Like Politico’s Ben Smith, I was sent by Republican National Committee Spokesman Doug Heye a long list of Democratic National Committee expenditures. I was hesitant to post them (they are below) because the RNC couldn’t provide the Federal Election Commission links to each of the searches and the DNC disputed at least one item: the catering charge at the Elysian which wasn’t at the Bahamian beach resort but, rather, the Elysian Hotel in Chicago.
I wasn’t about to spend all afternoon executing FEC searches for these charges myself to verify them so I called DNC spokesman Hari Sevugan. Hari wouldn’t confirm the expenses but he did note that none of them were particularly controversial. He’s right. In going through these expenses the most striking thing is how very milquetoast they are: they’re exactly the kind of expenses you’d expect a political fundraising organization to incur. I can understand why the RNC sent them out: having been raked over the coals for their expenses the last few days they believe that the DNC should be subject to the same scrutiny. The problem is there’s no $2,000 charge at a club called “Voyeur” which pops out of this list. Hilton, Sheraton, a Dallas Cowboys game, chauffeured cars, the Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant and the Lucky Strike Bowling alley are all pretty much how I imagined political parties wined and dined top donors (okay, maybe for the Dems a Patriots game would’ve been less surprising). Sorry, Doug, but my decision to ultimately post these came down to the fact that they don’t include a smoking gun.
The DNC Spent At Least $2,204,000 For Luxury Hotels & Caterers, Including:
The DNC Has Spent At Least $423,000 At Mandarin Oriental Hotels. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Spent At Least $530,000 At Hilton Hotels. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Spent At Least $7,000 At The Fontainebleau In Miami Beach. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In August, The DNC Spent At Least $125,513 At The Hyatt Hotel In Chicago. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Spent At Least $162,787 At The Westin St. Francis In San Francisco. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Paid Avalon Caterers At Least $297,708 In The Past 15 Months. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In August, The DNC Spent At Least $31,715 At The Waldorf Astoria Hotel. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In December, The DNC Spent At Least $12,146 At Beachfront Resort Hotel Del Coronado In San Diego. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Spent At Least $92,190 At The Mayflower Hotel. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Spent At Least $48,063 For Events And Lodging At Sheraton Hotels. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Spent At Least $72,314 For Events And Lodging At Hyatt Regency Hotels. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In January 2009, The DNC At Least Spent $29,037 At The Henley Park Hotel In Washington, DC. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In January 2009, The DNC At Least Spent $20,000 At The Marriot Hotel In Washington, DC. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Paid Susan Gage Caterers At Least $93,596. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In April, The DNC Spent At Least $5,175 At The Hay – Adams Hotel. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Spent At Least $30,000 At Loews Hotels. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Spent At Least $2,812 At Elysian Beach Resort. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Spent At Least $21,724 At Westin Hotels. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In April, The DNC Spent At Least $5,752 At The Four Seasons Hotel. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In April, The DNC Spent At Least $1,300 At The Beverly Hills Hotel. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Spent At Least $75,000 For Car Services, Including:
The DNC Has Paid At Least $4,464 To Carey International, Inc., A Limousine Service. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Paid At Least $2,861 To Arrow Limousine. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Paid At Least $12,000 To Singh Car Service. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Paid At Least $33,000 To Premiere Transportation. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Paid At Least $1,998 To RMA Chauffeured Transportation. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Paid At Least $5,481 To R&R Limousine. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Spent At Least $262,000 For Other Events, Including:
The DNC Spent Over $24,000 For Event(s) At The Kennedy Center. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Spent Over $26,000 For Tickets And Catering At Fenway Park. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Spent Over $16,000 At DC Nightclub Josephine. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In October, The DNC Spent At Least $63,953.00 At The Standard Club. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In January 2009, The DNC Spent At Least $12,293 At Boss Bar In Chicago. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
The DNC Has Spent At Least $39,802 On Gifts And Trinkets. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In December, The DNC Paid The Dallas Cowboys Organization $17,125. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In December, The DNC Spent At Least $31,036 At The Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In January 2009, The DNC Spent At Least Spent $13,316 At Lucky Strike In Washington, DC. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In April, The DNC Spent At Least $11,476 At The St. Louis Club. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In August, The DNC Spent At Least $4,557 At The Triple Door Concert Venue In Seattle. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In August, The DNC Paid At Least $1,500 At To The Washington Nationals. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In December, The DNC Spent At Least At $6,110 The Metropolitan Club In Washington, DC. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
In January 2010, The DNC Spent At Least Spent $2,782 At Petterino’s In Chicago. (Federal Elections Commission, www.fec.gov <http://www.fec.gov> , Accessed: 3/31/10)
