President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama attend the 2012 Kennedy Center Honors at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., Dec. 2, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson) President and Mrs. Obama last night welcomed a late night television host, an actor, a ballerina, a blues guitarist, and a rock band to the White House for the annual reception saluting the Kennedy Center Honorees. As he introduced David Letterman, Dustin Hoffman, Natalia Makarova, Buddy Guy, and the surviving members of Led Zeppelin to a crowd gathered in the East Room, the President described the honorees as "some extraordinary people who have no business being on the same stage together." Each year the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts celebrates individuals who have made a lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts—whether in dance, music, theater, opera, motion pictures, or television -- and the primary criterion in the selection process is excellence. read more