Motion Picture Association of America Chairman Chris Dodd set off a firestorm of criticism last week when he suggested that Hollywood would withhold campaign money from President Obama and lawmakers who don’t toe the Hollywood line on online piracy.

Losing support of the entertainment industry would not be insignificant for the president: In 2011, DreamWorks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg gave $2 million to Priorities USA, the super PAC backing Obama. Another major bankroller is Harvey Weinstein, co-founder of Miramax Films, who along with Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour last August co-hosted a $71,600-a-couple fundraiser for Obama at his New York home.

But so far at least, Party Time hasn’t detected any slowdown in the entertainment industry’s enthusiasm for the president, despite the White House’s decision to put the brakes on the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). Just a few days before the White House raised concerns about the legislation, which is being enthusiastically backed by the entertainment industry, Obama was raising funds at  the New York City  home of director Spike Lee.

In addition, Party Time records show a Feb. 7 Runway to Win fundraiser scheduled for the Obama Victory Fund 2012. Hosts for the event include: Wintour, actress Scarlet Johansson,  hip-hop moguls Sean Combs and Russell Simmons, singer Beyonce, and fashion designers Diane Von Furstenberg, Marc Jacobs and Vera Wang. Party Time records also show a Jan. 9 reception fundraiser in DC featuring featuring singer-songwriter Sarah Bareilles. Both the fashion and music industries support SOPA.

Meanwhile, back in Washington, the SOPA debate has set off a $100 million lobbying war. Both the entertainment companies who back SOPA and the tech giants who oppose it have lined up blue-chip lobbyists who are regulars on the Party Time circuit.

Former Rep. Victor Fazio, D-Calif., now a lobbyist at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, LLP, represents AT& T, a proponent of SOPA. He was one of the hosts at a dinner fundraiser benefiting Democrats Win Seats, the leadership PAC of Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., a SOPA supporter and the Democratic Party’s national chair. Reps. Karen Bass, D-Calif and Ted Deutch D-Fla., both SOPA supporters, and Reps. Adam Smith, D-Wash., and Bruce Braley, SOPA opponents, were listed among those scheduled to attend. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, Senate Judiciary Committee member and one of the four co-sponsors of PIPA, has had several  fundraisers featuring lobbyists from tApple (has not formally stated a position on SOPA), the Motion Picture Association of America, Time Warner and Time Warner Cable.

And as we’ve previously told you in this space, companies backing SOPA have held several fundraisers benefitting Reps. Howard Berman, Adam Schiff, Joe Baca and Mary Bono Mack of California .

Not to be outdone, the tech industry, which sent a powerful message Jan. 18 about its distaste for SOPA on popular websites such as  Google, Wikipedia and Craigslist, has been well represented on the Party Time circuit.

Rep. Tim Griffin, R-Ark., a member of the Judiciary Committee is one of the 27 co-sponsors of SOPA; on the day of the online protest, he issued a press release withdrawing his support, saying his constituents have “made clear” their opposition to legislation.   Alex Vogel of Mehlman, Vogel and Castagnetti, who once worked for then-Republican Senate Leader Bill Frist, was one of the four hosts for Griffin’s reception in early December of last year. Vogel clients include CC Media Holdings, eBay Inc., Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers and Yahoo! Inc.  Yahoo! and eBay are opponents of SOPA. Also hosting the fundraiser were other lobbyists representing a range of communications interests, including some on both sides of the SOPA debate:  Marc Lampkin, who represents AT&T, Microsoft Corporation, Sony Corporation and Visa Inc. Kathryn Lehman, who represents Google Inc. and Verizon Communications, and Susan Hirschmann, who represents Comcast Corporation, National Cable & Telecommunications Association, Recording Industry Association of America; US Chamber of Commerce and Visa Inc.

Sen. John Cornyn R-Texas, the chairman National Republican Senatorial Committee and a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee member, is another former backer of anti-piracy legislation who shifted his position.  Cornyn’s Alamo PAC had two fundraisers featuring a lobbyist from Clear Channel, Verizon Communications and AT&T, all supporters of SOPA. But after the online protest, the Texan took to  Facebook to share misgivings about the legislation those companies are backing.“Better to get this done right rather than fast and wrong. Stealing content is theft, plain and simple, but concerns about unintended damage to the internet and innovation in the tech sector require a more thoughtful balance, which will take more time,” Cornyn wrote.

Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., also once supported the anti-piracy bill but now opposes it. According to Party Time records, he had a fundraiser hosted by lobbyists Doyle Barlett and Becky Relic. Barlett represents clients such as Comcast Corporation, eBay, and the US Chamber of Commerce. Relic represents eBay. Another supporter-turned-opponent, Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., had a fundraiser in which three of the hosts are lobbyists who represent Comcast, National Cable and Telecommunications Association, Time Warner Cable and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

There are a few lawmakers who have not formally expressed a stand on SOPA. One example is House Oversight Committee member Rep. Ed Towns, D-N.Y. At his 25th Annual Taste of New York fundraising event,  Towns had lobbyists representing both sides of the SOPA debate as hosts. Paul Braitwaite, a lobbyist for the Podesta Group represents Google, Time Warner Cable and the National Association of Broadcasters is listed as one of the hosts. The list of hosts for Towns event also included Roger Mott with Verizon Communications, Lyndon Boozer of AT&T, Matt Gelman of Microsoft and Jesse McCollum, a lobbyist with the Eris Group representing the Comcast Corporation.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., is pledging not to accept PAC money in her personal campaign account to be consistent with the practices of the Democratic National Committee, where she will take over as chair on May 4, her spokesperson said.

Tuesday will be the last day for PACs to donate to her campaign, and they will have the chance at a top dollar fundraiser Monday night, according to an invitation to the event.

The DNC has vowed to steer clear of both PAC and lobbyist money since 2008, when Barack Obama, as the Democrats’ presumptive candidate for president, made the announcement.

“Since she’ll be the DNC chair, on her personal campaign she’ll be following that same guideline,” the congresswoman’s spokesperson Jonathan Beeton said.

Beeton said he did not know whether she would accept donations from lobbyists to her re-election fund going forward.

The Monday night fundraiser allows PACs one more chance to show the new chief fundraiser for the Democratic Party how much they support her.

The flyer notes that “PAC contributions must be received by May 3, 2011” and solicits an unusually high donation from PACs for a single event: $10,000. The maximum PAC-to-candidate contribution is $5,000 per election but that amount can be applied to the primary and general elections.

If $10,000 is too high for some, the invitation also suggests that PACs give $5,000, $2,500 or $1,000. Individuals may attend for $500.

Without PAC money, the Florida congresswoman—who is running for re-election—will have to rely much more heavily on individual donors if she wants to raise the kind of money she did in 2010. For that election, nearly 60 percent of her over $1.9 million campaign fund was supplied by PAC money, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Lobbyists gave her over $85,000, according to CRP.

In the first quarter of this year, only about one quarter of the nearly $245,000 she raised came from PACs, including $5,000 from the American Hospital Association, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, the union Unite Here, and the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America, according to the Federal Election Commission.

Beeton added that, “She’ll take the steps necessary steps to remain competitive in her congressional district.”

As governors and legislators in many states attempt to curb public sector union benefits, congressional Democrats have turned to organized labor for campaign donations at Washington, D.C., fundraisers.

Since February, when the state labor disputes gained national attention, Democrats have scheduled at least 15 events that were either targeted at labor donor or hosted by unions, Party Time records show. There are at least four such fundraisers on tap next week, which would mean a total of 19 over a two-month span.

Democrats turned to labor at least as many times during the same period last year, Party Time files show, but the fundraisers are more relevant this year when unions could use a lawmaker’s support in legislative battles back in their home state.

Two battleground states for unions are Wisconsin, where Gov. Scott Walker has signed a law curbing government unions’ collective bargaining rights, and Ohio, where a similar bill passed the state Senate on Mar. 2.

Rep. Betty Sutton, D-Ohio, planned a fundraiser on Mar. 10 aimed at labor and the Federal-Postal Coalition, which includes many unions as well as management organizations. A day later, Sutton’s presence was a draw for a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Labor Council fundraiser, which sought to bring in between $5,000 and $15,000 from labor PACs. Sutton co-chairs the council. Her office has not replied to a phone call asking if she attended the fundraisers.

