Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), is headlining a fundraising reception at Johnny’s Half Shell this afternoon for 15 Democrats running for open seats across the country. Also acting as draws are Reps. Bruce Braley, D-Iowa, Donna Edwards, D-Md., Patrick Murphy, D-Pa., and Allyson Schwartz, D-Pa..

The reception is part of the committee’s “Red to Blue” program, which offers financial and strategic support to candidates in hot races. Candidates earn a spot in the program by, among other things, “surpassing demanding fundraising goals.” Most of them could use an infusion of DC cash–nine out of the 15 have raised in the neighborhood of 10 percent or less of their campaign money from out-0f-state, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

The one exception is Raj Goyle, who hopes to represent Kansas’ fourth district, and the only one of the candidates listed who is running in a district rated as “solid Republican” by The Cook Report. Goyle has gotten more cash from the Washington, DC area than any other . Goyle recently told a local TV station, “I think a lot of people are angry at Washington right now, and so am I.”  Despite raising $1.3 million, Goyle was four points behind his main Democratic primary opponent, retiree Robert Tillman, in a recent poll. The winner of the Kansas Democratic primary on Aug. 3 will likely face oilman Wink Hartman, who just put $1.24 million of his own cash into his campaign.

The DCCC is asking for PACs to shell out anywhere from $2,500 to be a “PAC friend,” to $10,000, to be a “PAC Host.” Individuals are asked for $250 to $2,500. PACs and individuals are asked to indicate how they want to direct their contributions to the various campaigns, with the DCCC serving as the conduit.

The 15 Red-to-Blue candidates are:

John Carney, Del.

Chad Causey, Ark.

Lori Edwards, Fla.

Joyce Elliott, Ark.

Joe Garcia, Fla.

Raj Goyle, Kan.

Denny Heck, Wash.

Roy Herron, Tenn.

Julie Lassa, Wis.

Bryan Lentz, Pa.

Gary McDowell, Mich.

Stephene Moore, Kan.

Mike Oliverio. W.Va.

Dan Seals, Ill.
Trent Van Haaften, Ind.

An annual fundraiser for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee next week will open lobbyists up to 50 senior House staffers including top aides to Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, according to a Roll Call report today.

To attend, lobbyists must pay $1,000 and political action committees $2,500 to attend a dinner at the district’s Hotel Monaco.

In additional to senior aides for lawmakers, lobbyists can also chill with senior committee aides including the House ways and Means, Budget and Appropriations Committees. In past years, this event has raised almost $250,000 for the DCCC.

Rep. Sander Levin (D-Mich.) has taken the reins as acting chairman of the influential House Ways and Means Committee, following Rep. Charles Rangel’s (D-N.Y.) decision to take a leave of absence from this post due to ongoing ethics investigations. Levin is already scheduled to host a couple of upcoming fundraisers for fellow Democrats this month, but he’ll have a long way to go if he’s to match Rangel’s fundraising prowess.

Levin will appear at a breakfast fundraiser for Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Ken.) on March 22 at the National Democratic Club Townhouse.  A few days later on March 25, Levin will attend a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Business Council Breakfast fundraiser, where he will be joined by Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-Calif.), Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Ron Klein (D-Fla.). Party Time’s database shows only two other occasions when Levin hosted fundraisers for another lawmaker – once in the spring of 2008 and once in the summer of 2008 – but bear in mind that Party Time does not receive invitations to every fundraiser, and the Michigan lawmaker may well have hosted other events.

When it comes to raising money, Levin is overshadowed by his predecessor. Since he became chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee in 2007, Rangel raised nearly $7 million for his campaign committee, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. In the 2008 election cycle, he donated nearly $1.3 million to Democratic candidates, making him the second biggest donor in candidate-to-candidate contributions. Since 2007, Rangel raised nearly $2.5 million for his leadership PAC, of which a nearly $900,000 was donated to other federal candidates.

In the current election cycle, Levin has raised more than $700,000 and has donated $26,000 to fellow Democratic candidates. He has also donated $140,000 to the DCCC. In the 2010 cycle, Levin’s leadership PAC has raised $18,000.

For reporters watching hot races: on Dec. 2, soon after Thanksgiving break, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) is hosting a “winter reception” at its headquarters; the ask is $15,000 for a host, $10,000 for a “PAC Patron, and $5,000 for a “PAC friend.” (This follows its fall gala back in September and its summer solstice celebration in June–apparently the party committee is quite in tune with the changing seasons.)

The following week, on Dec. 8, the DCCC will host an update and race review–no charge or specific lawmakers listed for that one. But a clue comes from an earlier reception for “DCCC frontliners” on September 10, which features numerous lawmakers deemed vulnerable by the Cook Political Report.

So far the DCCC is winning the money chase against its Republican counterpart, the National Republican Congressional Committee, raising $44.4 million to the NRCC’s $27.2 million, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Congressional Democrats are finding a way around President Barack Obama’s ban on lobbyist contributions, reports Jonathan Martin in Politico today.

Obama is speaking at a dinner tonight at the Mandarin Hotel for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC). In the past this dinner has brought in big lobbyist bucks. But because Obama will be there, the committees won’t be taking lobbyist contributions for the event.

However, lobbyist money will be welcome the next morning at a $5,000-per-head “issues” conference featuring House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), and a variety of committee chairmen. (We don’t have copies of these invitations in our database. If you have them, please send them to us here.)

Reports Politico:

Obama refuses to appear at fundraising events where lobbyists are allowed to contribute money, so the Democrats can’t collect lobbyists’ cash at Thursday night’s dinner. But since the president won’t be at the morning-after event, congressional Democrats will be free to collect the lobbying dollars then that they couldn’t take the night before.

This seems the very definition of violating the spirit of the lobbyist contribution ban–and the piece quotes some anonymous Democratic sources saying it’s Obama’s fault for not reining the Dems in.

Yet at the same time, more anonymous Democratic insiders are quoted griping because the White House won’t help raise lobbyist cash. One says Obama should be leaning on surrogate organizations to send out fundraising alerts. Another points out that the lobbyist money ban puts the committees in a bind:

“It’s kind of like going to Los Angeles and then excluding the entertainment industry,” said a senior Democrat. “Well, then you’re going to have a lame event.”

Seems like Obama’s getting the worst of both worlds right now. He’s getting the blame both because his lobbyist money ban is too weak–and because he won’t pull out the stops to get lobbyist money.

President Barack Obama told the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee not to solicit contributions from lobbyists. However, at least one lobbyist, and most likely many more, received an invite to an upcoming fundraiser featuring the president, reports the National Journal’s “Under the Influence” blog:

[T]he Carville-DCCC invitation was sent to members of HillaryClinton.com’s online community. Hillary Clinton had no prohibition on taking K Street-connected money when she was running against Obama for the Democratic nomination.

As the National Journal said: “Oops!”