Step inside Ned’s Club – Washington’s hottest new after-hours meeting place for the city’s power players. But before you’ve even found your seat, a shroud of secrecy is required. Security has slapped a dark green sticker over your phone camera.

In a city that leaks like a strainer – where a rogue video recording can end a career before the morning news drops – the Ned’s Club strict ‘turn it off’ policy is its ultimate currency. That means the people inside finally feel safe enough to drop their talking points and occasionally behave terribly.

But this is no Soho House, it’s where the real political heavyweights mix. In DC, socializing is just a polite word for networking with a better glass of liquor in your hand. People don’t pay pricey initiation fees to relax; they pay them to rub elbows, corner a Senator and cut a deal.

After all, in this city more than any other, politicians and reporters are the real celebrities – and now the Republican establishment has essentially claimed Ned’s as their unofficial clubhouse. 

But business often turns personal – and loud – no matter what side of the political aisle you identify with.

You’ve got finance titans and top Trump Cabinet secretaries Howard Lutnick and Scott Bessent comparing notes – though not always peacefully.

According to three sources, two of whom were physically present, the pair reportedly got into a heated argument the night of the ‘Spotify and Starboard’ event at the club on April 21 last year. Lutnick was not at the Spotify event, but witnesses say it happened at the club that same night.

Representatives from both Lutnick’s and Bessent’s teams denied a verbal altercation took place.

The Founders dining room at Ned’s Club has a stunning view of the Washington Monument and National Mall

Ned’s Club is a perfect breeding ground for the messy theater of political power. Guests are required to cover up their cameras – but the discretion is largely performative

This friction appears to be part of a larger pattern for Bessent; according to Axios, he and Elon Musk erupted into a shouting match at the White House last April, a spat loud enough to be overheard by President Trump and several top officials.

The volatility resurfaced in September of last year at the Executive Club, Donald Trump Jr’s private Georgetown haunt. Amid the cocktail-hour dinner, Bessent reportedly lashed out at Bill Pulte after learning the Federal Housing Finance Agency director had allegedly disparaged him to the President.

As Politico reported, Bessent didn’t mince his words: ‘Why the f*** are you talking to the president about me? F*** you,’ Bessent told Pulte. ‘I’m gonna punch you in your f*****g face.’

He did not follow through on his threat, but they were reportedly separated that night. 

Spats that cross the political aisle are commonplace too. One telling example took place in February of last year. 

Trump ally Kari Lake and members with her that night reportedly got into a verbal argument with Lake’s old 2024 campaign rival, Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego on the way on and off the elevator. 

According to five of our sources, in February last year, Gallego and Lake were hurling insults at one another. Their argument was reportedly regarding immigration, a charged topic in the nation’s capital.

A source close to Gallego confirms the altercation took place, but both sides blamed each other for starting the fight.

Another verbal altercation took place months later between Lake and her friends, like GOP fundraiser Caroline Wren. Their spat was with an inebriated clerk for Judge Amy Berman Jackson.

Inside Ned’s Club, security slaps a dark-green sticker over your phone camera

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is among the Trump administration heavyweights who has been spotted at the club

Two insiders say Democratic media influencer Suzanne Lambert and Jordan Cox, Special Assistant to the President in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs, found themselves toe to toe one night. An earlier version of the story had a picture of a different Jordan Cox by the same name

Gallego and Lake’s team declined to comment. Justice Jackson’s team also did not respond for comment.

Other pairs were spotted sitting quite close to each other in different corners of Ned’s Club.

Take a recent evening, for example, where several witnesses tell the Daily Mail that NATO Ambassador Matthew Whitaker, tucked away in a dimly lit corner, was spotted having a very friendly conversation with an unidentified female. 

A State Department spokesperson tells the Daily Mail he has been divorced since July 2019: ‘He is in a long-term, committed relationship and his girlfriend is a member.’

The distinguished conservative roster goes on, frequently drawing the likes of Representative Elise Stefanik, Florida gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds, Trump’s chief medical advisor and Texas Congressman Ronny Jackson, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, former counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer and Ambassador Monica Crowley.

