A bipartisan panel on MS NOW delivered a lighthearted roasting Sunday afternoon, as a Republican strategist and a former Democratic lawmaker gleefully mocked President Donald Trump's midterm convention.

Susan Del Percio and former state Rep. Don Calloway (D-MI) chuckled on "Alex Witt Reports" over the GOP Convention, which is slated to begin in Dallas on Tuesday. The event is unusual in modern presidential politics: major-party national conventions are traditionally held every four years to nominate a presidential candidate, and it is rare for a party to stage one ahead of a midterm cycle.

"Midterm conventions are not a thing!" declared Calloway. "The idea that they feel the need to convene and to throw a national thing of this magnitude shows that there's real trouble."

Host Alex Witt, Del Percio and Calloway all expressed shock at the high price tags attached to the various events — and at what that money would buy. Attendees will reportedly be charged $35,000 to take a picture with Vice President JD Vance at an event that will cost $25,000 to attend.

"Are those numbers worth it for that Chris Brown-style meet-and-greet with various politicians?" scoffed Calloway. "Absolutely not!"

Calloway accused Trump and his White House of monetizing their public positions for personal gain while they still have the chance, and predicted that Democrats will regain control of Congress after the race. Such high-dollar access events have long drawn scrutiny in campaign-finance debates, where critics argue that steep per-photo and per-attendee fees give wealthy donors outsized proximity to elected officials.

"What it does is give the Trump administration one more time to grist to the mill of the grift," he said. "Democrats will probably have the gavel, and there will be some checks for the first time in ten years on his ability to just raise money willy nilly."

Del Percio, for her part, appeared reluctant to openly condemn the Republicans she argued had been roped into attending the event to appease Trump.

"No one really wants to go," she said. "But you better have a good reason [not to] because Donald Trump holds a grudge. And that's the other thing. You don't want to be called out by the president."

Still, Del Percio could not resist mocking the idea of spending $25,000 to take a picture with House Speaker Mike Johnson.

"The whole thing is nuts," she said. "You get to see Mike Johnson, who is your leader anyway?"

Witt replied with a one-word response dripping with irony: "Cool."