To Understand Washington, FOLLOW THE SHRIMP
By Jeffrey H. Birnbaum
Monday, February 21, 2005; Page E01
Aside as the 1960s, lawmakers stayed in Washington as briefly asted one could and rushed home to their
Constituents [Votal]. To pay for their electricions, they held
Fundraisers [Funderstanding] in Their District and States, Never Near The Capitol.
BACH MONEY AND DIDN'T NEED MUCH MONEY AND DIDN '' in on...................? A Handful of Law Firms and Trade Associations Cared Enough To Contribute and Generally, They Didn't.
.. Not any more Now lawmakers never seem to leave and barely a night goes by that they do not shake the money tree Congressmen who are not collecting checks for themselves are visiting the receptions [conference] of colleagues to help spur attendance - - All of Which Has Created a Booming Cottage Industry [Family Hand Industry] for Those Who Plan and Host Fundraising Parties.
The reasons for this are many. Government has grown so huge that every industry and interest you can think of has a stake it must protect, thus exploding the number of lobbyists. At the same time, elections, even for the House, are million- Dollar affairs.
Power Among Legislators Is Measured Not in Laws Passed But in Dollars Collected.
The Good News About THIS
Maniacal [Crazy] Focus on Campaign
Lucre [Unjust Wealth], Said Kent Cooper of PoliticalMoneyline.com, is what the the donations "Aren't Going Into Envelopes of Cash" As They
Reputedly [It is said] Once Did. Checks Are Politely Passed over a Glass of
Cabernet and the dutiful letter discluded.
But That Pretty Much The End of The Good News. Cooper and Other Experts Offer A
Litany [tedious and boring prayer] of explanations for the ever-growing number of Washington fundraising events. None of them is heartening for the average citizen.The first is that lawmakers are no longer content to have just one place to put their donations ALL 535 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS HAVE Their OWN Election COMMITTEES, OF COURSE. But now 211 of Them Also Have Second Funds (Some Even Have A Third) That in Years Past WERE CALLED
Leadership Pacs. That Name Doesn't Work Anymore Because A Freshman Is As LIKELY TO HAVE ONE OF THEM AS A VETERAN.
So Now They're Called
POLITICIAN PACS. In Any Case, Their Existence Multiplies The Amount of Money That Lawmaker Can Collect from Interest Groups and Lobbyists. And Given The Opportunity, That's Exactly What Lawmakers Do.
Why Bother? After ALL, Almost All
Incumbents [from politics] Area
...................
The answer is that there's no end to political greed. Incumbents convince themselves that the more money they have in the bank the less likely a challenger will oppose their reelections. But even when lawmakers pass their don't-even-think-about-challenging -me threshold, They Still Accept More Money Because The Convince Themselves That The Might Want It To Run for Higher Office.
One of My Favorite Lobbyists Says He Receives About 20 Faxed Invitations To Congressal Fundraisers Every Day. More Invitations Are E-MAILD.
No matter how large the volume gets, however, lobbyists will never stop giving. Their clients provide a never-ending stream of funds. To them, the ever-larger and ever-more-activist central government remains an appealing and fruitful investment.With Lawmakers'
Trajectory [Track, Timing]
TO POSITIONS OF Power Getting SHORTER in Duration Every Year, Donors Can't afford to ignore anyone who asks for a control.
typical! ]
Thus the
Ingrained [rooted] System for in-town fundraising marches on. And up goes the demand for
Venues [Party Location] To Gather In The Cash.
The result is a new hierarchy among congressional hangers-on. Interest groups and lobbying firms that have access to big rooms or, better, big rooms with views, are highly sought after. With so many fundraisers on the schedule, whoever can
Cater [service] is king.
Put ANOTHER WAY: The Traditional Way To Undhings Happen in Washington Is To Follow The Money. What I'm Suggesting Here Is To Follow The Shrimp.
"We're very busy," said Susan Lacz Niemann, an owner of Ridgewells, the big catering company. "Almost every night when Congress is in session we handle events for interest groups on behalf of congressmen and senators."