Last election, the Ohio lawmaker benefited from over $325,000 in PAC donations from labor, $150,000 more than the average given to Democrats, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. She won a closely contested race.

Earlier this month, Sutton took to the House floor to criticize the Ohio legislation, saying, “the unfair, backward-thinking attack on Ohio’s firefighters, police, teachers, nurses, and other dedicated public employees must be stopped.” She joined protesters of the law at the Ohio Statehouse the week before.

Back on Feb. 10, a day before Walker unveiled his controversial plan, Badger State Rep. Gwen Moore. D-Wis., put on a “labor meet and greet” event, the invitation to which made clear that the event was “not a fundraiser” and “open to all Labor interests.” The affair, which Moore attended, was designed for the congresswoman to talk about her priorities for labor and was attended by donors who have traditionally supported her, according to a campaign spokesman.

Last week, Moore made a speech on the House floor to recognize “Wisconsin’s Fabulous 14,” the state’s Senate Democrats who fled to Illinois to prevent a vote on Gov. Walker’s controversial bill. In the speech, Moore said she was in Madison on Mar. 12, along with about 100,000 people, to welcome the senators back.

In New York, as Gov. Mario Cuomo seeks concessions from state workers, at least two of the state’s representatives have booked labor moneymakers this month. Steve Israel, D-N.Y., the chair of the DCCC, planned two events within a week of each other at the offices of the Teamsters union, according to Party Time invitations.

His delegation colleague, Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., has scheduled two labor breakfasts this month including one next week, which asks union PACs to donate between $1,000 and $5,000. A slew of groups, including the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, have signed up to invite their labor colleagues to the event.

The lone Republican with a labor event on schedule over the last two months is Frank LoBiondo, R-N.J., who received more contributions from labor than any other sector last election, according to CRP. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie wants public sector unions to pay more for their pensions and health care.

Out in California, as Gov. Jerry Brown has partnered with government unions in his state budget proposal, Laura Richardson, D-Calif., scheduled back-to-back events last week – first in Washington and then in her district. Her colleague Sam Farr, D-Calif., has booked a labor fundraiser next week.

Tomorrow, on the day the House votes to repeal the health care reform law, Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., has booked a fundraising lunch specifically catering to health care industry donors.

And as the Republican-led repeal effort unfolds tomorrow, there are nine other fundraisers planned for GOP members of the Energy and Commerce committee such as Guthrie on Wednesday and Thursday alone, giving ample opportunity for health care industry lobbyists and PAC managers to find face time with the crucial players in the health care debate.

The committee will be working on changes to the health care law this Congress, as an all-out repeal is unlikely to pass the Democratic-controlled Senate.

Other than these events, Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., also on the committee, has planned a duck hunt fundraiser on Friday, with suggested PAC donations of $2,000 or $5,000, in his home state.

Throughout the week, at least 29 fundraisers have been planned for House Republicans and Democrats, according to Party Time’s database.

John Shimkus, R-Ill., one of the top-ranking members on the Energy and Commerce panel, has booked a lunch at Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar in downtown D.C. tomorrow, asking PACs for as much as $2,000 at the event.

On Thursday morning, just before the House is scheduled to meet at 9 a.m., both Guthrie and Shimkus have early breakfasts scheduled at the Capitol Hill Club. That morning, the House will be considering a resolution to instruct relevant committees to report bills to replace the 2010’s health care overhaul law.

Asked about the timing of the events, Shimkus spokesman Steve Tomaszewski said, “They were set before the schedule was changed.”

A vote on the repeal was originally planned for last week but was postponed by House leadership after the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., and 18 others in Tucson, Ariz.

Neither Shimkus nor Guthrie has confirmed that the events are indeed taking place.

Meanwhile, tomorrow morning, Ed Whitfield, R-Ky., another top-ranking Energy and Commerce member, will be holding court at the Capitol Hill Club, a few hours before Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., the panel’s vice chair of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade, has planned a lunch there.

Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, an advocate of health care repeal and the chair emeritus of the committee, is scheduled to be honored at a “Return to the ‘Hill’” dinner tomorrow night at Charlie Palmer Steakhouse.

Two other committee members — Tim Murphy, R-Pa. and Phil Gingrey, R-Ga., co-chairs of the GOP doctor’s caucus — have made Thursday at noon a convenient time for lobbyists and PAC managers by planning simultaneous fundraisers at the Capitol Hill Club. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Gingrey was one of the top recipients of health care professionals campaign contributions last election cycle; Murphy raked in more from the health industry than any other.

Other GOP House members with scheduled fundraisers Wednesday and Thursday include Reps. Charlie Dent, R-Pa., Thad McCotter, R-Mich., Devin Nunes, R-Calif., Jim Gerlach, R-Penn., Sam Graves, R-Mo. (with two events), and Duncan Hunter, R-Calif.

Chief Deputy Whip Peter Roskam, R-Ill., has also included a fundraiser in his schedule this week: a Thursday breakfast at the downtown lobbying firm BGR group.

On the Democrats’ side, Reps. Russ Carnahan, D-Mo., and Joe Baca, D-Calif., have scheduled shindigs. Of course, the usual disclaimer applies here: there are likely more events taking place as Party Time does not grab all of Washington’s fundraisers.

Correction: Originally, this post mistakenly stated that Rep. Russ Carnahan represents Kansas. As a reader pointed out, he represents Missouri.

In the public square, taking PAC money can be a political liability – opponents can criticize candidates for cuddling up to big business and special interests rather than individual voters.

But in the exclusive sphere of $1,000-per-head fundraisers, could it be that the more PAC donors a candidate gets, the more likely that other PACs — and big spenders — will contribute?

In the hotly contested tossup in Michigan 7th district, which has attracted more outside money than any other House race, former GOP Rep. Tim Walberg apparently believes so.

A long list of “PACs Suppporting Tim Walberg” is on the invitation to his noon fundraiser in Detroit today – asking for $1,000 from PACs — just a week before the election. In a year when many candidates across the country are painting their opponents as Washington insiders tied special interests, it’s unusual to see one touting his own connection to PACs.

The list includes oil companies Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips, many big banks – a national bugaboo since the bank bailout — and energy and manufacturing conglomerate Koch Industries, whose billionaire owners, Charles and David Koch, are behind exclusive twice-a-year strategy sessions with top Republican financiers.

It is in fact his opponent – Rep. Mark Schauer, D-Mich. — who has attracted more than three times more PAC donations (over $1 million) than Walberg, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

The Democrat has out-fundraised his opponent overall, leaving him with about $850,000 to spend in the final stretch of the campaign, more than double Walberg’s bounty, according to CRP data from mid-October.

One of Walberg’s biggest benefactors, who also headlines today’s invitation, is Michigan-connected lobbyist Mark Valente, president of the DC firm Valente and Associates. The firm’s executives have sent nearly $10,000 to the campaign, and Valente is listed as a host on invitations to three Walberg fundraisers in the past year, according to Party Time records.

Valente, whose clients include Abercrombie and Fitch and the parent company of the North American Coal Corporation, was a city councilman in the Detroit suburbs in the 1980s. He is a former Reagan official and director of coalition development at the Republican National Committee, according to his bio.

The finance chair of the Michigan Republican Party, Robert Schostak, is also listed on today’s fundraiser. The state party has spent nearly $500,000 supporting Walberg and opposing Schauer in the race, according to Sunlight’s outside spending tracker.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, write-in-Alaska, is still the top Republican on the Senate Energy committee even as she runs to retain her seat after losing the G.O.P. primary to Tea Party-powered rival Joe Miller, but lobbyists for interests regulated by her committee are raising money for a senator in the running to be her successor.

Next week, Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., – is set to hold a fundraiser, though he’s not up for re-election in 2010. On the invitation to Barrasso’s event, at least three energy industry lobbyists are listed as hosts. Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., who with Barrasso are the next-ranking Republicans on the Energy Committee, is also holding an event, headlined by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. Burr faces voters this November.

