desiree Rogers.

Thus!


Obama, the Secret Service, and his party-planner, Desiree Rogers (she decided to be a guest instead...could you imagine your wedding planner sitting down at your dinner?) should be embarrassed by the security breach. I will be shocked if the administration seeks to charge this couple.

Avec!

For whatever reason, Eric Holder thinks that if we try the 911 terrorists here on American soil, we are proving to the world that we are "not a nation of cowards." That idealism is just as bogus as when Plaxico Burress entered a night club with a gun in his sweatpants to make himself feel like a tough guy; instead, the idiot ends up shooting himself in the thigh. Our security is about as tight as Plaxico's waistband "holster": not at all. Holder should probably have a chat with Plaxico from his prison cell and ask Plaxico if trying to show that you are "tough" gets you very far. I am sure Plaxico can give him a wise man's advice.

Remember, just a few weeks ago, the Ft. Hood mass-murders proved our intelligence and security on American soil is lacking. To be honest, I don't really care if the shooter is a jihadist or a straight-up psycho. At the end of the day, the FBI had intelligence that he was blogging and communicationing very questionable ideas and yet our intelligence community did nothing.

Ft. Hood was supposed to be one of the most secure military bases in the country.

Then, a glamorous couple walks onto the White House property without security clearance and without an invitation. They coddle with Biden, Axelrod, and shake our President's hand. The next morning, they post their security breach all over America via Facebook. What a disgusting slap in the face to our country.

So how can Eric Holder assure Americans, especially NYC residents, that they will be protected from KSM followers? He can't. He must get the "we are not a nation of cowards" idea out of his head. He needs to put the kibosh on trying the "alleged" terrorists in our country. We are not safe now and we definitely will not be safe when those men are brought from Guantanamo to the United States. We can make our voices heard across the world by trying the men elsewhere.

Obama, his administration and the intelligence community better wake up. These security breaches, whether it's at Ft. Hood or on the White House lawn, prove one thing: Americans are not safe; therefore, we cannot try the 911 terrorists on our turf.

www.tamaraholder.com and www.xpunged.com

Moron The Disarray - Sorry, More On the Desiree Rogers Genius Tour of Obama's D. C. State Dinner!

That's Desiree Rogers and her Resume!

The account of Cathy Hargraves, who formerly served as White House "assistant for arrangements," raises new questions about whether changes that she says were made by President Obama's social secretary, Desiree Rogers, may have contributed to the security lapses that permitted Virginia socialites Michele and Tareq Salahi to crash the state dinner for India's prime minister last week and get themselves photographed with the president.

Desiree Rogers has flitted from one well-paying job to more handsomely remunerated positions of power to the White House itself by cashing in her own personal Lotto Ticket - that 'really something' that make Desiree Rogers indispensable to folks in and on the fringes of tax-payer paid for government. From Lotto to People Gas to All State Insurance and the White House, Desiree Rogers has bounced her butt into more lucrative chairs and luxurious laps than Madame Du Barry! She is the ex-wife of Ariel Capital mogul John Rogers a Progressive Political ATM Machine.

With the Crashing Salahis taking Obama's Afghan/Paki; Health Care, Stimulus Package, Roaring Unemployment, Bowing at 45 Degree Angles and World Travel troubles off the dial for the moment, folks are lining Secret Service agents up for the toss under the bus. Butt! Chicagoans know and love the antics of Desiree Rogers - blowing up Mount Greenwood for Peoples Gas while wearing stylish yellow rubber boots and slickers to going all Messalina on people occupying positions that get in her way.

Now, D.C. Insiders are learning about Lotto Lolita!

Hargraves, however, says the lack of a social office employee on the scene at the gate might have made a difference. During her tenure, she says, it was not uncommon for guests at state dinners to arrive only to discover that their names hadn't been placed on the official guest list. In such situations, she says, she always refused the person entry until she could verify that they had actually been invited.

If she had been on the job at the White House last Tuesday night, the Salahis "would not have made it past the East Gate portico," she says. Once she had ascertained that they had not been invited, she says she would have called in the Secret Service officer who let them through in the first place and "they would have been escorted out."

After her tense meeting with Rogers last February, in which Hargraves says the social secretary made clear she did not want her to continue in the same role she had before, Hargraves says her job was essentially downgraded to what she calls a "data entry clerk": Her new job was simply to enter the names of White House guests into the Secret Services computers for clearance, not to broadly supervise state dinners and manage the invitations and arrival of guests. Dissatisfied with her new role, she says she quit on June 5 and moved with her husband, a State Department employee, to Houston. (Her staff slot was initially filled by a volunteer, who was later promoted to a full-time position but without her broad responsibilities for overseeing the guests at state dinners, she says.)

In some ways, Hargraves's account is reminiscent of culture clashes that have arisen in the past between outgoing and incoming White House staff members. Moreover, Hargraves acknowledges that the new Obama staff may have distrusted her because she had originally served as a political appointee in the Office of the cabinet secretary under President Bush. But Hargraves, who is a registered nurse by profession, says she has never worked on a political campaign and, as far as she is concerned, her loyalty was to the White House as an institution, not to the Bush administration.

How can someone so elegant be so Blond?

