Recently Taz wrote about a “dreamy” new he-ro on television that in reality is just an act-or. Via our News Tab I’d like you all to focus your attention instead on a real hero. The Hill profiles Mohinder Singh, “The most trusted cabbie of Capitol Hill.” He is mild-mannered, works in the shadows, and always gets the job done.
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Rule #1. Never change the deal. Transportation is a precise business. |
Unlike some cab drivers in Washington, Mohinder Singh is not easily riled. No matter if passengers rob him. No matter if they swear at him in a drunken stupor.
“I never fight with a customer,” he says, through a thick Indian accent. “There’s no use to fighting. If someone says, ‘You son of a bitch,’ I say ‘Thank you.’ You cannot make me mad easily…” [Link]
Bruce Banner could learn a thing or two about anger management from Mohinder.
But Singh, 56, clean-cut in a white oxford shirt and khakis, is no typical cabbie. [Link]
Of course! Would I have bothered writing a post about him if that is all he was?
In the past several years, however, Singh has hit a stride, accumulating a famous D.C. clientele that takes him to the homes of some of Washington’s political elite who include Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Howard Dean (better known to Singh as “Mr. Howard,”) former Texas Gov. Ann Richards and Reps. Grace Napolitano (D-Calif.), Rubén Hinojosa (D-Texas), Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) and Tim Bishop (D-N.Y.)…Singh says he accumulated his clientele accidentally. One day he picked up a woman from Southeast who needed to be driven to American University. She told him how hard it was for her to get a cab. So he gave her his number, and for seven to eight months he drove her whenever she called.
“I didn’t know who she was,” he says, explaining that he later found out that she worked for the DNC. The next thing he knew, word traveled fast and Dean’s people came calling. [Link]
Let the record show that Ennis suggested that I title this post “Driving Mr. DNC.”
Just like Jason Statham, a good wheel man needs more than just driving skills. He needs to be skilled in martial arts and be an all around bad ass mother*&*^#! who gets the job done:
He calls Dean a “big shot” politician. “I feel good driving someone of that rank,” he says. “He’s a good man, really nice man. He’s busy, always on the phone. He always introduces me. He called me his ‘personal bodyguard.’” [Link]
I think Mohinder just made up the following story to down-play his skillz. If he makes too many headlines then Karl Rove will inevitably try to enlist Mohinder as an RNC driver.
He enjoys driving a cab even on the tough days, such as the one when a group of kids entered his cab and ran off without paying. Or when a drunken man tried to goad him into a fight, saying, “You see my muscles?” Singh replied, “I have no muscles. I make him happy…” [Link]
Now let’s get to the dirty dirrrrty. We all know what sometimes happens in the back seats of cabs. Tell us the truth Mohinder. Has Dean ever, you know…in the back seat?
So does Dean ever get loud? Singh laughs, shakes his head uncomfortably and says: “I’m just busy driving my cab. No, he doesn’t get loud…” [Link]
I salute you Mohinder Singh. Next time you are in D.C., keep an eye out for Mohinder. He’s around.
