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Is the White House for Sale?
Republicans Accuse President Obama of Giving Deep-Pocketed Donors Access to the White House

(CBS) As Democrats prime their fundraising machine for 2010 midterm elections, their biggest rainmaker is the man in the White House. Mega donors are scoring invitations to exclusive White House affairs, access to senior officials - even the executive office bowling alley, reports CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson, in partnership with the Washington Times.
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"Hundreds of thousands of people have visited this White House since the president came in," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said. "And I think the president has returned to a stance of transparency in ethics that hasn't been matched by any other White House."

But documents from the DNC, the fundraising arm of the Democratic party, spell out exactly what the deepest pockets can buy.

Those who raise "$300,000 before the 2010 midterm elections" get quarterly meetings with "senior members of the Obama Administration... twice-monthly conference calls... (and) contribute to shaping policy agendas." In other words, the kind of access most Americans can only dream of.

We showed the documents to former chairman of the Federal Elections Commission Scott Thomas.

"It's okay to have a big bash and people can have a nice piece of rubber chicken but where you actually start drawing people in who have given the money to the policy discussions - I think there ought to be some way to draw a line there," Thomas said.

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The National Finance Committee gathers exclusively on several occasions to be recognized by senior Party leadership and to contribute to shaping policy agendas.

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White House Visitor Logs

On Friday, the White House released records of visitors to the executive mansion since President Obama took office through Sept. 15. Such releases will continue monthly, the White House said, adding that it will not disclose such information in some cases.

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The Associated Press reports that the Bushes have hosted about 160 guests, including at least six of the president's biggest donors or fund-raisers -- known as "pioneers" -- and their families. Each raised at least $100,000 for Bush's 2000 campaign.

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President Clinton and top aides were intimately involved in orchestrating a broad campaign fund-raising operation during his first term and explicitly authorized the use of the White House as a tool to woo or reward big donors, according to internal documents released yesterday.

Although the president has portrayed himself as removed from the money-collecting tactics that have spurred congressional and criminal investigations, the records show he took a hands-on role in directing the effort down to small details.

Among other things, Clinton personally authorized a variety of perks for top party contributors, including golf games and morning jogs with him and overnight stays in the Lincoln Bedroom, the documents show. Memos written by close advisers confirm that small White House gatherings with the president were intended to stroke wealthy backers. The documents include references to "Coffee w/Top 20 Fundraisers," "donor events . . . in the White House East Wing" and "trustee servicing dinners (White House)" for those who chipped in at least $ 100,000.

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ORIGINAL: rlj

What was it called when Bush did it?

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The Associated Press reports that the Bushes have hosted about 160 guests, including at least six of the president's biggest donors or fund-raisers -- known as "pioneers" -- and their families. Each raised at least $100,000 for Bush's 2000 campaign.

http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/08/17/whitehouse.sleepovers/index.html

What was it called when Clinton did it?

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President Clinton and top aides were intimately involved in orchestrating a broad campaign fund-raising operation during his first term and explicitly authorized the use of the White House as a tool to woo or reward big donors, according to internal documents released yesterday.

Although the president has portrayed himself as removed from the money-collecting tactics that have spurred congressional and criminal investigations, the records show he took a hands-on role in directing the effort down to small details.

Among other things, Clinton personally authorized a variety of perks for top party contributors, including golf games and morning jogs with him and overnight stays in the Lincoln Bedroom, the documents show. Memos written by close advisers confirm that small White House gatherings with the president were intended to stroke wealthy backers. The documents include references to "Coffee w/Top 20 Fundraisers," "donor events . . . in the White House East Wing" and "trustee servicing dinners (White House)" for those who chipped in at least $ 100,000.

http://www.ipsn.org/characters/coia/president_had_big_role_in_setting.htm

This isn't, this isn't a big deal, and as long as nobody is there getting whacked it isn't Chicago.

Let me add that politics is big money and big business and the politicians need to do something to raise funds and keep the money flowing.

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Democratic Party Will No Longer Accept Washington Lobbyist Donations
June 5, 2008

"The DNC and the Obama Campaign are unified and working together to elect Barack Obama as the next president of the United States. Our presumptive nominee has pledged not to take donations from Washington lobbyists and from today going forward the DNC makes that pledge as well," said Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean. "Senator Obama has promised to change the way things are done in Washington and this step is a sure sign of his commitment. The American people's priorities will set the agenda in an Obama Administration, not the special interests."

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So basically you can't use the "well other people did it too" argument because there definitely is a difference.

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a wooden puppet or hundreds of people will end up impaled on his nose.

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ORIGINAL: parkerbrother

Of course big donors get invitations to white house functions. That's what these functions are for. Every politician strokes their big donors.