The First Lady Is For Sale... Ick, I just creeped myself out with her image.

Wives club asks $50,000 for lunch with first lady

By Jonathan E. Kaplan
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The latest fundraising pitch of the Congressional Club, a venerable organization of lawmakers’ spouses, asks donors for $50,000 apiece in exchange for lunch, a reception with first lady Laura Bush and a private reception with members of Congress and their spouses.

The blunt language of the fundraising letter and the fact that the sum sought is double what it was in previous years are drawing criticism that suggests the fallout from the scandal surrounding Jack Abramoff and former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.) is tainting even the quaintest and most bipartisan of Washington social organizations.

The 97-year-old, congressionally chartered organization points potential corporate sponsors explicitly to the link between money and access at the First Lady’s Luncheon in April.

In the club’s Jan. 19 letter, which several sources read to The Hill, organizers tell potential donors that $50,000 buys 12 tickets to the lunch and admittance to the receptions with Bush and the lawmakers.

“The language and the amount of money they’re asking for shows very poor judgment,” a source familiar with the letter said. “In this day and age, the amount of money they’re asking for is inappropriate.”

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