Part of a series on Fundraising Spots Around the Capitol

Early yesterday evening, after the carrots and dip were cleared away, the new chief of staff to Chris Gibson, part of the large GOP freshman class going through orientation this week, left the Associated General Contractors of America townhouse, which he rented out for a fundraiser, with one of the group’s lobbyists.

Lobbyists stopped by to greet Gibson and his top aide during the hour and a half event, which asked for as much as $2,500 from political action committees to retire the former West Point professor’s campaign debt. Stallmer, who is leaving his job as a lobbyist for AGC’s New York chapter, said he chose the restored, red brick townhouse simply for its location, just two blocks south of the Capitol.

The AGC banner opened up their townhouse for meet-and-greets three times this week, said Marco Giamberardino, the lobbyist walking out of the event with Stallmer, adding to the house’s bounty: the group has put on more congressional fundraisers than all other offices and homes near the Capitol, according to an analysis of Party Time’s database. The group represents the construction industry, and its lobbying activities revolve around opposing new regulations on federal contractors, improving the business climate for the industry and pushing for more federal infrastructure investment.

AGC is just one of the 22 trade associations and two unions seeking to influence Congress that have houses or offices around the Capitol where members put on fundraisers, the analysis showed. [See the embeddable map: Where the sites are and who holds the most events]

All of the 24 groups have political action committees and holding congressional fundraisers helps them further their goals. AGC’s lobbyists often attend the fundraisers at the townhouse, AGC lobbyist Jeff Shoaf said, and its PAC has donated nearly $900,000 to campaign coffers last election, about three fourths of which went to Republicans, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

“There is 15 to 29 percent unemployment in our industry; we want people to think about that,” Shoaf said, adding, “we want people to think about creating jobs in our industry.”

Though Gibson’s event was rather sober, it was an ideal warm up for the bevy of fundraisers on the Hill last night, where lobbyists were marketing themselves to incoming freshman members. One lobbyist leaving Gibson’s informal affair said he would attend 10 schmooze-fests just last night; Stallmer himself said he went to seven this week. Why? “It’s called networking,” Stallmer said.

Only a half block away from this venue is another popular location: the Capitol Hill Club, a private Republican club abutting the National Republican Committee. And just after 6 p.m. last night, it was a party, packed to the gills with lobbyists, staffers and members of Congress for a slew of fundraisers.

Giamberardino said that AGC does not favor one political party, noting that the group supports Democrats Tim Bishop, D-N.Y., (planner of many fundraisers at the house) and Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chair Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., both champions of infrastructure spending. Both are among the top recipients of AGC PAC money.

Stallmer brushed away the suggestion that Gibson got particular support from contractors, even though only two House candidates received more donations (including individual donors and PACs) from general contractors than Gibson last election, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Though he said he unaware which industries donated the most to his new boss, he knew how much AGC’s PAC had given.

“AGC didn’t even max out on Gibson,” Stallmer said.

Gibson received nearly $5,000 from AGC’s PAC, CRP data shows, about half of the maximum legal contribution from PACs to candidates.

The donation was given days after what FEC records show was a late June fundraiser at the AGC townhouse. The catering and $150 charge to rent the space was donated to the Gibson campaign as an in-kind contribution.

To allow members of Congress and Hill aides to attend their annual fundraising golf tournaments free of charge, Washington’s premier partisan clubs get ethics waivers from the House Ethics Committee, according to the clubs’ managers.

These clubs — the Capitol Hill Club and the National Democratic Club — are popular spots for political fundraisers and members, aides and lobbyists sit on their boards of directors.

A ticket to the Capitol Hill Club’s “Annual Republican Leadership Tournament,” held today at the Belle Haven Country Club in Alexandria costs $3,000 for a foursome. On July 19, it’s the NDC’s turn to take the greens at Trump National Club, where a ticket costs twice as much for members and $8,000 for a team of non-members.

At the Capitol Hill Club, members and staffers are allowed to attend as guests, said Stan Lawson, general manager at the club.

Such a gift — golf and free meals — would not seem to be allowed, according to the 2008 House Ethics Manual. Members can accept meals and play in golf tournaments at charity fundraisers, a category which does not include social and recreational clubs.

Calls to the Ethics Committee to ask about the waiver were not returned as of Friday.

National Democratic Club operations manager Dana Ehlman declined to say how many members would play in the 32^nd Annual Tip O’Neill Golf Tournament at in Potomac Falls, Va.

“Two or three” members and the same number of staffers are expected to attend the Capitol Hill Club outing in Alexandria, fewer than usual, because of the event’s timing, right after the Independence Day recess, according to Lawson.

As non-profit, private clubs, the managers said the fundraisers are necessary to maintain their operations.

All year, members pay the clubs to host fundraisers for their campaigns and leadership PACs. This year there are over 500 invitations to Capitol Hill Club fundraisers and over 70 to the NDC and its next door townhouse in Party Time’s database of invitations.

The NDC has members, staffers, and lobbyists on its board of directors, according to its website. As of its 2008 tax return, the same was true for the Capitol Hill Club.

The exemption letter for the NDC is written specifically for the golf tournament, which is the only fundraiser by the club all year, Ehlman said. The Capitol Hill Club puts on three to six fundraisers per year and its exemption allows all of these events, Lawson said.

According to its website, the House Ethics Committee generally does not issue approvals for events but rather leaves the decision to attend to the member. The website says:

At times the Committee receives requests from outside organizations or individuals to ‘approve’ a particular event to which House Members or staff will be invited, or a particular gift. However, in general, the Committee does not grant such approval.

