Ex-Politico staffer Karin Tanabe revealed last night that there will be a sequel to her fictional book The List. “There’s got to be a sequel,” she said at a party celebrating the publication of her first book.

Though The List is a kind of fictional tell-all about Tanabe’s tenure at Politico, several current staffers still showed up to offer congratulations. Former employees showed up as well, including Kendra Marr Chaikind, who was fired from the publication in 2011.

“I wrote it really fast in secrecy,” Tanabe said in a short speech to the room of 70-ish attendees. She started it in the summer of 2011 while still working at Politico. “I was terrified,” she said.

Tanabe acknowledged other Politico “survivors” in the room (some of whom could be heard trading jokes about Politico) and said her book is about “paying homage” to reporters working in today’s new media environment. Of new media, she said, “It’s easier to make your career but also break your career.”

At one point, what appeared to be the cast of D.C. Housewives swooped in and had their photo snapped by the photographer. Among the women (and wearing all sorts of furs and leathers) were… Read more

Quotes of the Day

“Sunrise on the Potomac at Key Bridge in Georgetown.” — NBC Washington cameraman Jim Long with the accompanying photograph.

Convo Between Two Journos

This morning’s conversation is between NYT’s Mark Leibovich and Atlantic’s Molly Ball.

Ball: “Back in the office, and there is a No Labels robocall on my voice mail.”

Leibovich: “I label that annoying…labels can be useful that way.”

Someone swipes journo’s newspaper

“Someone took my newspaper off the lawn. That’s pretty much a felony around these parts. #thissuburbanlife.” — NYT‘s media writer David Carr. (Sign of the times? Yesterday we reported that NBC News reporter Kasie Hunt‘s Advise and Consent was snatched off her doorstep.)

From the Dept. of Bragiculture I: “Congratulations to the Morning Joe team. We were the #1 cable news morning show in Washington DC in the demo. Great job!” — MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough.

The Media Observers

Pro: “Bless @rolandsmartin for bringing the funk to that ridic skeet shooting segment on @OutFrontCNN tonight.” — BuzzFeed‘s Dorsey Shaw.

Con: “Roland Martin, David Frum, and Marsha Blackburn now debating Obama going skeet shooting on Erin Burnett #wtf” — BuzzFeed‘s Zeke Miller.

Important Q to Ponder: “What if most of the outside of our bodies looked like the stuff underneath the tongue? Would we ever have sex?” — WaPo‘s Gene Weingarten. Um, Gene, are you feeling okay?

From the Dept. of Bragiculture II: “Schieffer is very much a man of talking points. He’s giving Kalb the same lines he gave me in our interview in October. For that matter, they’re all saying a lot of the same things they told me in October.” — Politico‘s Dylan Byers at an event with presidential debate moderators put on by Marvin Kalb and the George Washington Global Media Institute. He is, of course, referring to CBS “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer, who isn’t characteristically a man of talking points. A question to ask ourselves: Why bother going to events when you can just read Dylan Byers?

Journo spellbound by Shakespeare play

“I’m here @FolgerLibrary for commanding production of Henry V; can’t take my eyes of lead actor; magnetic show so far.” — Bloomberg‘s Stephanie Green.

Politico Playbook publish time: 4:48 a.m.

Breitbart.com editor rips Slate‘s Weigel for being unfunny and a GOP press aide with an occasional temper goes to work for the NRSC. Read more

HOW TO MAKE IT ABOUT ME?

No matter how you look at it, astronaut Neil Armstrong‘s death prompted some especially grotesque reactions this weekend from Washington journalists. Namely, they took the opportunity to milk the hero’s death for greater purposes.

In other words, they asked themselves, how can I possibly connect this to me?

We’ll start with the least offensive and conclude with the most.

4. Bloomberg‘s Stephanie Green somehow feels acquainted with Armstrong because they share a university. Not so offensive, but still, unnecessary.

RIP to my fellow Purdue alum Neil Armstrong who madethat giant leap for all of us

— Stephanie Green (@stephlgreen) August 25, 2012

3. Next up we have former Roll Call reporter Elizabeth Brotherton who writes, “Rest in Peace Neil Armstrong. He spoke at my graduation from USC (he was a Trojan!) Truly a great American.” Still seems like a stretch of a connection, but not yet so offensive.

