David Rubenstein: Pictures from a Q&A Cafe

 DAVID RUBENSTEIN AND I GET MIC'D BEFORE THE INTERVIEW

I TRY TO ANSWER HIS QUESTION ABOUT WHERE WE'RE GONNA GO (I NEVER KNOW UNITIL I START)

 WE'RE OFF AND RUNNING: WHAT'S IT LIKE TO BE HIM?

How did he like interviewing Bill Gates? Just fine. He did a great job, too. I said, "you could replace Charlie Rose but you wouldn't make any money." He said he knows that and is fine with the day job he has. But you should watch the Gates interview on C-Span. It's fascinating. Rubenstein asked him if he carries any cash. So I asked Rubenstein the same question. "A little," he said. 

 HE TALKS ABOUT GROWING UP JEWISH AND NOT RICH IN BALTIMORE

Are his parents still alive? Yes. Are they still in Baltimore? "No, they moved to the Baltimore suburb of West Palm Beach." That means their son is taking care of them, which is good and as it should be. He said of his youth that he did not feel charming, attractive, athletic or wealthy so he decided instead to work very hard at being smart. It worked. He got a scholarship to Duke. 

AFTER SOARING IN THE CARTER WHITE HOUSE, BUT LOSING TO REAGAN, HE'S OUT OF A JOB, HAS TO START OVER, AND CREATES THE CARLYLE GROUP

He said he was totally stunned by Jimmy Carter's defeat. Didn't see it coming. 

 DOES HAVING BILLIONS MAKE FOR A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP? NO, HE SAYS, I'M A GROWN MAN AND HAVE TO GET UP DURING THE NIGHT TO (YOU KNOW WHAT)

"Are you all work and no play?" I asked. He said, "I play. Work is my play." But I wondered if some form of play was at hand in his roles as vice chair of the Lincoln Center board, chair of the Kennedy Center board and a member of the Ford's Theater board. Seems quite likely. 

HE OWNS DUNKIN DONUTS, SO WHY NOT BUY DC'S OWN GEORGETOWN CUPCAKE? HE DIDN'T COMMIT, BUT HE DID ACCEPT A DOZEN ADORNED WITH THE CARLYLE LOGO. 

Where are the jobs? Where is the future? China. Turkey. Brazil. Saudi Arabia. India. What languages does he speak? "Only English," he said. "Anywhere in the world it is the language of business."

 AFTER OUR TAPED INTERVIEW, RUBENSTEIN GRACIOUSLY TAKES SOME Q'S FROM THE AUDIENCE