Sen. Hillary Clinton, using one of her rival's campaign tactics, today told her donors they can win a chance to have lunch at her home -- if they contribute to her presidential bid by Friday night.

"Let's do lunch. Let's talk, you and me -- about whatever you'd like. Our hopes. Our goals. Our work. The weather. Maybe even politics," Clinton (D-N.Y.) said in her solicitation. "I want you to come to my home, share a meal, and tell me about your life, your family, your concerns, and how we can work together to change America."

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) has done two "meet the candidate" fundraising contests this summer, and his pitch was that small donors, giving as little as $5, could get a chance to tell him their thoughts on politics over dinner.

Now Clinton is giving the idea a shot.

In an e-mail with the subject line "I'll pick up the groceries," Clinton outlines the terms for lunch at her home in Northwest D.C.

"I think it would be fun to have you over for lunch, at my table, in my home in Washington. You and I both know that we need a serious change of direction in this country. So let's sit down for a meal and talk about exactly the best way to make that change a reality," she wrote in the e-mail, adding her favorite part of campaigning is "one-on-one" talks with voters.

"I wish I could invite every single one of the more than one million people who are supporting my campaign -- but I don't think you'd all fit!" she wrote.

-- Christina Bellantoni, national political reporter, The Washington Times