2. “While news of Neil Armstrong’s death is sad, its comforting that another American hero, Snooki, brought a new boy into the world.” — Mediaite founder and all around “me” person Dan Abrams, who somehow finds the least compassionate way to commemorate Armstrong’s death. RIP Neil Armstrong! Wherever you are we hope you and your loved ones don’t have to read this.

1. And finally, NBC’s Luke Russert, who, as of late, has been publicly mentioning his late father more and more. Considering the number of people who think he is where he is only because of his father, maybe not the wisest of moves to keep tapping this treasure trove.

My father interviewed Neil Armstrong for 30th anniversary of Apollo 11. Dad told me it was 1 of his proudest moments youtube.com/watch?v=WpvRyl…

— Luke Russert (@LukeRussert) August 25, 2012

The Hill has released it’s annual “50 Most Beautiful People” list. It’s a doozy and we at Fishbowl just couldn’t contain ourselves. With this, we also begin a new feature called “Project Fishbowl” in which we take photographs and anything else we find worthy of analyzing and put it through severe scrutiny. Kind of like TV’s “Project Runway”, but with a fishy twist. In the future we will have guests, but for today, we begin with just us girls running the show.

#1 Max Engling, staff assistant for the House Administration Committee:

Peter: It’s nice to see that “Joseph Gordon-Levitt from the Wrong Side of the Tracks” can afford a sharkskin suit.

Eddie: Engling worked as a model before beginning his career in politics in 2011. Modeling left him feeling like his time “wasn’t necessarily going to a good cause.” Which begs the question: How much more fulfilling can Engling’s life be as a staff assistant on the Hill?

Piranhamous: I can’t help but notice the wind that is blowing his leather tie but ain’t moving his hair. Moderation on the gel, dude. Crunchy.

Betsy: If Leonardo DiCaprio had a less attractive twin brother in a boy band, his name would be Max Engling.

#2 Carolyn Amirpashaie, special assistant to Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.):

Eddie: “Special assistant”?

Piranhamous: Obnoxious quote: “’[My parents] pushed my sister and me to be our own people and do what we wanted,’ she says.” Are there parent s who push their kids to be someone else? ‘Honey, we’ve decided we want you to be your cousin Betty.’ P.S. if someone compares you to a Kardashian you shouldn’t take it it as a compliment. EVER.

Betsy: Is The Hill so hard up they can’t afford SOME manner of shine powder?!

#3 Kristen Callaway, legislative assistant to Rep. Steve Southerland (R-Fla.):

Peter: Looks like someone went rogue with a bedazzler.

Eddie: Phrase Callaway has never heard: “Your neck is too short.”

Piranhamous: I first thought this was Tara Reid, then I saw her arms were crossed and realized she was “for serious!”

Betsy: Looks like Kristen is hiding The Daily Caller‘s Matthew Boyle‘s nuts in her cheeks.

#7 Alyssa Dack, Rep. Mike McIntyre’s (D-N.C.) outreach coordinator:

Peter: On the left, we have comedy; on the right, we have tragedy. Life’s drama plays out on the hot list.

Eddie: In her profile, Dack says her hometown of Asheville, N.C., is responsible for her independence. “It’s all about being who you are,” she said, “if you don’t, you stick out like a sore thumb.” Asheville: Only city in America where you somehow manage to stick out by being like everyone else.

Piranhamous: Pro-tip: If you want to be taken seriously do not wear a dress short enough to require two hairdos to work. Have people learned nothing from all those pictures of Briney Spears getting out of cars?

Betsy: Alyssa on the left: Please stop smiling.

#8 Samantha Dezur, Education Finance Council’s vice president of communications:

Eddie: Hard to believe Dezur actually cares about style. She’s a self-described libertarian.

Piranhamous: She’s referred to as a “reality television star” because she “starred in the Style Network’s show “Running in Heels.” Oh, how society has lowered the bar of what constitutes someone being a “star.” It’s like saying, “My YouTube video has 138 views, I’m thinking of going on tour.”

Betsy: Pearls inspired by Bloomberg‘s Stephanie Green.

#9 Leslie Rath, scheduler for Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.):

Peter: She looks like a photo negative of Morticia Addams.

Eddie: That’s where my grandmother’s favorite doily curtains went!

