Obama invites friends, aides for White House dinner to mark Passover [View All]

Source: AP

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is inviting close friends and staff to a private White House meal Thursday to mark Passover, a signal that the new president intends to fulfill his promise that Jewish voters would have an ally.

Among the invited is Valerie Jarrett, one of Obama's closest advisers, and family friend Eric Whitaker, who is visiting from Chicago and attended a seder last year with the campaign. Michelle Obama and the family's two daughters also plan to attend.

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The White House says the seder meal will be traditional, including matzo, bitter herbs, a roasted egg and greens in the family dining room in the executive mansion. The evening will feature the reading of the Haggadah, the religious text of the holiday. Passover began at sundown Wednesday. It celebrates the Jewish exodus from Egypt after 400 years of slavery.

White House aides say they believe this is the first president-hosted seder at the White House. President Bill Clinton's aides planned seders, but Clinton isn't known to have attended. Obama's move won quick praise from the National Jewish Democratic Council.

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