Wednesday, July 21, 2004

Two visits to WH today. The POTUS invited me to be at the signing ceremony for the BioShield Legislation in the Rose garden. I was asked to go up on the stage for the photo with the POTUS and the VP as well as Tom Ridge, Congressmen Chris Cox and Waxman, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, Senators Ted Kennedy, Bill Frist among others. Michael Allen of WH Legislative Affairs was my advocate to get me on the platform. The White House protocol women (?name) wanted Julie Gerberding on the platform (even though she had nothing at all to do with BioShield) since there were no women there and she bumped me. Michael insisted and they compromised by putting us both up there. The POTUS, VP and Senators were very nice with me. I now know all of these people very well. In the afternoon, I briefed Carol Kuntz. Ernie Takafuji accompanied me. Carol is great, but she is going through one of her periodic periods of sadness and anxiety about her CML even though she is in a crisp remission on Gleevec. I intermittently give her private psychotherapy and I did so that night.