Piranhamous: I hope she brings the bowl they used to cut her hair to the drive-in…when we show a movie on her gigantic forehead.

Betsy: Dishwater blond, flat, greasy, hair styled by Supercuts is never a good look. Did Leslie know she was having a photo shoot? 

#15 Yvonne Hsu, legislative assistant for Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.):

Peter: I like to call this look “The Angry Flamingo.”

Eddie: Can’t tell if I’m looking at a photo of a fringed dress collar or a live birth.

Piranhamous: This could be the ugliest dress I’ve ever seen. It looks like a giant flower is raping her neck…with pockets. And she has psycho-alert written all over her profile. Connect these dots: “she loves food” “so she took to cooking” “she doesn’t put too much effort into cooking” “she lives by the philosophy that if you’re going to try something new, you should do it all-out” “How else would you do anything?” I don’t know, maybe consistently? 

Betsy: I didn’t realize Connie Chung was making a comeback as a Capitol Hill staffer. The dress might strangle her. Maury finds this sexy?

#16 Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.)

Peter: His jawline is a weapon of mass destruction. You could sharpen a butter knife on that thing.

Eddie: The Hill makes sure we know Himes is hot. But not that hot: “He was once a model for Polo Ralph Lauren. Now, we’re not talking Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.)-level modeling.” We shall refer to Himes henceforth as Two-Bit Brown.

Piranhamous: I’ve never cared much for Members who give interviews for this list, have you nothing better to do than participate in this vanity project? Then I realize I’ve never heard of most of these Members because they’re back-benchers who don’t do much beyond what they’re told.

Betsy: There’s something utterly irritating about Jim’s jaw area, not to mention the blemish on his chin. You just know he tells crappy jokes and all the aides sit around the office and yuk it up like he’s hilarious.

#18 Mary Hiratsuka legislative assistant for Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska)

Eddie: Hiratsuka walks around with a “prized” sealskin purse, according to The Hill. Badass. That’s all.

Betsy: As Samantha from “Sex and the City” might say, “Honey, wax much?” On a good note, with eyebrows that thick, Mary no longer needs to wear a visor. Her gum-tooth ratio? Not good.

#28 Ryan Mills, development associate at government-affairs firm Berman and Co:

Peter: It’s nice to know that they let 11-year-olds work on the Hill.

Eddie: Looks nearly a Kennedy but completely a Carlson. Tucker Carlson, that is.

Piranhamous: What’s up with the little tuft of hair in front? It screams “DOUCHEBAG!” because it’s deliberate.

Betsy: Had no idea that pubic hair could grow out of a man’s forehead.

#29 Derek Khanna, professional policy staffer for the House Republican Study Committee:

Peter: “I don’t always surf the Internet, but when I do, eyebrows.”

Eddie: Fear the brow(s).

Piranhamous: Holy shit, someone should take the weed-whacker they used on his head to his eyebrow(s). I apologize if it turns out that these are just two caterpillars about to mate on his nose.

Betsy: 10 beers and an ecstasy tablet.

#34 Jennifer Fisher, lobbyist for American Dental Association.

Peter: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band meets Fashion Bug.

Eddie: Fisher knows the politics of fashion– assuming it takes place in the next installment of the Aladdin series because I’m almost certain that purple jacket was inspired by Jasmine.

Piranhamous: I think she’s wearing the rejected warm-up suit for the Olympic gymnastics team. 

Betsy: I’m scared. Will she beat my ass if I insult her? Envisioning her on a future episode of Bad Girls Club.

#35 Hayley King, legislative correspondent to Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine):

Eddie: How do you comment on someone who was tagged “The Horror”?

Piranhamous: I’m pretty sure I see the constellation Cassiopeia in freckles on her left cheek.

Betsy: Are we at a National Freckle Convention? How did that happen?

#36 Brian Bosak, legislative assistant to Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.):

Peter: His tie could serve double duty as a tablecloth at a picnic.

Eddie: I like that tie, Peter.

Piranhamous: Give us the “I’m holding in a fart” look. Perfect! Got it!

Betsy: Another member of the National Freckle Convention. These people are relentless.

#38 Erik Olson, Chief of Staff to Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.):

Peter: If anyone wants to know how to build muscles on your forehead, I found your man.

Betsy: Billy Mays blasted his way into the 50 Most Beautiful? I thought he was dead.

