Senator Alan Simpson Shoots From The Lip; Hardy Book Party Hits Veep Cheney, Clarence Thomas, Bob Woodward, More!

NORTHWEST -- The first floor of The Jefferson, Washington D.C. hotel was swarming with political powerbrokers on Thursday evening, during a special reception honoring former Republican Senator Alan Simpson which celebrated the national publication of a book documenting his storied life and career.

Donald Loren Hardy (Photo: Haddad Media)
Written by Simpson’s former Chief of Staff, Donald Loren Hardy, Shooting from the Lip: The Life of Senator Al Simpson draws extensively from the personal papers and diary of the Wyoming senator and touches on everything from the Iran-Contra affair to Clarence Thomas’s Supreme Court confirmation hearings (Thomas was also among the evening’s attendees) to his close friendship with the late Senator Ted Kennedy.

Lynne Cheney and Vice President Dick Cheney (Photo: Haddad Media)
Yesterday’s reception, co-hosted by Constance Milstein, Tammy Haddad, Ken Levinson, Lane Bailey, and Mike Tongour, attracted a guest list commensurate with Senator Simpson’s illustrious political career, which spanned seven American presidents and included a stint as Senate Majority (1985-1987) and Minority (1987-1995) Whips.

Sam Donaldson with Don and Rebecca Hardy (Photo: Haddad Media)
Among the friends, family, and colleagues who turned out last night were Vice President Dick Cheney, Second Lady Lynne Cheney, former Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta, Washington Post Associate Editor Bob Woodward, and 45-year ABC News veteran Sam Donaldson.

Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta (Photo: Haddad Media)
It just goes to show that if you shoot from the lip, you just might indeed (good-naturedly) hit some prominent targets!