Burr and Barrasso, like the woman they might succeed, have benefited from campaign contributions from industries they oversee. As the ranking member, Murkowski has amassed over $800,000 in campaign donations from the energy and natural resources sector, trumping all other sectors, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Burr and Barrasso have received a few hundred thousand dollars less, and both have received more support from other sectors.

Both senators have a major energy company in their home states – Alpha Natural Resources (which merged with Foundation Coal) in Barrasso’s Wyoming and Duke Energy in Burr’s North Carolina — that are among their biggest campaign contributors, according to CRP.

Burr’s $2,000-per-PAC fundraiser is at the Capitol Hill eatery Johnny’s Half Shell while Barrasso is holding his annual Italian buffet event, asking donors for between $250 and $2,500, at UPS’s Hill townhouse. Two coal industry lobbyists are listed as hosts on the invitation, including one that  has lobbied on clean coal issues that Barrasso has promoted in the Senate. David DiStefano lobbied this year for Baard Energy on “energy legislation related to coal-to-liquid fuels,” according to his lobbyist disclosure form.  The company is developing a coal liquefaction plant in Ohio. The other industry lobbyist is Mark Valente of North American Coal.

Barrasso has been a supporter of clean coal technology, writing a letter criticizing a White House official for questioning the technology’s viability. He was also a co-sponsor of the Coal-to-Liquid Fuel Promotion Act of 2007.

Alpha Natural Resources – which merged with Foundation Coal, Barrasso’s second largest campaign donor  – has lobbied for a federal loan program for “qualifying coal-to-liquids” facilities as well as “all provisions providing incentives for investment in carbon capture and sequestration.” The company operates mines in Wyoming. Barrasso has introduced a bill to authorize the Secretary of Energy to give financial rewards for carbon capture technology.

Greg Pensabene, another host for Barrasso’s Italian buffet, lobbies for Anadarko Petroleum, part owner of the well drilled by the infamous Deepwater Horizon oil rig, which exploded causing a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Barrasso has criticized Senate Democrats for removing the oil spill liability cap entirely; he said doing so would create a monopoly for the biggest oil companies. On the Senate floor he disagreed with the “overly broad drilling moratorium that’s been imposed by the Obama Administration.”

He added that the oil spill commission was “stacked with people who philosophically oppose offshore exploration.”

Barrasso has tried to establish a separate, bipartisan commission by introducing an amendment to the energy committee’s Outer Continental Shelf Reform Act of 2010. Pensabene reported lobbying on that bill.

Burr, who planned at least three fundraisers this week, has raised nine times more money than his challenger, and his race is considered “likely Republican” by the Cook Political Report.

If Burr is offered the energy panel ranking position, he would have to step down as ranking member of the Veterans Affairs Committee, something he told The Hill he would “seriously consider.”

Republicans elected not to remove Murkowski from top energy post since they expect her to lose in November, CNN reported. However, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell did push Murkowski to relinquish her spot as vice-chair of the Senate Republican Conference after she decided to run a write-in campaign.

In the waning days of the Congressional session, two lobbyists for a powerful company specializing in cancer treatment are hosting a number of fundraisers. The lawmakers who will benefit have power over legislation that could mean hefty profits for the firm.

The duo — Geoff Werth and Matt Brow — represent US Oncology, a little-known but powerful company that provides services to cancer doctors. Brow and Werth have scheduled at least eight parties for the last two weeks of September, seven of which celebrate — while asking for contributions of $1,000 to $5,000 a guest — lawmakers that can influence bills that would benefit US Oncology.

The company owns a specialty pharmacy that distributes oral chemotherapy drugs, an alternative to the traditional IV-administered variety. US Oncology moves a serious volume of these drugs — in 2006, Forbes magazine reported that the firm had become the largest single purchaser of chemo drugs in the nation.

An obscure bill that would require private insurers to cover oral chemotherapy drugs at an equal rate as the intravenous ones has been languishing in committee since June of 2009.  Three of the lawmakers being feted this month — Rep. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ariz. and Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore. — sit on one of the committees that is considering the bill.