Piranhamous: Dude, you’re Chief of Staff and you couldn’t bring yourself to wear a suit? And why do I have a sudden urge to buy some OxyClean?

#32 Laura Froehlich, associate director of public policy at UBS:

Peter: These are the last pictures of Froelich before a small gust of wind blew her out to sea, never to be heard from again.

Eddie: Froehlich has the best philosophy on being healthy and looking good. “Don’t be an asshole,” she said.

Piranhamous: The picture on the right is the one you see on the Match.com profile and respond to, the picture on the left is the chick who shows up and suddenly you remember that early morning meeting you have the following day.

Betsy: Seeing as I just got a perfect bill of health, I think I speak for all of us to say that Froehlich can frolic right out of this contest. Her gum-tooth ratio is bordering on questionable. But I will give her this: She has nice hair and is a very handsome woman.

#44 Regina Asante, mail carrier to offices on the second floor of the Rayburn House Office Building:

Peter: It’s nice to see that Miss Cleo landed safely after her phone psychic service folded.

Eddie: Note to self: Definitely need a shirt that comes with a shield.

Piranhamous: Are we having lobster for dinner? Ditch the bib-dress.

Betsy: Halloween in May? Interesting concept.

#46 Caleb Smith, new media director for the House Financial Services Committee:

Eddie: “The Hangover.”

Piranhamous: This is just a few years away from what a “before” picture in a hair-loss ad looks like.

Betsy: I think Current TV’s David Shuster went to Camp Yehudah with this guy. Too much Israeli dancing and late night campfires with Shuster gave him this annoying, peppy smile.

#48 Andrew Simpson, staff assistant with Rep. Mike McIntyre (D-N.C.):

Peter: “Sorry guys..  My seersucker was at the dry cleaners. You’ll have to deal with this foppish bow-tie.”

Eddie: Just curious who made the executive decision to make Simpson whiter for the close-up shot.

Piranhamous: The picture on the right is the look someone who isn’t that bright has while they’re trying to “get” a joke or doing basic math in their head.

Betsy: Dapper and stylish, he’d raise his beauty IQ by snipping off that tiny curly-q at the tip of his bang.

#49 Andrew Aronow, a staff assistant and legislative correspondent for Rep. John Dingell:

Peter: Nice try, Clark Kent. We all know you’re Superman.

Eddie: Aronow appears to be just as surprised as I was that he made the cut.

Piranhamous: He’s listed as having a girlfriend…and someday he plans to talk to her and let her know. The picture on the right looks like a guy who is seeing boobs for the first time, the picture on the left is the look that guy gives when someone points out that they don’t count as boobs if they’re on Michael Moore. Keep hope alive!

Betsy: Quick Eddie, you rip the glasses off his face and stomp on them and Peter will stuff him into a locker.

Estelle Ellis Rubenstein, who launched Seventeen Magazine, dies at 92 from lung cancer. What a better time to remember your 0wn modeling stint for the magazine? We do hope Bloomberg arts and culture reporter and photog Stephanie Green wore her signature hail-sized pearls for the spread.

very proud to have been a 17 mag model “@HuffPostStyle: Pioneering exec who co-launched @seventeenmag dies at 92 huff.to/LWYRU9”

— Stephanie Green (@stephlgreen) July 8, 2012

Quotes of the Day

Thought Bubble: Ann Romney, you are no Laura Bush

“Honor Laura Bush. She stood up for women & she puts up with the repubs.” — CNN Contributor Hilary Rosen in response to women protesting former first lady Laura Bush being given the Alice Award, for a woman who advances other women.

Father’s Day wishes (well, sort of)

“Happy father’s day — or as they call it in my family, happy brother-in-law’s day.” — Writer and human rights lawyer Ronan Farrow. Farrow is Special Adviser to the Sec. of State for Global Youth Issues. He is the only biological child of Woody Allen and Mia Farrow.

Q: Which NYT columnist follows singer/actress Katy Perry? A: David Brooks

Convo Between Two Journos

Slate‘s Matt Yglesias: “Admittedly, I found Wawa amazing when I first went. Then again I was high as a kite at the time.” InTheseTimes Magazine Labor Writer Mike Elk: “Things we both agree on.”