So Many Restaurants, Lobbying Firms And Hotels Offer Themsels for this Purpose That Professional Planners Now
ProLiferate [hyperplasia] to help
WinNow [Filter] The Field. a
SMATTERING [minority] of Choices Can Be Found Under The "Events" Section of National Republican Congressal Committee's Web Site.
Convenience is key. Congressmen Have to hop to hop
So Many Receptions
That
The nearer the events area to their offices
The more likely the is is's why the
fancier restaurants on Capitol Hill -. such as La Colline, Capital Grille, Charlie Palmer and the Monocleare favorite spots Homes like the Stewart R. Mott House (for Democrats) and private clubs such as the 116 Club (for real insiders) serve the Same Purpose. The Phoenix Park Hotel IS Among Several Capitol Hill Haunts That Are Regular Booked As Well.Then Twhere Are The Old
standbys [alternatives] such as the Democratic Club and the Capitol Hill Club (for Republicans) on the House side. The Senate side has its own places, too, like the buildings that house the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee .
Since Congressal
AIDES [Assistant] OFTEN
CHAUFFEUR [Making Car Driver] Their Bosses,
top-flight [classic] restaurants downtown also draw a crowd. Among the frequentlyused spots are Oceanaire, Morton's, the Caucus Room, the City Club of Washington, Ruth's Chris Steak House near the convention center and Sesto Senso on 18th Street NW.
THE HOUSE SIDE, THE, THE, THE, THE, THE, THE, TOWNHE
Quickie Fundraisers. on The Same Street Can Also Be Found The Very Busy Party Rooms of The National Automobile Dealers Association and Dutko Worldwide, a Lobbying Firm.
On The Senate Side, The American Gas Association Is Equally Popular. At All Those facilities, COSTS Are Low and the Well-Practiced Service IS Famously reliable.
The Gas Folks Have The Added Benefit of a Remarkable View. ITS Fourth Floor
Digs [home] have the same view of the Capitol's dome as MSNBC and Fox News Channel (where I am a contributor). The association holds more than 100 receptions annually and has more requests for the space than it can accommodate. "During those nights when the Congress is in session, there are very few in which we do host an event not, "said Rick Shelby, an executive vice president at the American Gas Association." We have had days when we've had different people in for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. "
The association doesn't charge for use of its meeting room because
Exposure [Exposure] IT Gets in Return. "We feel the Visibility of the Organization," Shelby Said. "We've Been Here Nearly Six Years and we've Had over 300 Members of Congress in Our facility for events. "
The hottest space for fundraising is the new building at 101 Constitution Avenue NW, also known as the Carpenters Union building. There, firms as diverse as Van Scoyoc Associates, the National Mining Association and the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) use their
Proximity [close] to Capitol Hill and their spectacular views of the dome and the
National mall to
Entice [Temptation] Lawmakers - and their
Benefactors [donor].
"It's an extremely popular spot," said Jack Dolan, a spokesman for ACLI. "When I leave my office at 6 o'clock there are a lot of people going upstairs for PAC events and related political gatherings." In years to come, That Traffic Will Only Be Getting Thicker.
Jeffrey H. Birnbaum Writes About The InterSection of Government and Business Every Other Monday. E-mail Him At
KSTreetConfidential@washpost.com
.
Cabernet Solutions Wine A Dry Red Wine Made from The Black Grape Variety Cabernet Sauvignon. Barbews A Delicious Red Wine, Make a Variety Black and grapes with Cabin-resistant grapes Shoo-INA Sure Winner
Aneulite victory
Example:
Martins is a shoo-in for the presidency. The Other Candidates Don't have a chance.
Martin is the inevitable person of the presidential position. Other candidates will never be elected.
Quickie
N.
美]
Things to do in a hurry, get a very short thing
Crude film [literary work]
Short kiss
Hasty trip
(Wine)
(= Quickie Strike) Strike that is not consent
adj.
