WHY ARE THESE PEOPLE SMILING?

Because their tummies were full of Kobe beef prepared by Mercury Grill exec chef Chris Ward. Laura Bush loves Ward–she almost hired him to man the White House kitchen. Now, she just calls him up to the bigs for big gigs like last night’s real W party–a Head of State dinner honoring Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan. Ward’s plane back to Dallas lands at noon. Details to follow.