My apologies if this was diaried earlier (I attempted to check through past diaries here but as so often happens, that function was so slow, it was not practical). This diary also has some new info. David Sirota, journalist and former Democratic spokesman for the House Appropriations Committee, has reported that just hours after Nancy Pelosi backed off from the public option, a major health lobbyist set a fundraiser for her in Washington, D.C. Sirota quotes CNN when he says that Pelosi and Harry Reid said "they would support any provision that increases competition and accessibility for health insurance - whether or not it is the public option favored by most Democrats." Sirota also notes that Pelosi told CNN that Pelos ruled out any non-negotiable positions (formerly she had said that inclusion of a public option was non-negotiable).
Most damming, to Sirota, is the timing alleged:
This announcement came just hours before Steve Elmendorf, a registered UnitedHealth lobbyist [NOTE BY FFlambeau: Elmendorf's web site indicates his firm also represents The Hartford] and the head of UnitedHealth's lobbying firm Elmendorf Strategies, blasted this email invitation throughout Washington, D.C. I just happened to get my hands on a copy of the invitation from a source - check out this OpenLeft exclusive:
From: Steve Elmendorf [mailto:steve@elmendorfstrategies.com]
Sent: Friday, September 11, 2009 8:31 AM
Subject: event with Speaker Pelosi at my home
You are cordially invited to a reception with
Speaker of the House
Nancy Pelosi
Thursday, September 24, 2009
6:30pm ~ 8:00pm
At the home of
Steve Elmendorf
2301 Connecticut Avenue, NW
Apt. 7B
Washington, D.C.
$5,000 PAC
$2,400 Individual
To RSVP or for additional information please contact
Carmela Clendening at (202) 485-3508 or clendening@dccc.org
Steve Elmendorf
ELMENDORF STRATEGIES
GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS SOLUTIONS
900 7th Street NW Suite 750 Washington DC 20001
(202) 737-1655
SOURCES:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
http://www.elmendorfstrategies.com/
Sirota notes that Elmendorf, who was former Congressional Democratic leader Dick Gephardt's Chief of Staff, is a registered lobbyist for UnitedHealth. So Elmendorf's activities in themselves appear legal but the timing is critical. Here's Sirota:
The sequencing here is important: Pelosi makes her announcement and then just hours later, the fundraising invitation goes out. Coincidental? I'm guessing no - these things rarely ever are.
SOURCE: see above.
Something that Sirota appears to have missed is the link between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Elmendorf (important especially since the same stories link Pelosi and Reid. Reid, of course, appears to be "wishy washy" on the public option, but Reid is "wishy washy" on most everything). Back on May 14, 2009, Politico reported that Elmendorf had hired on as a lobbyist at his firm, Jimmy Ryan, a top aide to Reid. "Elmendorf Scores Former Top Aide to Harry Reid, Jimmy Ryan" trumpted Politico. From that story:
Ryan, who worked for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) for a decade before decamping for Citi in 2003, brings a Senate background similar to founder Steve Elmendorf’s House portfolio. Both men spent years as senior aides in top congressional leadership offices. Elmendorf ran floor operations for then-House Democratic Leader Dick Gephardt of Missouri, and Ryan did the same job for Reid. ...
[A]s a friendly Democratic lobbyist put it: Elmendorf and Ryan "are very current, pro-business Democrats of this political generation." In Ryan, Elmendorf also gets someone who understands how corporations think and what they need from their outside consultants. And Ryan also brings management experience to Elmendorf’s growing firm.
...Receiving job inquiries last year, Ryan said it quickly became clear that demand was high for lobbyists with a background in Senate Democratic leadership.
SOURCE: (emphasis added) http://www.politico.com/...
I'm not so sure that Pelosi changed her position (or even that she has), as Sirota seems to indicate, just because of the lobbyist fundraiser. But what is striking about the foregoing is it shows the power of money and lobbyists in Washington, D.C. and the insipid way that many politicians (and their staff) go from "representing the public" to representing huge industries (that they should have been regulating or overseeing legislation about). People like Ryan and Elmendorf are simply milking past contacts for their own personal gain. Elmendorf, who worked closely to support Joe Lieberman, appears especially parasitical. As Ryan put it: "demand was high for lobbyists with a background in Senate Democratic leadership." Wonder why that is? Wonder why Harry Reid needs a backbone transplant? Wonder why Washington is attractive to the likes of Elmendorf and Ryan?
Campaign finance reform and how money is funnelled into Washington, D.C. are questions central to virtually all issues facing us and not just health care reform. Without changing the money practices in Washington, little else will change.
NOTE #1: While Elmendorf's activities appear legal, it would also be legal to tie up his phone lines and to perhaps even appear at the Pelosi event posing as a donor or to demand to cover it (if one is a journalist).
NOTE #2: A different take on Sirota and his interpretation of the lobbyist-Pelosi situation is found at:
http://www.drumsnwhistles.com/...