And Politico threw a big party, too! The Capitol Hill-centric paper — free when taken from D.C. street bins but a cool $2,000 if you splurge for the new subscription service — planned a totally posh rager to celebrate this biennial ritual of participatory democracy. It was held at — irony alert! — the Newseum, and the Washington City Paper has the party report.

But for whom, exactly, did Politico throw this party? Why, themselves, of course! The City Paper went to town on Politico's night of excesses, which was taped for a live stream on its website and meta-reported by stringers for Click, the publication's gossip contingent. Attendees couldn't walk into the elevator without seeing a Politico logo. Also, the food was fancy!

The vibe was a throwback to the days when media companies actually made money (which Politico executives say it does): There were lamb chops, and sushi, and little cones of raw tuna topped with caviar; duck and chicken dumplings kept arriving on tables for waiters to deposit them in Politico-branded Chinese takeout containers. There were designer cocktails with topical names: “The Donkey,” “The Elephant,” “The Politico,” “The Tea Party” (made with sweet tea vodka, naturally).

But what does this all mean, the post asks. The partisan shindigs were ostensibly meant to celebrate (potential) victory, but the endless branding — amid a lack of discernable purpose — that Politico offered last night didn't exactly add up to anything. I mean, they were giving out Politico-theme iPhone cases. iPhone cases slapped with a Politico flag! Could a party giving away these kind of favors be celebrating anything but itself?

That being said, if you have an extra Politico iPhone case, send it our way — before one gets put up as an exhibit at the Newseum.

nfreeman [at] observer.com | @nfreeman1234