News You Can Use

“PSA for congressional reporters: If you forget your license, your federally issued press ID will get you thru airport security.” — USA Today‘s Susan Davis.

Unnecessary Tweet of the Day: Nail Polish Alert

“A perfect summer shade thanks to @caroljoynt and @CHANEL” — Bloomberg reporter and photog Stephanie Green. (Although we must admit, the shade is pretty.)

The Appointed Media Critic

“Is there ANYTHING more painful to watch on cable TV than the 2-3 minutes transition between @BashirLive and @DylanRatigan?!” — Newsbusters’ Ken Shepherd.

Liberal analyst: Obama heckler should be stripped of press pass

“Resorting to race-baiting or pitting groups of human beings against one another is not journalism worthy of a White House press pass.” — MSNBC Analyst Karen Finney writes on The Daily Caller‘s Neil Munro‘s “Incivility” for The Hill.

Quotes of the Day

“The lawn at the British Ambassador’s residence is prepared for Prince Harry garden reception.” — Bloomberg’s Stephanie Green with accompanying photograph.

What’s Driving the Day: “Made a quick run to the store tonight and experienced the most unsubtle stare at my rear end by a dude since I was in college.” — Blogger and writer Danielle Belton, author of The Black Snob.

A journo’s emotional outpouring for Lugar

“Politics aside, @dicklugar is 1 of the most gracious pols I’ve covered. At each stop he shakes each reporter’s hand, thanks them for coming.” — Politico‘s Dave Catanese, who is traveling to Indiana today so his email response time may lag.

Drudge Whoring

“I love Drudge headline right now… can we just bask in Matt Drudge’s genius?” — The Daily Caller‘s Matthew Boyle in a memorable tweet from last week.

It’s not Love Story but it’s something…“I love Reagan National airport so much that we need a Constitutional amendment prohibiting me from marrying it.” — Slate‘s Dave Weigel.

Journo wants Obama to stop being such a p—y

“Obama is being a coward on issue of gay marriage. Stand for what you believe in, there’s no shame in that.” — The Daily Caller‘s Jason Howerton.

Shots fired by Mr. Scarry

“Daily Caller’s Michelle Fields is a big girl. Doesn’t need to be kid gloved like she just was by O’Reilly.” — FBDC and The Blaze‘s Eddie Scarry. A note to “AnonymASS” who always flips out, sometimes with physical threats, when we write about your beloved Michelle: Deal with it.

Reporter gets in touch with himself

“I feel in touch with my Oregon roots every time I pull my bicycle up to a valet parking stand. #putabirdonit” — NPR White House Correspondent Ari Shapiro.

Kidney stones still on their way out

“Welcome new followers. I’ll be back next week fully engaged with my tweeps. I’m convalescing All Tweets pre-set via @hootsuite xo.” — a message from NBC theGrio’s Sophia Nelson this morning. Sophia tweeted about her kidney stone issues over the weekend intermingled with inspirational thoughts on connecting with God.

PBS’ Gwen Ifill asks: “Honest question. When is the last time we’ve seen a series of such delayed, grudging endorsements?” (She’s of course referring to Rick Santorum‘s 11 p.m. lackluster email endorsement of Mitt Romney.)

Quotes of the Day

Oh God, seriously?

“@JoeNBC looking for a retweet for my daughter kelly taking her last final today, as she celebrates her 21st at Indiana University!” — Emily Donohue. Lady, this is what you want for your daughter, a retweet? How about just about anything else? In years to come, we’re sure she’ll remember the retweet from MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough. How special.

Former TWT scribe checks in

“The weather in London has been absolutely horrible. But then again that’s really nothing new. What’s new with me? Well. Working on a monster research paper about Sudan. Shower in the apartment is broken for the THIRD time since Jan.” — Kara Rowland, formerly a White House reporter for TWT. She’s now at the London School of Economics.

Lauder kisses reporter’s cheek

“When I told Leonard Lauder @EsteeLauder I wore his products he kissed my cheek at lunch w/ @saks and Carolina Herrera.” — Bloomberg’s Stephanie Green.

If you have to ask, the answer is big fat: NO

“Does this combo work? Matter of some dispute in this meeting.” — NPR’s Scott Simon. Please Simon, we’d love to assess what you are going to wear everyday. And we’re not joking. You send the pictures. We’ll tell you if it’s presentable.

