Lobbying in August — for party tickets

With less than two weeks to go before back-to-back political conventions, Washington insiders are working feverishly to get on the guest lists of exclusive parties in Denver and Minneapolis.

After each evening’s primetime convention speeches, the cameras turn off, the lights go down and the delegates head to the many social gatherings scattered throughout the cities.

{mosads}The Hill and the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS) will hold parties on the Monday night of each convention.

“There will be lots of fantastic signature cocktails,” said DISCUS spokesman Frank Coleman. Those will include themed cocktails to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the repeal of Prohibition. Coleman noted there would be a “rare whiskey and cognac tasting bar.”

Also at the event, Cigar Aficionado magazine will sponsor a smoking lounge that includes Rocky Patel premium cigars.

Quinn Gillespie and Associates put together a preliminary party list for both conventions that was e-mailed around Washington last week. But several people noticed a discrepancy — the list of the parties in Denver was 16 pages while the list for the parties in St. Paul, Minn., was only five.

Are Democrats planning on partying more? A spokesman for the Republican National Convention declined to comment.

And, of course, everyone wants to know where they can spot a celebrity. Most Hollywood stars come to the conventions via the Creative Coalition, a nonpartisan group that advocates for the arts.

The coalition puts on a concert on the Wednesday evening of each convention. The Black Eyed Peas will be playing in Denver, while the Charlie Daniels Band will be jamming in St. Paul.

But competing with them on Wednesday night will be concerts hosted by the ONE campaign and the Recording Industry Association of America. Kanye West will headline the Denver party. The musical guest for St. Paul has yet to be announced.

Wyclef Jean will sing on Monday, Aug. 25, at the Democratic National Convention’s Rock the Vote Ballot Bash. On Tuesday, singers Melissa Etheridge, Cyndi Lauper and Rufus Wainwright will perform at a Rock to Win event.

Actress Jennifer Lopez will be co-hosting an event with New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D) on Wednesday. And, on that same day, the Creative Coalition will host a brunch with Annette Bening to celebrate her film on female senators that is coming out on DVD in September. Also on Wednesday, Ben Affleck will take part in a panel discussion on international relations, moderated by NBC anchor Tom Brokaw.

{mospagebreak}But the Republicans are not without star power of their own.

The Beach Boys will hold a kickoff concert on Monday, Sept. 1. Another Monday event will be the “Political Chicks: Every Woman Counts Red, Rhythm & Rimes” party with singer LeAnn Rimes and the Bellamy Brothers, hosted by Lifetime and RightNOW!

“We want to take it back to our viewers,” said Lifetime Senior Vice President for Public Affairs Toby Graff, of the television network’s convention presence.

Gretchen Wilson will be singing on Tuesday night for the Republicans. Actors Maggie Gyllenhaal and Neil Patrick Harris are scheduled to swing by the Creative Coalition concert Wednesday night.

{mosads}The Creative Coalition is bringing plenty of star power to each of the cities. Its lineup includes actors, directors and musicians such as Tim Daly, Kerry Washington, Tom Fontana, Giancarlo Esposito, Richard Schiff, Sue Kramer, Ellen Burstyn, Connie Britton, Rachel Leigh Cook, Alan Cumming, Dana Delany, Zooey Deschanel, Tony Goldwyn, Cheryl Hines, Anne Hathaway, Spike Lee, Barry Levinson, Josh Lucas, Wendie Malick, Pras Michel, Matthew Modine, Gloria Reuben, Susan Sarandon and Quentin Tarantino.

“I love our lineup,” said Creative Coalition Executive Director Robin Bronk. “I love our boot camp delegates. We have seasoned vets from entertainment and politics and we also have the next generation well represented.”

Jon Stewart fans may catch a glimpse of the Comedy Central host in either city. “The Daily Show” will be airing from both Denver and St. Paul throughout both weeks. At the Democratic convention the program is taping at the Newman Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Denver and will air at 11 p.m. EST from Tuesday, Aug. 26 through Friday, Aug. 29 In St. Paul, the program tapes at The History Theatre at McNally Smith College of Music and will air at 11 p.m. EST from Tuesday, Sept. 2 through Friday, Sept. 5.

But with new lobbying regulations, party hosts have had to adjust to stay in compliance.

“I think you’re seeing already a change in how parties are structured — not honoring members of Congress but honoring delegates,” said Larry Noble of Skadden Arps and a former general counsel to the Federal Election Commission. “I think there’s a lot of concern about doing it right. We’re getting a lot of questions.”

He noted most organizations are worried about how the parties will look. “There’s not going to be a party police, but there are going to be press walking around looking for a story,” Noble said.

But even with concerns about appearance, there will still be plenty of celebrating.

“You’re not seeing events honoring members, but you’re going to see a lot of events,” Noble said.

“We got ethics approval from both the House and Senate,” said David Culver, a vice president at DISCUS, of its parties. “It took countless hours.”

Betsy Rothstein contributed to this article.

 Party Preview List (PDF)