TAOISEACH BERTIE Ahern will meet United States president George Bush in the White House today - in one of the last occasions the two men will meet before Mr Bush departs from office next January.
Last night, Mr Ahern attended the annual St Patrick's Day dinner of the Friendly Sons of St Patrick in Scranton, Pennsylvania, one of the biggest occasions in the Irish-American social calendar.
The two men will hold nearly an hour of talks in the Oval Office before they attend a reception in the White House's east room attended by Northern Irish politicians, including Ulster Unionist MP Jeffrey Donaldson.
The presentation of shamrock by the Taoiseach, now a decades-old tradition in Washington, will take place this year at the reception rather than in the Roosevelt Room, as has been usual.
During the talks, the two men are expected to discuss the World Trade talks, climate change, undocumented Irish "illegals" living in the US, and Ireland's participation with the European Union's Eufor military force in Chad.
Later, Mr Ahern and Mr Bush will travel to Capitol Hill for the annual lunch hosted by the speaker of the House of Representatives, Republican Nancy Pelosi, even though Congress is currently not in session.
Mr Ahern will meet with leading Irish-American and US-based Irish business people in the Mayflower Hotel later in the day, including members of the Irish-United States Economic Advisory Board.
Following his arrival in Pennsylvania last night directly from Dublin, Mr Ahern spent two hours at the Friendly Sons of St Patrick of Lackawanna County dinner, following in the footsteps of Garret FitzGerald and Albert Reynolds.
"Our dinner has become known across the country as one of the greatest St Patrick's Day dinners," said Matthew Haggerty, president of the Friendly Sons of St Patrick - an organisation set up by emigrant Irish after the Famine.
The all-male association's dinner in Lackawanna County will be followed today by an all-female Society of Irish Women dinner, which may be visited by Democratic nomination contender, Hillary Clinton.
Mrs Clinton is due to visit nearby Scranton - her father, Hugh's hometown - this afternoon.
It is likely to be one of several visits by both herself and her rival Barack Obama for the Democratic Party presidential nomination.
