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Heard on the Hill: Coked Out in Washington

Anyone else notice that Coca-Cola has been all over Washington the past few months?

The Georgia-based company wined and dined Washington politicians with five events in three short months. It pulled out the big guns from the Washington Nationals and Redskins and partnered with first lady Michelle Obama, among others, to roll out its new healthy agenda.

Last week, Coke went with some fluffy white-stuff imagery in its effort to protect polar bear habitats. Polar bears, you’ll recall, have been a long-standing brand image for Coca-Cola, especially during the holiday season.

The company held one of seven nationwide events promoting the Arctic Home Campaign and partnership with World Wildlife Fund on Capitol Hill at the Newseum on Thursday. MacGillivray Freeman Films was also there to share a sneak peek of its new film, “To the Arctic.”

Speaking of white, for the first time in many, many years, Coke recently changed its look and got the red out.

Coca-Cola cans were stripped of the classic red color, opting for a white visage. But after some marketing confusion, it looks like red will be coming back soon.

Sticking with the white-stuff theme, Coke rolled out the white carpet and brought along “Cappy,” the polar bear statue made of 4,500 white recyclable bottle caps, to the shmancy-pants event.

The company gave away swag bags that included a little beanie polar bear head with tiny, furry ears.

Sadly, special guests Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and Rep. David Scott (D-Ga.) were stuck voting and missed the event.

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