Gregoire at Hu’s dinner

At the risk of sounding like an old Abbott and Costello routine, Hu’s coming to dinner at the White House, and Gov. Chris Gregoire is invited too.

Who’s coming to dinner? Hu’s the president of China.  I don’t know who’s the president of China but who’s coming to dinner? Yes, Hu’s president of China and he’s coming to dinner.

OK, so it’s been done before, and better. So without further foolishness, Chinese President Hu Jintao is attending a state dinner at the White House Wednesday night.  Washington’s status as a major exporting state, and the fact that China is one of our biggest overseas markets, and the fact that Gregoire was in China a few months ago on a trade mission may all have combined to get the governor an invitation to dinner.

Also on the list: Former Gov. and now Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and his wife Mona; actor Jackie Chan, musician Yo Yo Ma; Barbara Streisand and James Brolin; Microsoft honcho Steve Ballmer; skater Michelle Kwan.

No word yet on who Gregoire gets to sit next to, the governor’s office said.