Kari Lake mingles with guests during the Uninvited party at Butterworth’s restaurant after the White House correspondents’ dinner in Washington, DC in April of last year

Membership also extends beyond just Washington, offering reciprocal access to other Ned’s Club locations like in London and New York

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin has also been spotted working the room alongside former Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Reince Priebus and Senator Ted Cruz. 

Even the young guard of the conservative movement, like CJ Pearson and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs Micah Bock, are fixtures.

Just last night, former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy was seen having dinner with colleagues on the rooftop. 

White House staff secretary Will Scharf was also spotted having dinner and drinks with a mystery brunette woman. Scharf told the Daily Mail that she was a ‘female associate’ and not a date.

Also among the late-night crew was embattled Paul Ingrassia, who sauntered in with a few of his former DHS colleagues. Ingrassia was the nominee to lead the Office of Special Counsel before he was forced to withdraw his confirmation hearing due to alleged racist texts he sent that were unearthed. 

Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee Communications Director Jeff Naft was also spotted with other colleagues on the Hill.

Railroad chief Ian Jefferies and Senator Todd Young attend Puck Power Breakfast at Ned’s Club Washington DC

Late night, embattled Paul Ingrassia (pictured with Donald Trump in 2023) sauntered in with some former colleagues

It’s not strictly a red wave, however; Democratic Senator Mark Warner and former White House communications director Symone Sanders have also been spotted among the Democratic leagues.

Two insiders say Democratic media influencer Suzanne Lambert and Jordan Cox, Special Assistant to the President in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs, found themselves toe to toe one night. After a few drinks, the banter went up in flames. A yelling match erupted right in the middle of the club before they were physically separated by bystanders.

When reached for comment, Lambert tells the Daily Mail: ‘A Republican getting too drunk and being rude in a public place happens on every day that ends in ‘y.’ He apologized for the behavior and the girl he was with left without him, which I imagine is an experience he is used to.’

Cox did not respond to a request for comment.

Blurring the lines between politics and traditional fame, you’ll find actual entertainment and sports figures mingling among the suits: director Michael Bay, socialite Nikki Hilton, author Jack Carr and Canadian former professional ice hockey defenseman Mike Green have all been seen navigating the club.

It’s also become the premier venue for soft-power diplomacy.

You’ll spot the Omani Ambassador, Talal bin Sulaiman bin Habib Al Rahbi, convening with a carousel of foreign delegations who are looking to make friends. Club regulars also include President and Chairman of the Export-Import Bank John Jovanovic and Senior Advisor to Robert F Kennedy Jr, Chris Klomp.

A dimly-lit drawing room in the club. Regular membership is $5,000 per year with a one-time $5,000 joining fee

Media elites like CNN’s Kaitlan Collins have also been seen mingling with politicians.

For those navigating this intersection of power and prestige, the club is a vital tool.

‘My background actually is where entertainment meets politics,’ one PR executive who frequents the club explained. ‘It’s a really great place to host both entertainment or corporate clients, just because there are high-caliber people that come and go.’

Summing up the calculated ethos of the room, she added: ‘For me, it’s all business there. It’s not about relaxing.’

After you’ve survived a political shouting match or sent a drink over to an ambassador, there’s only one thing left to do: You head to the bar and order yourself ‘The Lynne.’

Named after White House loyalist and Deputy Assistant to the President Lynne Patton, it is the unofficial nectar of the conservative ruling class: two parts premium vodka cut with exactly 10ml of pear liquor.

As the reigning mantra around the club goes: ‘If you are a Republican member at the Ned, from Cabinet and downward – you have had the Lynne!’

‘The Lynne,’ named after White House loyalist Lynne Patton, it is the unofficial nectar of the conservative ruling class: two parts premium vodka, cut with exactly 10ml of pear liquor

The Library at Ned’s Club Washington, DC. The club also has locations in New York, London and Doha

If you want to mingle with DC’s political elite or try a drink inspired by Trump’s inner circle, regular membership is $5,000 per year with a one-time $5,000 joining fee. Membership also extends beyond just Washington, offering reciprocal access to other Ned’s Club locations like in London and New York.

But in this city, the Ned is a perfect breeding ground for the messy theater of political power. Guests are required to cover up their cameras, but the discretion is largely performative.

‘Nothing stays secret for long in this town,’ a club member said. ‘Phones or no phones, walls always have a way of talking.’