Republican flavour to US-Ireland summit as top Democrats fail to show

The US-Ireland Business Summit is the third such high-level event to be held, bringing together people from both parts of Ireland on US soil.

The first, organised by President Bill Clinton in 1995, was called an economic summit but the word "economic" was mostly a fig leaf for a political exercise.

This time it is a truly business affair, with only one minister from North and South taking part and everyone paying their way to the tune of $50,000 (€50,448) per company.

It is being held at a difficult time, with everyone just back after the recess, but has attracted an impressive turnout of chief executives and academics.

The driving force is Ms Susan Davis - yesterday sporting a large golden brooch showing an eagle perched on the globe - who is at pains to emphasise that it is not a Republican but a bipartisan event, despite her Republican Party credentials.

Some heavy-hitting Democrats who always support Irish issues were, however, conspicuous by their absence from a bipartisan reception on Capitol Hill to launch the event on Wednesday evening, notably Senator Edward Kennedy, listed as co-host along with Republican Congressman James Walsh and Senator Hillary Clinton.

A Kennedy aide said there was a "scheduling problem". And rumours swirled that Hillary did not receive an invitation.

Ms Davis is emphatic that one was sent.

Other Democrats did turn up, including Congressman Richard Neal, who said that without the American dimension there would be no Good Friday Agreement.

Veteran Republican Ben Gilman told guests the key to lasting peace was a unified Ireland of peace and justice. But that was as political as it got.

Ms Davis was praised fulsomely by participants for getting the thing off the ground at all after it was cancelled in the wake of September 11th.

Will she organise it annually? A look of weariness passed over her face. "No, I don't think so," she said.