Up close with the president

Yesterday started out with a very somber mood. Senator Byrd's flag drapped casket laid in the Senate Chamber from 10 am to 4 pm for many to come and view. No photos are allowed in the Chamber, but I covered the arrival at the Senate. It was very dramatic so say the least.

That evening I made my first trip inside the White House (before I had only been on the lawn) to see President Obama sign a bill on Iran sanctions in the East Room. He was joined by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Christopher Dodd, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner. I hadn't anticipated I would be as close as I was to the president. When he signed the bill, he was about three feet from me. If I leaned forward a bit I probably could've reached out and touched him, but there was a large Secret Service man standing just to my left preventing me from doing so.

Today has been a quiet day at the office so far. Just about every member of the Senate and many White House officials are at Sen. Byrd's memorial service in West Virginia today. The interns will be having a planning meeting this afternoon with our boss to determine how to best use our time in the remaining weeks. And I'm especially looking forward to my family getting into town later this afternoon and a good friend from high school, Madison Asef tomorrow. We should all have a great Fourth of July weekend in DC!