My phone has been ringing off the hook. So many of my readers who could not wait for this article attempted to find out if I knew any of the guests at the wedding of the decade. What they really wanted to know was if Atty. C. Howie Hodges II, Vice President of External Affairs for Time Warner Cable and his socialite wife Elizabeth Jackson Hodges were among the invited guests. For those of you who have just started reading my column, Howie Hodges my oldest son Greg JR’s Godfather was a Clinton appointee and my best man 23 years ago. Howie’s wife Elizabeth is the daughter of the former Atlanta Mayor the late Maynard Jackson. I anxiously waited for a call from Howie about Clinton’s highly anticipated wedding to her longtime boyfriend Marc Mezvinsky in Rhinebeck, N.Y., on Saturday July 31, 2010.

 I received a call from Howie and Beth informing me that they were traveling to New York for the weekend. I knew that the wedding was top secret and that he would not be able to reveal any of the secrets prior to the wedding. Howie told me that he and Beth were on a train headed to New York for the weekend with another of our mutual friends Jeh Charles Johnson, another former Clinton appointee and President Obama’s General Counsel for the Department of Defense. This was the biggest hint that he could have possibly thrown my way. I immediately called Debra and told her that Jeh, Howie and Beth were headed to Chelsea Clinton’s wedding. She asked “Are you sure?” I responded “Is ice cold?”

I began to reminisce about the time President Bill Clinton spoke at Howie’s father-in-law’s funeral in Atlanta, Georgia. He brought the crowd of 5000 people to their feet when he made the comment: “White people always ask me why black people love me so much.” I immediately tell them, “Black People love me because I love black people”. Even I jumped out of my seat and applauded. Well I knew how close President Bill Clinton and Maynard Jackson were. In fact Bill Clinton told the crowd how Maynard was one of his earliest supporters and closest friends. Well here we are several years later Howie and Beth at the wedding of the decade and I would know all of the inner circle details.

To my chagrin, Howie and Beth were just traveling to New York for the weekend. Jeh was headed to his estate in Montclair, New Jersey for the weekend. My bubble was burst. I would not be able to report any first hand details about the wedding. 

I called Howie just before I sat down to write this article and told him that I thought he and Beth were headed to Chelsea Clinton’s wedding. He laughed as he expressed his admiration for the former President and his daughter. He and Beth did not feel slighted because President Clinton made it clear that this would be an event with family and Chelsea and Marc’s close friends. 

Chelsea Clinton was a stunning bride and Debra and I wish her all the best! How was your weekend? 

Greg Griffin is a free lance writer. You can read his previous article by visiting his web page at www.greggriffin.com