Buncrana man meets President Biden in the White House

It's not everyday that you meet the leader of the free world but that's exactly what one Inishowen native did recently.

Buncrana man Seamus Leheny met US President Joe Biden at the White House St Patrick's Day ceremony.

He received to invitation as a result of his work with the US government, advising them on Brexit border issues. He currently lives in Belfast where he works as Policy Manager for Northern Ireland for Logistics UK.

Towards the end of the event, after Mr Biden had made his speech and was making his way through the room, towards the exit Mr Leheny saw his opportunity to introduce himself.

Mr Leheny and two of his associates asked a member off staff what route the President would be taking.

“And, sure enough, the President approached, and I walked up, and he was fantastic. I stuck out a hand and said those infamous words, “Mr President” which you hear in films and TV and things. I put out my hand and Joe Biden grasped it.

“We shook the hands and I introduced myself. I said I'm originally from Donegal, living in Belfast. And he clicks straightaway. He has this skill, I suppose, you know, you don't get to be president without having those people skills and he had them in abundance really.

“The whole time, while we stood talking, he placed his hand on my shoulder. And even though you know, there's like, a couple 100 people in the room, he makes you feel like you're the only person he's interested in talking to,” he said.

Mr Leheny told Mr Biden about the work he was doing on in Northern Ireland. They discussed the importance of the peace process and stability in the country.

“I told him what a great job his consort staff in Belfast are doing, how helpful they’ve been, and for him to continue his support in protecting Northern Ireland, the peace process and also the Northern Ireland protocol.

“He agreed with that, and he said, ‘listen, you know, that Northern Ireland will always have the support of the Government of the US and to keep up the good work’ and I think so it was one of those things, you know, that probably lasted longer than it felt.

“It was like… you’re almost like a child again, kind of talking to Santa Claus really. It’s one of those moments, really, in life. And then he went on.

“It was just an amazing opportunity and a career highlight for me, on a personal level as well it's hard to top doing something like that,” he said.

As you would expect with anything involving the US president, security was a high priority.

Mr Leheny only found out he was invited a few days before the event. He then received a call during which he was asked an array of questions about his background.

He was then flown out to Washington where he was vetted again prior to the events.

“There are a lot of these sniffer dogs, cute little Springer Spaniels, and they bring them over under the guise of ‘would you like to pet the dog?’ The dog, I think, is more interested in sniffing you for other purposes.

“There was one funny incident when I was waiting to be introduced to the president. You’re standing there thinking ‘get your introduction right, you’ve got one shot at this in a lifetime’. And I wasn’t thinking, and I put my hand in my pocket – just to stop myself fidgeting – and within about two seconds of putting my hand in my pocket a secret service guy leaned into my ear and said ‘Sir, you have to keep your hands where we can see them’. So, I swiftly removed my hand from the pocket,” he said.

President Biden frequently references his Irish heritage. From quoting Irish poets to frequently mentioning his Irish-catholic upbringing.

One thing that could seriously damage his Irish credibility however is the lack of Guinness served at St. Patricks day event.

“They were going ‘round. They had wines and a type of ale, beer. And I asked one of the staff ‘what’s that beer by the way?’ and they kind of went ‘uh… it’s Guinness beer’ and I thought ‘hmm… that’s not Guinness beer’. And upon inspection in was that Hop House 13 beer but the Americans were calling it ‘Guinness beer’”.

Guinness brew Hop House 13 so it might not be the most unforgivable St Patrick's Day oversight. As Mr Leheny pointed out, it is Irish at least.

The food had an Irish theme, smoked salmon, and potato appetisers among others.

A traditional meal enjoyed by Irish-Americans on St Patrick's Day is corned beef and cabbage. This meal selection was absent from the menu but there were dishes that took influence from it.

The attendees were allowed a decent amount of freedom to roam the west wing of the White House.

The library was open to the guests who were even permitted to take the books from the shelves and flip through them.

“Everything was immaculate, everything in there from the napkins, right down to the hand towels in the restrooms, everything's embroidered with the presidential seal. It's all very fancy. It's like a fine dining restaurant.”

The only official keepsake the guests were provided with was a lapel pin depicting the White House but a few of the disposable hand towels with the presidential seal may found their way into Mr Leheny’s bag.

During his week-long trip he also attended the Ireland Funds dinner. Taoiseach Micheál Martin was present at this event before being told he had to leave the premises due to his Covid-19 test returning positive. Mr Martin was therefore unable to attend the St Patrick's Day Ceremony the next day.

Mr Leheny also met US Senator Brendan Boyle whose father is from Donegal.