Romney fundraiser draws Virginia dignitaries, raises $600,000 Several of Virginia's Republican elite came out for a fundraiser for likely presidential nominee Mitt Romney at the Pentagon City Ritz Carlton Wednesday night. Guests included Gov.Robert F. McDonnell, Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney applauds as he listens to his wife, Ann, at a campaign stop in Chantilly May 2. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) U.S. Rep. Tom Davis (Va.), Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, and Ed Gillespie, McDonnell's former general chairman who serves as a Romney adviser, according to a pool report and interviews. Major Republican donors Bobbie Kilberg, chairwoman of the Northern Virginia Technology Council, and Fred and Marlene Malek also were there. The event, which followed a series of VIP policy discussions, raised at least $625,000, according to the campaign. About 250 guests attended the general reception with each guest paying at least $2,500. Romney is on a two-day swing in Virginia days before President Obama arrives to speak at a school Friday and hold a rally Saturday. McDonnell spoke at the fundraiser before Romney, boasting of Virginia's status as a top-ranking pro-growth state and advocating "policies that would allow more people to live the dream Romney has lived,"" according to a pool report. He got a laugh when he mentioned that Obama opposes the state's right to work law and drilling off the coast of Virginia. "This is the most critical election we've seen in modern American history and there is no rationale for the Obama presidency,"" said McDonnell, according to the report. "I believe for such a time as this, by divine providence we get the right kind of leader."" Romney told guests he loves America, praised the troops and lamented the sluggish economy. "Almost every other day I'll sit down with a group of individuals, and sometimes it's kind of heartbreaking" he said. Obama didn't create the recession, but he has overseen the most tepid recovery we have seen since Hoover.