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It's that time of the year again when the Irish descend on Washington, the rivers run green,

and the Taoiseach holds his breath, hoping and praying.

He gets out of the White House unscathed after his fireside chat with President Trump.

Mihul Martin pretty much pulled it off for the second year in a row yesterday.

As the Irish Times puts it today, he faced a choice between sitting in meek, safe silence or speaking up, and he chose the latter.

So that's what we'll be discussing on this edition of Red Lions.

I'm Mark Carruthers with me to cast a critical eye over this year's

talking points, not least how an Irish Prime Minister found himself very publicly defending

his UK counterpart, our political editor, Enda McLaughordy, who's in the US Capitol, also in

Washington, BBC News Chief presenter Katrina Perry. Louise Byrne, political correspondent at the Irish Examiner, is

in Dublin, as is Professor Liam Kennedy, Director of the Clinton Institute for American

Studies at UCD. Welcome to all of you. Thanks very much indeed for taking time to join us on the

podcast today. And just start with you, broadly speaking, it looks like

Miho Martin came out of the White House in one piece yesterday, but it wasn't what you'd call

straightforward. No, that's right, Mark. I think it was very much mission accomplished for Team

Taoiseach because that's ultimately what they want. They do not want the headlines. They do not

want that encounter with Donald Trump to take a wrong turn. And all of us. Tishok because that's ultimately what they want. They do not want the headlines. They do not want

that encounter with Donald Trump to take a wrong turn and all of a sudden they become

headlines for all the wrong reasons. And it was clear yesterday, Mehal Martin's early strategy was

basically to sit out much of those tricky questions for the president around the Middle East

war, what he plans to do next. And obviously, the fallout

...