Sixteen minutes proved too lengthy, so Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) says he’s going back to his original 15-minute Christmas party to ring in the holidays at the Capitol.
“We went 16 last year, and I just felt like it dragged a little bit. So we’re going back to the original 15 minutes — don’t need to go over,” Burchett told ITK of his Thursday lunchtime gathering at the Longworth House Office Building.
Burchett started the super speedy get-together in 2022, before extending the festivities by 60 seconds last year. But the expanded Xmas fête appeared to be a bust in his book.
“The conversation just went a little long and the interaction, and I almost ran out of Cheez Whiz for my charcuterie board. I mean that would have been a Gloria Vanderbilt faux pas of all faux pas,” the 60-year-old congressman quipped.
Burchett recalled last year’s event, when Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) arrived right as the party hit the 15-minute mark.
“It’s like Kmart — I’ve been blinking the lights, getting everybody out of there. And and she’s like, ‘Where is everybody?’ And I said, ‘Well, dadgummit Virginia, it was over 15 minutes ago,'” he said.
“And she goes, ‘Oh, you really last 15 minutes?'”
“Yeah, that’s all we said we’re gonna do. I ain’t doing this any longer,” Burchett said he told his colleague. “So I said just make yourself a couple of peanut butter and jelly sandwich and take them with you.”
While Burchett aimed to keep details of this year’s party under wraps, he did tease a few highlights of the quarter-hour shindig.
“We’re working on a Mountain Dew fountain, actually. That’s going to bring the crowd in, I believe,” he said.
The rapid-fire function will also feature a “celebrity Santa Claus,” according to Burchett. Last year, Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) did the honors, suiting up as Santa. This time around, Burchett said, Moskowitz may serve as a sort of “Santa Emeritus.”
Burchett said his zippy Christmastime celebration is a bipartisan affair: “I’m not checking anybody’s voter card when they come in.”
Asked if he was expecting to host a lot of Democratic lawmakers during these polarized times at his swift holiday soiree, Burchett told ITK, “I suspect we’ll have more Democrats than we’ve ever had because they need to share a little love too.”
