Uninvited White House guests got close to Obama

WASHINGTON -- The Virginia couple who crashed a presidential dinner met President Barack Obama in the receiving line, the White House said yesterday. The Secret Service acknowledged its officers failed to check whether the couple were on the guest list.

The White House released a photo showing the Salahis in the receiving line in the Blue Room with Obama and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in whose honor the dinner was held. Singh is standing to the left of Obama.

The Secret Service this week had said the president was not in danger because the couple -- like others at the dinner -- had gone through magnetometers. But in light of their close proximity to the president, no such claim was made yesterday.

Tareq Salahi, a member of the board of the Virginia Tourism Corp., and his wife, Michaele, were not on the guest list and should have been prohibited from entering last Tuesday's dinner on the White House South Lawn for the prime minister of India, said Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan.

Yesterday, Sullivan was apologetic in a written statement, saying the agency that protects the president is "deeply concerned and embarrassed" that procedures were not followed.

Secret Service spokesman Jim Mackin said officers at the checkpoint had a clipboard with names of invited guests. Even though the Salahis names weren't on it, they were allowed to proceed. The officers should have called either someone on the White House staff or Secret Service personnel before allowing them to pass, Mackin said.

Earlier, Mackin said the Secret Service may pursue a criminal investigation of the Salahis.

It is unclear what the couple told officers at the checkpoint that allowed them to go through the screening. Federal law makes it a crime to knowingly and willfully falsify statements on matters within the federal government's jurisdiction.

The Salahis lawyer, Paul Gardner, posted a comment on their Facebook page saying, "My clients were cleared by the White House, to be there." He said more information would be forthcoming.

Bravo Media has confirmed that Michaele Salahi, a former Redskins cheerleader, is being considered for the upcoming "The Real Housewives of D.C." program.

The Salahis are polo-playing fixtures in Virginia's horse-country society. They gained some notoriety for a feud with Tareq's parents over control of the family's Oasis Winery in Fauquier County.

Photos on the couple's Facebook page show that they previously had gotten close to Obama. One photo shows them in a group shot with Obama and some of the musicians who performed at an inaugural concert.

Facebook photos also show the couple posing with former President Bill Clinton, Arizona Sen. John McCain and Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, among others.