National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Cole (Okla.) announced Wednesday that deep-pocketed Rep. Darrell Issa (Calif.) will chair the annual NRCC dinner that will be held March 12 at the Washington Hilton Hotel.

[IMGCAP(1)]Two dozen GOP Members will serve as team captains, helping Issa sell tickets. Cole and Issa announced a goal of raising $7.5 million at the dinner, which will be headlined by President Bush.

According to several sources, during a meeting of the House Republican Conference on Wednesday, Issa said he hoped Members would pony up $400,000 for the dinner by next week. Then Issa, who helped bankroll the California gubernatorial recall that led to the election of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) in 2003, joked that he would make up any shortfall.

“The Congressman is definitely fired up about the NRCC dinner and he’s working to make the dinner a success,” said Issa spokesman Frederick Hill.

— Josh Kurtz