About 150 golfers are expected to compete in the Republican event while 250 are set to participate at Trump National, Lawson and Ehlman said.  At Trump National, teams can also host the event for $20,000 or become a platinum or gold sponsor for $15,000 or $10,000.

The Capitol Hill Club, only one block from the Capitol, is referred to as the “nation’s premier political club” on its website. Its mission is to “advocate and maintain the principles of republicanism as enunciated by the Republican Party while promoting social interaction for its members” according to tax forms. It’s unclear if non-members could play in the tournament; invitations were sent out for the event.

The NDC website says the club welcomes “all Democrats for partisan fraternity.” The only requirement for membership to the NDC is being a Democrat, Ehlman said.

Annual membership to the National Democratic Club costs $1,200, according to its website. Government and national Democratic Party committees employees are asked to pay $540 in annual dues.

The NDC board includes Reps. Mike Capuano, D-Mass., Carolyn McCarthy, D-N.Y., Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., Linda Sanchez, D-Cali, and William Lacy Clay, D-Mo.

As of 2008, Capitol Hill Club’s board included Reps. Ken Calvert, R-Cali., Tom Latham, R-Iowa, Jerry Lewis, R-Cali., Richard Burr, R-N.C., Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., Jim Saxton, R-N.J., along with Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga. and former Reps. Raymond McGrath and Robert Michel.

The Party Time database is made up of invitations received from anonymous lobbyist sources, and does not represent all fundraisers held. Party Time posts invitations as received, but does not double check to see if every event takes place as advertised. If we receive information that an event is canceled or postponed, we amend the database accordingly.

Question: How does House Minority Whip Eric Cantor raise millions of dollars for himself and his GOP colleagues? Answer: Lots of partying. (You can read Party Time’s analysis of a carnival fundraiser Cantor’s leadership PAC hosted last summer in this month’s Harper’s Magazine, payment required.)

Here at Party Time we’ve got more than 60 events in our database–and counting more by the day –either hosted by Rep. Eric Cantor’s campaign committee (click here); his leadership PAC, Every Republican is Crucial (click here); or where he is featured as a draw (click here) to get others to pony up. This easily puts him in the upper rank of partying members of Congress according to our data, along with other leadership figures such as Democrat Rep. Steny Hoyer and GOP House Minority Leader John Boehner.

To help tell the story of how he does it, above is a word cloud made up of words found on his fundraising invitations. And here is a glossary to help understand it.

“CAPITOL HILL CLUB”: The Republicans’ club on the Capitol Hill, and one of the most popular partying spots in the city.

“STARBUCKS” and “COFFEE”: You can find Cantor about once a month at the Starbucks at 237 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, where, for $2,500 per PAC, you can “enjoy your morning cup of coffee with Congressman Cantor.”

“DINNER, RECEPTION,  LUNCH, etc.”: You get the idea. Cantor participates in fundraisers from dawn until dusk, often attending more than on on any particular day.

“DEPOY”: Marty and Sandra Depoy are the lobbyists, largely for real estate interests, who host fundraisers for many lawmakers–Democrats and Republicans alike.

“BOHENER, BLUNT, CAMP, etc.”: Names of GOP members of Congress who are also appearing at or are beneficiaries of fundraisers featuring Cantor.

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After months of paging through invitations we had a pretty good idea where the hottest party spots were for members of Congress and lobbyist donors. But thanks to lots of hard work cleaning up and standardizing the data in our Party Time database, now we really know.

According to these invitations, Congressional fundraisers in 2008 were clustered in a semicircle around the Capitol building in a handful of Washington private clubs, restaurants, and townhouses. The top 20 most popular partying spots accounted for more than half of the 2,117 events we analyzed. In addition to party-operated venues, a handful of pricey restaurants and private townhouses are the site of most of the festivities. Top restaurants included Johnny’s Half Shell, with 120 events (chosen by Gourmet Magazine in 2000 as one of “America’s Best Restaurants); Charlie Palmer Steak, with 83 (named by Washingtonian as one of the best 100 restaurants in 2008); and Bistro Bis (also in Washingtonian’s top 100), with 79.  See the full list of the top 20 top partying spots by clicking here.

That doesn’t mean that some lawmakers don’t do their fundraising in farther flung locales. There are your trips to Vegas, to Daytona International Speedway, to Yankee Stadium. Not to mention the games of golf all over the country. But for the most part, it seems like members of Congress and donors like to stay closer to their workplaces. It’s just a hop, skip, or a jump from these popular party spots to Capitol Hill offices or to a vote on the House or Senate floor.

Many of the parties are at private clubs that cater to one political party or the other, such as the Capitol Hill Club and the National Democratic Club Townhouse or are at restaurants. Many are also at townhouses maintained by particular organizations, such as the Patton Boggs and UPS townhouses. One of the venues on the top 20 list was a townhouse owned by lobbyist Tim Rupli, who lobbies for such clients as the Community Financial Services Association and the Independent Community Bankers of America. The townhouse is the site of parties benefiting Democrats and Republicans.

Overall, the Sunlight Foundation’s Party Time analysis documented 2,117 events in 2008. That amounts to an average of more than 176 per month or nearly six a day. Yet this is certainly an underestimate of the number of fundraising parties held by members of Congress and Congressional candidates throughout the year.

There is no legal requirement these invitations be disclosed. The Sunlight Foundation gathers them from about a dozen anonymous lobbyists sources and welcomes new submissions from trustworthy sources who would like to contribute. We post images of these invitations for viewing on the Sunlight Party Time’s website (politicalpartytime.org) along with a searchable database based on the information. This is the most comprehensive collection of these invitations and the collection grows daily as we post new information.