Who Pays for the Olive?

By Adam Zagorin, James Carney

There is a group in the U.S. Senate so cautious that it meets regularly but has no name. Its mission, according to one attendee, is to establish a "haven of bipartisanship in a bitterly divided legislative body." How? Mostly by serving food and alcohol--paid for by lobbyists--to chiefs of staff on both sides of the aisle. A recent invite, sent from Tennessee Republican Lamar Alexander's office, urges guests to check out the swanky new Oya restaurant, known for its $15 rum cocktails and red crocodile bar top. The host of the upcoming event, according to an e-mail obtained by TIME, is a lobbying firm co-founded by Republican National Committee chairman Ken Mehlman's brother and Senate majority leader Bill Frist's former chief counsel. FedEx has thrown a similar shindig, as has the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Attendees get to mingle below the radar at the publicity- free events, which are billed at less than $50 a head to comply with Senate ethics rules. "Why have a lobbyist pay for it?" asks a senior Republican's top staffer. "I think that [question] answers itself." --By Adam Zagorin and James Carney