Jeff Dufour and Patrick Gavin, The Examiner
2007-04-06 07:00:00.0
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Jeff Dufour and Patrick Gavin cover people, power and politics in the beltway each weekday. Email them at yan@dcexaminer.com .

Iggy, Stooges have a soft spot for the GOP, lobbyists

So this is how punks grow old: They stay in chic, modern hotels, hang out with banking lobbyists and reveal their Republican allegiances.

Punk legends Iggy & the Stooges, who played the 9:30 Club Thursday night, have been hanging their tattered hats this week at the newly spiffed up Park Hyatt in the West End.

Wednesday night, the Stooges, including original members Ron and Scott Ashton, were sitting down to dinner on the outside patio at the hotel’s Blue Duck Tavern, when out came Iggy Pop himself.

He was “gimping through the lobby” wearing only one Birkenstock sandal with the other foot bare, said Erick Gustafson, a lobbyist with the Mortgage Bankers of America, who was himself having dinner at the time and just so happens to be a huge fan.

“He looks and walks exactly like you’d expect him to look and walk,” Gustafson said.

Iggy hung out for about 40 minutes before going back upstairs to do whatever it is that he does, but the Ashton brothers stayed out long after dinner, whereupon Gustafson and Dan Berger of the National Association of Federal Credit Unions joined them for drinks.

As the temperature dropped, the party moved inside, and the punks and policy wonks continued to enjoy wine and spirits into the wee hours.

Among the biggest surprises from the rockers? They love jazz great John Coltrane, and they’re both Republicans.

“Ron was pretty knowledgeable about lawmakers and policy,” Gustafson said.

Not very rock ’n’ roll of them. At least they could have heaved a TV out the window for old times’ sake.

Bob Schieffer tries singing

If you’ve surfed the racks of your local music shop during the past week, you might have stumbled upon Honky Tonk Confidential’s brand new CD, “Road Kill Stew and Other News.” And, if you did, you probably did a double-take when you saw the face of CBS’ “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer on the cover.

But your eyes aren’t lying: The former CBS “Evening News” anchor helped write four songs on the album and even sings on one (appropriately titled, “TV Anchorman”).

“It’s totally different than anything else I’ve ever done,” Schieffer told Yeas & Nays. “I’ve always written a lot of poetry and I started writing songs just for fun and showed them to [Honky Tonk band member] Diana Quinn.”

Already, Schieffer is loving the rock-star life.

“If I knew what a band could do for your life, I would have taken guitar lessons a long time ago,” Schieffer said. “The chicks love it!” Well, maybe not one: “I get a lot of grief from my wife,” Schieffer said. “She always reminds me, ‘Bob, you cannot sing!’ But I just remind her that, well, neither can Johnny Cash but he managed to do OK!”

Schieffer says he already has a goal in mind: “I want to make it to the Grand Ole Opry.” A CD launch party is scheduled for April 15 at Iota Cafe in Arlington.

Congressional Country Club maneuvers two events

Where does a 500-pound Tiger sit? Wherever he wants.

That was part of a recent dilemma for Congressional Country Club: As excited as they are to accommodate Tiger Woods’ AT&T National golf tournament (scheduled for July 5 to 8), the tourney coincides with the club’s impressive annual July 4 celebration.

How will the club handle the swarms of people for both events? Simple: It will impose a “one car per family” rule for the July 4 celebration, according to a source close to the negotiations (so either the Jag or the Benz, but not both).

And, in a nod to members, they are not tenting the grass terrace overlooking the 17th and 18th holes to create a “members only” locale (doing so would ruin the grass at this prime viewing spot for the duration of the summer). Instead, members will congregate at the clubhouse’s Windsor Room and the adjoining terrace, which provides a gorgeous panoramic view of the putting green and ninth hole on the flagship Blue Course.

Let the games begin.

‘Nation’s accountant’ to file taxes late

With April 15 fast approaching, you’d think that the nation’s accountant — Comptroller General David Walker — would already have his taxes filed flawlessly.

Well, you’d be wrong.

“I’m filing an extension,” Walker revealed to Yeas & Nays, conceding that he just needs a little bit more time to get his taxes done. “Unfortunately because of my schedule being pretty crazy, I have fairly frequently had to file extensions.”

What!?! Where have all our heroes gone?

Of course, Walker does have a decent excuse for why his taxes take so long to complete: He does them by hand.

For several years now, Walker has elected to do his taxes by hand in order to spark what he sees as a much needed discussion on tax reform.

“It’s only by doing it by hand that you can fully appreciate how complicated and convoluted our tax system is,” Walker said. He has even told Congress that if the members all prepared their own taxes, it’d be enough to motivate lawmakers to pass comprehensive changes to our tax system.

In the meantime, try to avoid the Walker household when he’s filling out his 1040 form and avoiding hand cramps.

“It’s generally not viewed as a good day around my house,” he said.

Chase-ing away ‘Sopranos’ withdrawal

“The Sopranos” creator David Chase held a VIP-only screening Thursday night of the first two episodes of the show’s final season, three days before it airs on HBO.

Joining Chase at the National Cable & Telecommunications Association offices just off the Hill were MPAA chief Dan Glickman, Fox’s Chris Wallace, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, series producer Ilene Landress and HBO exec Richard Plepler.

After the screening, Leon Wieseltier, literary editor of the New Republic, interviewed Chase over dinner. We’d love to tell you what Chase said, but it was off the record.

Along with New York, Washington is one of only two cities to which Chase is traveling for screenings (hear that, Los Angeles?). HBO spokeswoman Suzanne Pinto said the network has done a D.C. premiere for every season, except for the last one, because they couldn’t let word leak out that Tony got shot in Episode 1.