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December 05, 2006

The Daily Troika: McCain's Christmas Party

Sen. John McCain's Straight Talk America PAC held a Christmas Party last night, and the highlights, aside from the uneasy interaction between McCain's media "base" and his new, Washington Republican donor base, was his whipper-snapper of a mother, Roberta.

She's a staple of McCain's stump speech. Sure, McCain says, I'm old. But wait until you meet my 94-year-old mother, who just returned from a walking tour of Europe.

Radiant in a red dress and quick with a joke and a tease, Roberta McCain stayed on her feet for two solid hours last night, trailed by McCain's brother. The media, at least, was impressed.

Other names and faces seen at the party: Sens. Trent Lott, Lindsey Graham and Mel Martinez, as well as a beaming John Sununu, who insisted to the Hotline that he would stay neutral in his state's primary. RNC chairman Ken Mehlman stopped by, as did about half of Mehlman's senior RNC staff.

White House political director Sara Taylor, a protege of McCain adviser John Weaver's, made her way from the White House. Also: Reps. Chris Shays, Rick Renzi and Jeff Flake, fundraiser/strategist Jack Oliver, ex-Frist aide Bob Stevenson, Homeland Sec. Advisor Frances Fragos Townsend, Amb. Marc Wallace and ex-WH Comm. dir Nicolle Wallace, deputy WH pol. dir. Scott Jennings, assoc. WH counsel Leslie Fahrenkopf, ex-Reagan pol. dir Frank Donatelli, McCain's internet strategy guru Becky Donatelli, ExploreMcCain webmaster Mark SooHoo, and members of McCain's Senate staff, including the improbably named Church Hutton, an Iraq war vet who handles foreign policy portfolio.

The only Dem we saw: possible CO SEN candidate/Rep. Mark Udall (D).

Squibs:

  • Gov. Mitt Romney will name Gov. Matt Blunt (R-MO) to a newly formed Governors' Advisory Council today. Romney continues his Asia tour in Tokyo, Japan, today.
  • NY Gov. George Pataki (R-NY) plans to entertain a "who's who" of ex-govs in NY on 12/10. He's officially hosting a reunion dinner for govs elected in '94, as he was. (He's the only one still in office). They'll attend a matinee performance of "The Drowsy Chaperone" on Broadway, and then eat dinner at Daniel. Among those confirmed: David Beasley of SC, Terry Branstad of IA, Don Sundquist of TN, and Tommy Thompson of WI. Pataki's PAC will pay for the play and dinner. Pataki heads to NH and IA on 10/6, meeting with GOPers in both states. In NH, he hosts state House and state Senate GOPers.
  • In NY, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) "praised" HRC, saying: "I think she could win if she ran, and she is an extraordinarily able person" (New York Sun). [MARC AMBINDER]

    Posted at 10:16 AM

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