We’re recapping the White House Correspondents’ Dinner from Saturday night with a special Tick Tock. Enjoy as we take you through the night.

By Betsy Rothstein, Peter Ogburn and Eddie Scarry

5:30 p.m.: I meet up with Eddie at a shitty McDonald’s in Adams Morgan as the sky opens up to a downpour. Eddie is visibly pissed. He had his umbrella in hand and left it since (he says) weather reports declared that it wouldn’t rain until around 11 p.m. That’s right, we start the evening with Eddie blaming the media.

5:45 p.m. Peter, Eddie and I convene at the Washington Hilton bar to inhale Cokes as we mentally prepare our plan of attack for the evening.

6 p.m. We approach the escalators and are turned away from going downstairs because we need to show the security man a copy of our invitation. He says he knows its stupid, but it’s the way it is. Our knight in shining armor, HuffPost‘s Ryan Grim approaches and hands me what is comparable to contraband — a photocopy invitation of one of the pre-parties. He has several copies.

6 :10 p.m. And we’re in. We’ve entered the Atlantic/NJ/CBS pre-party, where the star of the evening is actress Claire Danes. She’s there as a guest of CBS “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer. Her brother tags along. Nonetheless, Schieffer stays close by Danes. Asked if he has the best guest of the night, he says, “I mean, it’s Claire Danes, what more do I need to say?”

6:19 p.m. Outdoor parties are the loser of the evening. It’s cold, damp and people are on a mad hunt for the bars. But we also spot our first WHCD big butt of the night; or perhaps that’s just an ill-fitting coat.

6:34 p.m. Rep. Allen West (R-Fla.) enters Atlantic fest. Mother Jones and MSNBC Contributor David Corn is here with the lead singer of OK GO. This was the big q of the night at this party — who is David Corn with? NJ Publicist Taylor West tells me FishbowlDC had better get to the bottom of this.

6:40 p.m. We’re now mingling out in the hallway, watching Bloomberg’s Stephanie Green interview model Elle MacPherson, who is wearing a high slitted sleeveless black gown, similar to what Angelina Jolie wore to the Oscars. We hear Stephanie conclude her interview by saying, “Thank you so much. I love your underwear!” Whoa! What? We asked Stephanie if she had said what we thought she did. She said what many inevitably say to reporters: “You’re not quoting me on this, are you?”

6:42 p.m. The Washington Examiner‘s Nikki Schwab gives Eddie the first cold shoulder of the day — it’s actually FBDC’s second bout of coldness from her in a 24-hour time frame. Don’t worry, there will be more.

6:43 p.m. Shock of all shocks, Politico‘s Mike Allen has his face buried in his Blackberry.

6:44 p.m. We wander into the TWT reception hoping to meet Uggie the dog and hear he was just there and just left. We meet TWT‘s Kerry Picket and her boyfriend, whom the blond towers over.  The party ironically serves Mexican food. WSJ‘s Neil King is here with his daughter Lilly.

7 p.m. Next stop: Bloomberg reception, where NY Mayor Mike Bloomberg is holding court in the center of the room in a purple bow-tie. A partygoer sees a black woman across the room and asks, “Is that Michelle Obama?” Actor Kevin Spacey is also here and singer Alicia Keys. Guests attack them for photographs like a bunch of star-crazed idiots.

7:10 p.m. Back out in the hallway, Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer asks Peter if he’s “just here to watch the hotties go by.”

7:15 p.m. We run into Pollster Frank Luntz, who’s dressed in a goofy striped suit and his signature sneakers. He’s miserable, he says. “Too many people, too chaotic. That said, there’s nothing like it.” He answers questions about his sneakers, saying that at this point he has maybe 35 pairs. He has three homes so he says he has to split them up. Luntz surmises by the end of the year he’ll have between 40 and 50 pairs. He explains that when he worked for a previous network they made him wear a tie, which he found so confining. So he decided they can force him from the neck up but from the feet down? That area is all his. No idea who owns the area between his neck and feet.

7:17 p.m. Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell says it’s “great to see so many young people here.” He forgets he’s not at a campaign rally.

7:20 p.m. Took a bathroom break. Walked in behind Schieffer. Walked out behind Luntz.

7:24 p.m. Lady drops tray of wine glasses. They shatter. Glass everywhere. She’s all nonchalant about it. No one hurt.