Four of the other lawmakers on Werth and Brow’s fundraising circuit have control over another bill — one that would adjust Medicare payments for certain kinds of drugs. Oncologists’ groups are supporting the legislation, which would increase reimbursement rates for cancer clinics like those of US Oncology’s clients. Senators Chuck Schumer, D., N.Y-Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Robert Menendez, D-N.J., all sit on the committee to which the bill was referred in June of last year.

US Oncology representatives lobbied Congress on both of these bills between April and June of 2010, according to federal lobbying disclosure reports. The company’s PAC has also contributed $440,000 to federal candidates during the 2010 cycle, to both Democrats and Republicans, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Although it garners few headlines, US Oncology is a heavy hitter in the health care business. According to its financial filings, the company brought in $918 million in revenue in the second quarter of 2010. The firm provides a host of services to cancer doctors, either directly or through its subsidiaries, including billing, electronic medical records services and the conducting of clinical trials. There are more than 1,300 physicians in its network and 101 clinical trials open to enrollment.

US Oncology has seen its share of controversy in the past. As Forbes reported in 2006, four whistleblower lawsuits have been brought against the company alleging improper Medicare billing. Although the Department of Justice must investigate any such claim, none of the suits made it to trial.

Werth and Brow didn’t respond to phone calls for this story. Here is a list of the parties Werth and Brow are holding this month:

* September 14: Dinner and cocktails to toast Rep. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., at $2,500 per PAC

* September 16: Breakfast at The Source by Wolfgang Puck for Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., at $1,000 to $5,000

* September 21: Breakfast for Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.; contributions starting at $1,000 to $5,000

* September 21: Reception for Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J.,  at $1,000 per individual and $2,500 per PAC

* September 27: Dinner at Bistro Bis for the Senate Majority Fund and Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., at $1,000 to $5,000 contribution

* September 29: $1,000 to $5,000 lunch at Charlie Palmer steak house for Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.

* September 29: Dinner at Charlie Palmer steak house for Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark.; $1,500 to $5,000

* September 30: Breakfast for Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore. – $1,000 to $2,500 contribution.

On the final two days of the Wall St. reform conference, committee members Reps. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill. and Ed Towns, D-N.Y., have each planned fundraising lunches at the home of Tim Rupli, a lobbyist for the financial industry.

Today at noon, soon after the committee began its work at 10 a.m., it’s Rep. Ed Towns’ turn to fundraise at Rupli’s New Jersey Ave. townhouse, a very popular party spot for lawmakers which was featured in a 2008 USA Today article. The invitation to Towns’ lunch asks $500 from individual donors and $1,000 from PACs. Towns will be there, his press secretary said. “If it doesn’t impact his work, and he knows that better than anybody, I’m sure he’ll make an appearance [at the fundraiser]….He’s a big boy, he knows what he’s doing,” Julian Phillips said.

Yesterday, at noon, before the committee opened just after 1:00, Gutierrez had planned a lunch at the Rupli Townhouse, where donors could attend for between $500 and $2,500. However, that lunch, for some reason, was moved to La Lomita Dos, a downtown Mexican restaurant. The congressman planned to at least stop by, his press secretary said.

Among several financial industry groups that Rupli represents, one of his clients is the Community Financial Services Association, a payday loan industry group still hoping for a loophole in the final bill, the Wall Street Journal reported. CFSA paid Rupli’s firm $240,000 in the first quarter, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. CFSA and the $42 billion payday loan industry has been lobbying against the series of bills attempting to regulate the payday industry since last year.

As chairman of the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, Gutierrez introduced the Payday Loan Reform Act of 2009 last year. He got flack from consumer groups, who said the bill was too weak. Later he vowed to reject any contributions from the payday industry, saying, “I want to avoid even the appearance that there is a conflict, so I will not be accepting any contributions from the payday loan industry.”

Keep in mind that, Rupli may not have been present at the Gutierrez lunch — it could be held at his pad without him. (Rupli was listed as a host to the Towns’ lunch).

Towns, as chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, has less conference committee responsibility than Guiterrez, who sits on the Financial Services Committee. Most votes are voted on by the financial services and banking members, without the outside conferees, said Kurt Bardella, press secretary for Rep. Darrell Issa, R- Calif.