I Got a Margaret Sanger Gold Dollar That Says, ' Desiree Rogers Is Salahi Wave-In

Everyone in America's Compliant Media has set his/her stop watch to the firing of a Secret Service Agent over the Virgina Slims who slipped through the Obama State Dinner.

Only someone as "special' as Chicago's Own Lotto Ball Girl and John Rogers Ex - Desiree Rogers ( The Gal who blew up blocks of Mount Greenwood while Peoples Gas Champ) could be our Progressive Prowler Pivot Person'

Desiree should have taken the short yellow bus to school, but had her abilities overlooked due to her viscerally more appealing aspects - as the old story went "Desiree, You are sitting on a Gold Mine!"

The White House referred most questions to the Secret Service, but sources familiar with procedures during big White House events said that typically someone from the Office of the Social Secretary would be at one of the secret service checkpoints just in case there is any confusion. While rare, guests can be inadvertently left off a list, the source said.

Responding to a question about whether her staff was represented at any of the checkpoints, Social Secretary Desiree Rogers*, told AP: "We were not." Yet there were also no attempts by agents at the checkpoint to contact the social office, a source said.

NBC News anchor, Brian Williams, an invited guest, saw the couple arrive by car at the East Gate of the White House, yet said the Salahi's vehicle was turned away.

"Actually the first ring of Secret Service security had worked," Williams said on Thursday's nightly broadcast. "After their vehicle was turned away, they hopped out. What attracted our attention was there was at least one camera trailing them. And a makeup woman got out and fixed the woman’s hair and then started powdering the man's forehead."

Watch folks! This Tale will hit Desiree Rogers like a 9 Iron on Tiger's Noggin!

Desiree has handed real people more laughs over the years than we truly desereve! Blowing up Mount Greenwood and blaming the Unions in yellow boots and rain gear- Killer!


ccustomed to the spotlight, Peoples Gas President Desiree Rogers finds herself on the hot seat as regulators probe safety procedures at the Chicago gas utility.
Ms. Rogers must deal with three investigations — federal, state and internal. Peoples Gas faces questions about testing procedures for pipe corrosion and the possibility that some employees falsified test records. The Illinois Commerce Commission last week launched a legal process that could result in a $1-million fine. And if evidence shows that employees falsified safety reports, criminal penalties for those responsible could be in the offing.
Last week's news was another blow to a company already tarred by allegations that it conspired with Enron Corp. to overcharge customers. That case was settled last month after Peoples agreed to a $100-million customer refund without admitting wrongdoing, but the episode claimed the job of Thomas Patrick, CEO of Peoples Energy Corp., parent company of Peoples Gas. He agreed to step down by February 2007.
Unlike the Enron case, however, which focused on the parent company, the pipe-testing breakdown happened in the unit Ms. Rogers oversees and involves the most critical aspect of gas utility operations — safety.
Known for her communication skills and political savvy, Ms. Rogers, 46, faces multiple challenges that will test those abilities and require others she's not as known for. She must get to the bottom of the inspection problems without becoming identified with them; mend strained relations with state regulators, and then persuade them to grant Peoples a hefty rate hike, which the company expects to request in early June.
"Is this the biggest challenge of my career? Absolutely," says the high-profile executive, who is active on the city's charitable and social circuit and sits on numerous boards, including the Lincoln Park Zoo (where she's vice-chairman) and the Museum of Science and Industry. She joined Peoples as vice-president of corporate communications in 1997 after serving as director of the Illinois Lottery. She was named chief marketing officer in 2000 and president in 2004 of Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas, which serve the city and some northern suburbs.
How she responds to this crisis will demonstrate whether Ms. Rogers' has the operational skills to match her other talents. She bristles at the suggestion that she's more marketer than manager, pointing out that in 21 months as Peoples president, she's improved response times at the customer service center, converted paper records of inspection results to an electronic system and eliminated a massive backlog of home gas meter inspections.
"We're going to see, and (Peoples') board is going to see, how good of an operational person she is," says Richard Mathias, former chairman of the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) and currently Midwest liaison for regional electricity transmission grid operator PJM Interconnection. "It will be a real test."
Ms. Rogers is installing a new training and auditing regimen, and hiring quality-control employees to check compliance work. She promises the utility's safety procedures "will be a whole lot better in a year. A lot better."
LETTER OFFENDED UNION
First, Ms. Rogers must determine the extent of the corrosion-testing problems at Peoples. In a spot check recently of nearly 400 pipes that Peoples tested last year, state inspectors found that about 40% had inadequate corrosion protection. More seriously, at about 10% of the locations where Peoples had provided positive test results, the inspectors couldn't find any monitoring equipment to take a reading, raising questions about whether false results were being recorded. (Corrosion can lead to pipe leaks, allowing gas to escape, accumulate and potentially cause explosions.) No leaks have been found, and Peoples says its pipes are safe.
In a sign of how delicate Ms. Rogers' task will be, union leaders at Peoples took offense to a sharply worded letter she sent to gas distribution workers after learning of the ICC findings. The letter suggested some workers violated the company's code of conduct, putting at risk "their jobs and the reputation of the company."
"That was very accusatory in tone, and we took offense to it," says John Groenwald, business manager of the Gas Workers Union Local 18007, which represents 875 Peoples employees.
Ms. Rogers says she'll work with the union to address the problems, but doesn't apologize for her blunt approach: "It's not business as usual. It cannot be."
©2006 by Crain Communications Inc.