Take them out to the ballgame

It’s no secret: the Washington Nationals are miserable. And not surprisingly, they’re not setting any attendance records this year.

But unlike other cities, the Nationals have a built-in fan base: politicians.

The ballpark was a popular destination for fundraisers this year, and dozens of lawmakers spent literally hundreds of thousands of dollars on tickets.

The list of baseball fans on Capitol Hill is long and distinguished: Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.); House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio); Reps. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), Joe Courtney (D-Conn.), Carolyn McCarthy (D-N.Y.), John Shimkus (R-Ill.) and Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.).

All of them took in a Nats game with supporters this summer, though it’s doubtful any of the lawmakers were rooting for the home team.

(A Durbin spokesman confirms that his boss chose his game wisely: The Chicago Cubs beat the Nats 6-2 on the day he attended.)

A visit from the Boston Red Sox provided a big boon. Not only did the Nationals record huge attendance during the three-game series, but Reps. Michael Capuano, Richard Neal, Stephen Lynch and Niki Tsongas — all Massachusetts Democrats — each held a fundraiser during the series.
(Capuano needs the money the most — he’s running to replace the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.)

All told, campaigns and political action committees have spent more than $200,000 on tickets to Nationals games, according to Federal Election Commission data.

That number could double before the season is over: Reports showing ticket purchases extend only to the end of June for lawmakers’ campaigns. When new reports come in after the close of the third quarter, at the end of September, the Nationals may prove to have reaped hundreds of thousands more in campaign bucks.