“Morning Joe” co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski exchanged wedding vows Saturday in front of the Constitution, Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights in Washington D.C.’s National Archives, Vanity Fair reports.
The ceremony, officiated by Rep. Elijah Cummings, was a well-held secret. No invitations were sent out; instead the couple opted to call family and close friends, who weren’t told of the location until the day of the wedding, according to VF.
“We wanted it to be really small and simple and not what you expected from Mika and Joe,” Brzezinski explained to VF. “Everything we do is exposed, and everything felt exposed every step of the way, so we want this to be private until it’s over. We wanted to recognize it more quietly and have the people who are most important to us around us. And you know, our show is a cocktail party every morning.”
With Congress out of session and President Trump in Palm Beach, D.C. was quiet. The Archives building — which had never before been the site of a wedding — was closed to the public Saturday evening with only its security and staff around to shepherd the couple, their five guests and their children.
A little after 6:30 p.m. EST, Scarborough and Brzezinski entered the Archives rotunda from opposite sides, as a string quartet played Handel’s “Arrival of the Queen of Sheba.” They met in the center of the room.
“We did an event there more than a year ago and we were just blown away, seeing all these documents and how we felt seeing them,” Brzezinski told Emily Jane Fox, who was reporting for Vanity Fair, before the ceremony. “It makes sense now more than ever, given what we stand for as a couple, what we do for a living, and what we’re worried about as a country.”
Following the ceremony, a small reception of about 40 people was held at a French bistro, Chez Billy Sud. Cummings toasted the newlyweds, saying, “I am here tonight because of the important work Joe and Mika do every day and to celebrate them and the love they have for each other and their kids.” He added, “Make wonderful memories because at some point that’s all you will have.”