So, we were wondering whether BGR Group Chairman Ed Rogers had contacted his old buddy, Mississippi GOP Gov. Haley Barbour before Rogers and the BGR firm--which Barbour helped found--decided to host a fundraiser for Virginia Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Terry McAuliffe.  (See item directly below.)

Rogers cheerfully got back to us. "I didn't know that Terry was a Democrat," Rogers initially joked. He continued, "I did not check with Haley, but I think I can speak for Haley: He will be against Terry [in this year's race], but if Terry gets elected, he will be Haley's favorite Democratic governor."

Rogers, an Alabamian and Republican strategist, said that he and McAuliffe have long been friends who used to spend time together in cable TV "green rooms" before joint interviews. "But that friendship will be suspended if Terry ever runs for governor of Alabama or president of the United States," added Rogers playfully. (Both Rogers and McAuliffe currently reside in McLean, Virginia.)

"Terry is good, he remembers my kids' birthdays," noted Rogers. Indeed, McAuliffe's personal "touch" made him a legendary fund raiser for the Democratic Party, and especially for Bill and Hillary Clinton.

On a more mundane note, Rogers said that his lobby shop does not prowl the halls of the state capitol in Richmond. "There is not a business interest that I am aware of in the governor of Virginia," he said. And yes, the firm has already held a fundraiser for Bob McDonnell, the prospective Republican nominee for governor in the Old Dominion. But no, Rogers' own name was not attached to that event.

                                                                                                          -- James A. Barnes