Caught red-handed… Rowland, Blake & McPike out of the press pen at Monday’s GOP fundraising dinner.

What happens when you lock a few reporters in a press pen for over an hour before a certain event’s program begins while potential sources mingle around them at the cocktail hour??

They break out, of course.

Such was the case Monday night at the Republican’s big congressional fundraising dinner when TWT’s Kara Rowland, The Hill‘s Aaron Blake and CongressDaily’s Erin McPike escaped into the VIP room to chat up various politicans, including John Boehner, Newt Gingrich and Kevin McCarthy (we hear when some of said reporters tried to rush Sarah Palin after the dinner they got escorted right out the door). You’ll have to check back with their respective publications to see if these shenanigans resulted in any good leads, but we’re certainly proud of ‘em.