Fast, fast; short
Suddenly occurring at the end of the previous
A Quickie Training Course
Quick training class
Worth a tour:
In Washington, most tour will be from national squares (
National Mall begins. This road has been through the Lincoln Memorial to the majol building, almost all square meters of parallel, more famous attractions than in the United States. Here, you can see many of the country's treasures, such as the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington Monument, National Gallery, and Capitol, but in addition to this There are a lot of museums or memorials that have not been mentioned, and they have to finish them, and they are not enough for a whole day.
There is absolutely not ignored, and Smit Sen'an Institution, it actually includes more than a dozen different museums and artists. The unique Smith Castle is built by red bricks, located on the National Square, as well as the National Galle of Art. In addition, there is a very popular National Air and Space Museum, National Museum of Natural History, National Museum of American History, is also distributed in the city. Many other Schrsen Society's branch halls are very worthwhile.
I came to the White House, which was located at 1600 Pennsylvania. Although the White House is not so exciting, it is not so exciting, but don't forget that this is the US president's residence. If you want to continue walking from National Square, go to the Library Of Congress (the world's largest), Folj Shakespeare Library, Jefferson Memorial, US Supreme Court (US Supreme Court Or the US Catrack Memorial Museum (US Holocaust Memorial Museum) will give you a more pleasant and interesting experience.
In Washington, a new tour hot spot is the International Spy Museum (INTERNATIONAL SPY MUSEUM). With the funding of the US Central Intelligence Agency and KGB, this museum tends to cater to the public's taste, and its content is a little uneasy, but in the end, it can make people look at the spy from the perspective of the public and real angle. Misses, this is very interesting.
Food and entertainment:
After watching the last museum or a memorial, visitors may forget that Washington is actually a pleasant place. The most popular neighborhood is also the oldest and most famous blocks in Washington, Georgetown. This area is active by many students from local universities. If you want to drink some coffee, shopping or eating, then it can be a charming place. Georgetown's atmosphere will become more active, and there will be many young people to play here at night. It is available from a lot of quite a good bars and restaurants, but don't forget to max of Max's Ice Cream, there are a variety of interesting things. More lively and trendy than Georgetown is
Adam's Morgan (ADAM's Morgan). Here is a cool café, an imaginative drink and international restaurants are being suitable for people here.
Meskerem provides people with great Ethiopian food, while
Bukom is an excellent place to appreciate West African style.
DUPONT CIRCLE is more close to the city than Georgetown and Adam Morgan, and it is also a more relaxed place. Art Museum and a creative clothing store, excellent restaurants and coffee shops and pubs stand on the street. Brickseller Saloon is a very famous bar with approximately more than 1,000 kinds of beer. The southern part of the Penteli District is a famous Kramerbooks coffee shop and bookstore.
Other places where you should remember when you visit Washington: One of the most famous place in Capitol, Dubliner, you can drink alcohol, Washington Hotel, Washington Hotel, has a mythical look. The Ben's Chili Bowl in U Street allows you to taste from the undetemted pepper, while on the weekend, come to the Eastern Market in the East Market in the Congress area, can experience everything you can imagine.
Daily Tip:
• Transportation: Strolling in the city of Washington is a very relaxed thing. Although the Metro system is quite well. Driving in Washington may leave you very terrible impression, especially when you encounter a large number of people return to traffic congestion caused by Maryland and Virginia. The Joint Stop itself is a tourist attraction, and it is also a station that the train arrives or departs to the east coast. Baltimore Washington International Airport (BWI) is 50 km northwest of urban areas located between the Columbia Dynasty and Baltimore. Dulles International Airport (IAD) is located 42 km from West, Ronald Reagan National Airport, which is closest to the city center and is located on the banks of Pottamar. • Weather: Washington September is 16-26 degrees Celsius (61-79o, Washing). • Time Zone: US Eastern Time (5 hours later than Greenwell Time) • Don't forget: Washington's price depends on several regions, rather than distances. This may be beneficial to you or not for you, so you have to watch the map posted on the taxi. • Last Tip: Leave a morning, walk along the Potomar River walk from the famous water gates to Georgetown, you will see those active and busy people in this country.
