Salon.com > Fundraiser

$100 to play Star Wars trivia with a congressman

Tue, 07 May 2013 20:33:00 +0000

There's a reason the White House Correspondents Dinner is often called "nerd prom" -- Washington is full of them -- so perhaps it's no surprise that a congressman is holding a Star Wars-themed fundraiser, complete with cocktails local to Tatooine and a soundtrack provided by a the Max Rebo Band, the fictional alien ensemble that performs in Jaba the Hutt's Palace.

And in case that's not nerdy enough, the fundraiser for upstate New York Democratic Rep. Dan Maffei this month also features a "Galactic Trivia Battle." "A long time ago in a galaxy far far away," the invitation reads, "rebels and imperial soldiers gathered for an epic battle that would determine the fate of the universe."

For $100 a person or $1,000 for a PAC (about 50 and 500 Galactic Standard Credits, respectively), you too can use an Obama-esque "Jedi mind-meld" to propel your team to victory.

Who gets a shout-out at a $25K Obama fundraiser?

Mon, 08 Oct 2012 16:54:00 +0000

President Barack Obama spoke to an exclusive bunch of donors at a $25,000 fundraiser at the Ritz-Carlton in Los Angeles. Attendees included George Clooney, DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg and film producer Harvey Weinstein. In a crowd like that, here are a few of the folks who got a presidential shout out.

The guy who introduces him

"Thank you so much. Everybody, please have a seat. First of all, you just heard from the future of the Democratic Party -- the great Mayor of San Antonio, Julian Castro. (Applause.) We're so proud of him."

The first lady

"Some of you are aware that -- well, all of you are aware that Michelle and I just celebrated our 20th anniversary. (Applause.) And the actual anniversary date was not that romantic. (Laughter.) There was some speculation as to whether this had an impact on my performance. (Laughter.) But I did make it up to her on Saturday. We went out to dinner, a date night. And it was a wonderful evening. It was a private room, because people kind of lean over and start listening if we're in the booth next to them. (Laughter.) And Secret Service gets nervous. (Laughter.)"

Mitt: Ruling-class hero

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 14:51:00 +0000

Introducing Mitt Romney last night at a fundraiser, Marriott International Chairman Bill Marriott told a humanizing anecdote about his old friend's gallantry on the high seas.

From the pool report by Seth McLaughlin of the Washington Times:

Both Mitt and I have summer places up in New Hampshire on Lake Winnipesaukee. And a few summers ago I was taking my grandchildren and children to town in the boat for ice cream. And we got into the docks and they were all full and I looked around, there was no place to park, so we stopped at the end of a dock. They all jumped off and ran up the dock. And I realized there was nobody in the boat to help me dock the boat, handle the ropes, do anything - they just left me out there at sea. So I finally found a place to park after about 20 minutes, and I pulled in, I said, 'Who's going to grab the rope?,' and I looked up and there was Mitt Romney. So he pulled me in, he tied up the boat for me. He rescued me just as he's going to rescue this great country.'

Is Marriott a stealth Obama supporter? Let's see if Romney rescues him next time.