Welcome to Walt Disney World Resort, Florida, home to giant glittering pools, a Cinderella castle, and joyful political fundraisers. This year, the park has become a popular locale for the pricey campaign events of Southern Republican candidates.

There were sightings of lawmakers living it up as recently as March. In a joint fundraiser, Reps. Tom Price (R-Ga.) and Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.), took to Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa — it’s right next to the Magic Kingdom, you can’t miss it — to entertain their guests with a big dinner and a fireworks show. Donations of $2,500 per PAC or $1,500 per individual to either lawmaker bought you a baseball game-packed weekend and accommodations — negotiated at “the fabulous rate of $245/ night!,” according to an invitation uploaded to the Sunlight Foundation’s Political Party Time website. Regular rates for a single room at the hotel start at around $500.

Meanwhile, Rep. David Vitter (R-La.) sure knows how to put the fun in fundraising. This cycle, his Louisiana Reform PAC spent $6,000 at Walt Disney World. He seems to be particularly fond of the theme park, which features Spaceship Earth, a giant golf ball-shaped time machine. In November 2011, he invited supporters to join him for a $2,500-a-head weekend of golfing, car racing and all-around family fun.

Who else loves a chance to shake hands with grinning Pluto? There’s Rep. Ander Crenshaw (R-Fla.), who went all out this cycle, laying out more than $25,000 in Disney-related expenses. Much fun was had by all, and many dollars pocketed by the campaign.

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Fundraising in the family-friendly resort is nothing new, but in the past the park mostly attracted local politicians. In 2010, Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Florida) held a $2,500-a-pop (and $5,000 per PAC) party in the park. In 2008, former Rep. Adam H. Putnam (R-Florida) threw a Weekend at Walt Disney party for $2,500 per guest, in case anyone had missed the more low-key Bourbon Tasting event held a week before.

While Walt Disney Co. clearly leans to the left in its political contributions, that hasn’t stopped the resort from welcoming state lawmakers of both parties with open arms. From 2001 to 2007, the park gave more than $571,000 in freebies, including accommodations, food and beverages, to state parties, according to a 2008 report by the Orlando Sentinel.

Now, who could resist this whole new world for courting donors?

Follow Lalita on Twitter at @lalitaclozel



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