GOP fund-raiser featuring Bush sets record

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Tuesday's Republican National Committee gala here raised a record $23.9 million, the RNC said, far more than estimates before the event.

With President Bush serving as the main speaker, organizers had predicted Monday they would take in about $15 million. The funds are considered "soft money" -- donations that, at least officially, are not targeted to individual campaigns and are unregulated.

Bush thanked the 2,000 donors who dined on beef and risotto at the RNC's Presidential Gala at the National Guard Armory here.

"I want to thank you all very much for your generous contributions, so my drive was only five minutes," said Bush, referring to prior contributions that had helped him win the White House.

The president noted that he has already served one-twelfth of his term and ticked off a laundry list of trips, meetings, events and speeches that have filled his schedule since January 20.

On tax relief, Bush said he believes his administration has convinced Congress to cut the rates on everyone who pays taxes, a key component of his plan.

Regarding other aspects of his agenda, Bush said his administration is willing to talk openly about Social Security, and has not only recognized the nation is in an energy crisis but has laid out a plan that combines conservation and supply as a solution.

"We came not to have Washington change us, but to have us change Washington," the president said.

To frequent applause, Bush said the agenda he has pursued since entering office is the same ambitious one he campaigned on.

"Washington is a place of many temptations and one of them is to settle in, just go along and forget about the commitments you made during the course of the campaign. But this is an administration that will keep its word. We may not always agree, but hopefully we can be honest with each other and change the tone of Washington D.C."

Changing the tone in the capital has been a frequent theme for Bush and he said it has not been easy to achieve. "I realize that in politics, old ways die hard. Washington at time has got a plenty sharp edge to it. The only thing I can do is to control our responses. When I hear my policies and my nominees attacked in a hostile way, I simply hear the echoes of an era behind us."

The fundraiser came a day after Dick Cheney held a fund-raiser at his vice presidential residence in Washington, an event that Democrats compared to Clinton-era events that drew heavy GOP criticism.

Many of the attendees were the same at both parties.

RNC officials said Monday night's reception was not a fund-raiser, but a "thank you" gathering for donors and friends of the party. And they rejected comparisons with President Clinton's much-criticized use of official White House property -- including White House coffees and Lincoln bedroom sleepovers -- to fete Democratic Party donors.

Democratic Party spokeswoman Jenny Backus called the RNC's decision to host an event at Cheney's official residence "rank with hypocrisy."

"They have no shame about it -- they feel they don't have to answer to the same standards they apply to others," she said.