7:25 p.m.: James Davis, spokesman for the GOP Convention in Tampa, is bragging to Politico‘s Charlie Mahtesian that he ate 11 onions in 8 minutes during last year’s Vidalia Onion eating contest, which he nearly won. Because of the WHCA dinner, he’s missing this year’s onion-eating contest.

7:26 p.m.: HuffPost‘s Laura Bassett “on a mission” to find actress Reese Witherspoon. Just saw lead actress from “B in Apartment 3″ have to find out her name.

7:27 p.m.: NYT‘s Brian Stelter saunters by holding hands with his girlfriend, who has donned a bright red dress. “She is cute,” says Eddie. And we spot another set of WHCD big butts.

7:28 p.m. Rep. Fred Upton‘s niece, model Kate Upton, walks by. Heads turn. Onlookers try to figure out who she is. Because she looks like SOMEONE. Peter says he’s going to text his neighbor’s horny son to find out who she is.

7:29 p.m.: MSNBC Commentator Richard Wolffe escorting Chef Jose Andres for the second night in a row. Andres is responsible for the outstanding fare at The Atlantic‘s David Bradley‘s Friday night soiree that included things like crushed beat on toast and crispy avocado.

7:30 p.m. The balding gentleman with Elle MacPherson casually places his hand on her ass on their way down the hallway toward the ballroom.

7: 40 p.m. Eyes turn as CBS Chief White House Norah O’Donnell walks by in a long, bright yellow sequined dress that’s scooped out low in the back. Bystanders remark favorably on her attire. On her arm was Chef Geoff (Mr. Norah O’Donnell) escorting her. No one remarked on his tux.

7:42 p.m. Woody Harrelson seen leaving reception. Corona still in hand. Though he spent much of the weekend glued to Steve Schmidt‘s side, we hear he was flirting heavily with certain female reporters over the weekend.

7:43 p.m.: Always the charmer, Eddie rushes up to actress Kerry Washington, whose wearing a lovely long peach gown, and tells her how great she looks. Washington stars in the new series “Scandal” in which she plays a lawyer who has slept with the President of the United States.

7:44 p.m. Tom Hanks‘s son, Colin, who is the spitting image of his father, is mobbed by partygoers and friends in the hallway.

7:45 p.m. Garden brunch extraordinaire Tammy Haddad heads toward the ballroom with the 4’11” Daniel Radcliffe in a sparkly red and black blazer.

Quotes of the Day

“I love your underwear!” — Bloomberg‘s Stephanie Green to model Elle MacPherson in the hallway of the Washington Hilton prior to WHCD. Turns out MacPherson, who beamed in response, has an underwear line.

Convo between pundit & politico

The following conversation transpired between conservative pundit Ari Fleischer and DNC Spokesman Brad Woodhouse on Sunday.

Fleischer: “I wish POTUS had not poked fun at Secret Service. If anyone should have risen above the easy pot shots, it’s the President.”

Woodhouse: “Ari Fleischer: Like when Bush joked about not being able to find WMD at WHCD in the middle of the Iraq war. That was a real knee slapper.”

Comcast has its period?

“Must be that time of the month again. Comcast internet has gone down forcing me to 3G for who knows how long.” — Accuracy in Media Chairman Don Irvine.

“All dressed up and ready to go to the nerd prom!” – Author and MSNBC Contributor Meghan McCain.

A follower asks, “Is there a Twitter filter to screen out journalist tweets about journalism?” So Reuters‘ Jack Shafer snapped, “Yes. It’s called unfollow.”

Actor adamantly denies ass pinching

“The Mormon stuff is true, but I’ve never done that other thing [pinched a woman's ass] in my life.” — Actor Richard Kind at the Haddad/Rosen garden brunch Saturday afternoon when we approached and said, “So I heard you pinched a woman’s ass the other night. What was up with that?” Meanwhile, FBDC sources maintain it happened. The incident reportedly occurred at the Elle/Creative Coalition/Lani Hay dinner at the Ritz on Thursday night.

Reporter thanks God for editors

“Turning in a draft of a story that includes two of these notes in the text: [IS THIS A WORD?] Thank god for editors.” — NYT‘s media writer Brian Stelter, who came to Washington this weekend for the WHCD.