CFSA hasn’t contributed to Gutierrez’s campaign this cycle, but it gave $2,000 to Towns, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Rupli has contributed $2,400 to Gutierrez and $1,000 to Towns this cycle, according to CRP.

But another Rupli client is a big Gutierrez backer: the Independent Community Bankers of America, which lobbied against the Durbin amendment to regulate debit card swipe fees. ICBA is Gutierrez’s biggest donor this cycle, at $10,000, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

ICBA spent $4.75 million lobbying last year, including over $400,000 on Mr. Rupli’s services, according to CRP.

Finally, there is another Rupli client that has a stake in financial reform: the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association. The group scored a victory this week; in a compromise reached on the “swipe fees” amendment, prepaid cards were exempted from regulation. Russell Simmons is celebrating.

BP lobbyists planned at least 53 fundraising parties for  lawmakers and candidates since 2008,  including eleven this calendar year, according to an analysis of Party Time congressional fundraising data and federal lobbying data from the Center for Responsive Politics.

Nine out of 11 fundraisers we have on file for this year are those hosted either by Tony Podesta or other lobbyists for his firm, the Podesta Group, who represent the company, now under enormous scrutiny as oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill continues to foul the Louisiana coast and beyond. As the Washington Times reported earlier this week, the well  connected Podesta is the source of “tens of thousands” of dollars for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee–which has been pushing a for a petition to hold BP “accountable” while accusing Republicans of making excuses for “bad environmental actors.”

While most of the Podesta-related events are for Democrats, at least one is for a Republican, Rep. John Thune, R-S.D.

Below are fundraisers hosted by BP lobbyists for this calendar year. We have also attached a spreadsheet that includes the full list of fundraising parties associated with BP lobbyists. One word of caution: we have not called each person on this list to verify their identity, nor do we always know that the fundraiser took place or if a specific lawmaker listed on an invitation actually was present. We offer this list as a guide for reporting on these fundraisers. Also, the Party Time data is collected from anonymous donors and is not a complete list, so there could be many more fundraisers that were held.

• Paul Brathwaite and Cristina Antelo, who both lobby for the Podesta Group, were among numerous hosts for a party benefiting CHC-BOLD PAC, a PAC for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, on May 26.
• Tim Glassco, also a lobbyist for the Podesta Group, was a host of this “young professionals” happy hour for Rep. Glen Nye, D-Va., on May 25.
• Dan Meyer, a lobbyist for the Duberstein Group, was a  host of this event on April 29  for would-be GOP California senator Carly Fiorina California, GOPer.
• Tony Podesta and his wife, Heather, hosted this breakfast on April 28 for Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla.
• Courtney Johnson, a lobbyist for the Alpine Group, was one of a long list of hosts for this luncheon for Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich.
• Tony Podesta and his wife Heather were hosts of this reception for Rep. Paul Hodes, D-N.H., who is running for the Senate, on March 11.
• Paul Braithwaite of the Podesta Group was a host for this reception for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, on February 24 and this one on February 10. It is curious that both events, so close together, list a similar group of hosts.
• Tony Podesta and his wife, Heather, opened their home for this star-studded event–many other Democratic House members are also billed as appearing on the invitation–for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on February 9.
• On February 4, Podesta Group lobbyists Kimberly Fritts (who represented BP in 2009) and Randall Gerard hosted this party for Rep. John Thune, R-S.D.
• Tony and Heather Podesta were among the hosts for this fundraiser on January 12 for failed Massachusetts Senate candidate Martha Coakley.

We have a couple of hunting fundraisers on file for Rep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.), who is reportedly the lawmaker seeking to exempt the National Rifle Association (NRA) from the DISCLOSE Act to require more disclosure of campaign finance advertisements.

Both are at the Wynfield plantation in Georgia. One, on December 13, 2009, asked donors for $2,500 to participate. The other, was a weekend long  quail hunting trip in March 2009.

Shuler has gotten $3,500 directly from the NRA’s PAC this election cycle.

Click here to see a list of congressional fundraisers that feature hunting as the entertainment, and here to see parties hosted by the NRA.

(Hat tip: Ellen Miller.)