"Lobbyist".
Is it just me, or does the term itself have a greasy sound?
While I am certain that there is some small number
of Washington lobbyists that are simply in it to make the world a better place,
it is my belief that the overriding majority would, if pressed, admit that they are subscribers
to a code of conduct which falls somewhere between the eviction attorney and the repo man.
What is the etymology of the word 'lobby'?
From the
Online Etymology Dictionary
Political sense of "those who seek to influence legislation"
is attested 1808 in Amer.Eng., in ref. to the custom of
influence-seekers gathering in large entrance-halls outside
legislative chambers. The verb in this sense is first attested 1850.
Lobbyist is first attested 1863.
Some of the earliest recorded evidence of professional lobbying occurs in 1853.
Who was the lobbyist? None other than Abraham Lincoln.
From
Illinois Historic Preservation Agency
by way of the
Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association
Alarmed by this legislative maneuver, canal trustees engaged Lincoln to lobby against
the bill in the house of representatives. His efforts succeeded, and the bill was defeated
in committee. In the I & M Canal records at the Illinois State Archives, Dr. Temple found
two documents that prove Lincoln's role as lobbyist in this matter. The canal "Cash Book"
recorded a payment of $25 to Lincoln on March 16, 1853 "for opposing Haven bill in
Legislature." Although the executed check has not been found, the files do contain the
original and a duplicate of Lincoln's signed receipt of payment. A clerk's description on
the receipt specified the basis for payment: ". . . for opposing before a Committee of the
House Mr. Haven's Bill to prevent diverting water from the Des Plain (sic) River at Joliet."
Lobbying was still in its relative infancy in antebellum America, but there is no doubt
that A. Lincoln, Esq. was a practitioner of this art, which many modern critics disparage.
The earliest lobbying activity which most closely parallels what we would recognize today as the modern Washington lobbyist arises from events
that are post Civil War. Interestingly enough, this time frame coencides nicely with what are the precursors to the worlds first factory assembly lines.
Small waves in what are to become the tsunami of both the modern industrial age in America, and the rise of the K Street lobbyists.
From
The Word Detective
Max doesn't specify exactly what kind of "lobby" he's asking about,
but I'm going to assume that he means "the arm-twisting of spineless
legislators by sleazy agents of special interests" sense of "lobby."
Now, some people, I am sure, will object to that definition, feeling
that the word "bribery" is more accurate than "arm-twisting."
Thank heavens we live in a democracy where such differences of
opinion are permitted, eh kids?
One story about the origin of "lobby" traces it to President Grant,
inventor of the highly useful, if unfortunately rare in my house, fifty-dollar bill.
As President, Grant is said to have spent his afternoons enjoying liquid refreshment
at a table in the lobby of the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C. Supplicants for Grant's
official favors supposedly soon discovered that interviews with the President were more
productive the later in the afternoon they were conducted.
It has been said that, in Washington D.C., money doesn't buy votes, but it does buy access.
If money truly buys only access in Washington, in recent years it would seem that
our elected representatives, at the very least,
have become a lot more accessible. It would also seem that the mad hatters of K Street
have turned the lobbying
of politicians and political insiders into what can only be described as high art.
Recently the Center For Public Integrity released what they call
Lobby Watch.
"An ongoing investigation into the state of federal lobbying in the U.S."
The current state of affairs between the DC politicos and the K Street gangs is summed
up nicely in an April 14, 2005 Christian Science Monitor article.
Shedding Light on K Street
The sheer amount of spending by lobbyists is troubling - $13 billion
between 1998 and mid-2004. And the message to average citizens:
One has to spend vast amounts to sway Congress or the White House;
a simple letter, phone call, or e-mail likely won't be seriously considered.
Just as worrisome is the fact that the regulation of registered lobbyists
isn't adequate. The center estimates some 14,000 lobbyist disclosure documents
were missing between 1998 and 2004; the penalty for not filing is minimal.
And the House and Senate offices monitoring what lobbyists on Washington's
famed K Street are doing have limited powers. They're poorly staffed, and cannot conduct probes.
Lobbying now is the preferred activity for many who retire from government
service, and the work is highly lucrative. All the more reason to keep much
better track of what the nation's lobbyists are up to.
It is very interesting to see how the various lobbying firms rank in Washington.
It is even more interesting to find out who is employed by those lobbying firms,
and who the various lobbying firms represent.
In lobby speak, a lobbying firms employee list
represents what is known as Washington's 'Revolving Door'.
Who are the top five lobbying firms? |
Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. | $265 million |
WPP Group plc | $170 million |
Patton Boggs | $145 million |
Piper Rudnick | $125 million |
Akin Gump | $120 million |
Any of the five of companies listed above can be used to prove the notion of a revolving door
in Washington. The following
list
is for the number five firm, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. This list includes Drug Industry and HMO
Lobbyists for Akin Gump for the year 2003.
Thaddeus Burns |
Associate Solicitor, Office of the U.S. Trade
Representative, 1997-1999; Associate
Solicitor, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. |
Stacy Carlson |
Transition Policy Adviser, Department of the
Treasury, 2001; Western Region Political
Director, George W. Bush Presidential
Campaign, 2000; Staff Director, Rep. Bill
Thomas (R-Calif.), House Administration
Committee.
|
Sean D'Arcy |
Tax Aide, Rep. Don Pease (D-Ohio) |
Smith Davis |
Counsel, Subcommittee on Crime, House
Judiciary Committee, 1978-1979
|
Anthony Foti |
District Director, Rep. Bill Paxon (R-N.Y.),
1994-1998
|
Susan Lent |
Counsel, Subcommittee on Surface
Transportation, Committee on Transportation
and Infrastructure, 1996-1998
|
Bill Paxon |
U.S. Representative (R-N.Y.), 1989-1998
|
Steven Ross |
General Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives; Adviser to House Speakers
Thomas S. Foley (D-Wash.), Tip O'Neill (D-Mass.), and Jim Wright (D-Texas)
|
Paul Scolese |
Staff Member, House Commerce Committee, 1997-2000
|
Daniel L. Spiegel |
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United
Nations, 1994-1996
|
James Tucker |
Legislative Counsel, Rep.
Bob Inglis (R-S.C.), 1997-1999; Legislative Aide, Sen. Paul Coverdell (R-Ga.), 1992-1993
|
Robin Mahler Weisman |
Aide, Sen. Howard Metzenbaum (D-Ohio)
|
Who are the big pharma clients that Akin Gump lobbies on behalf of? The list of 2003 Akin Gump lobby clients includes Abbott Laboratories,
Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, PhRMA, and Wyeth Labs.
The raw dollar amounts involved in lobbying are staggering.
The lists of who is being lobbied and why is telling.
Some of the questions which should be asked, and answered, are obvious:
- Where is all of this money going?
- What impact does lobbying have on legislation in Washington?
- Why does the U.S. Chamber of Commerce lobby, and what does it get in return for $193 million dollars?
- How does one in fact go about lobbying the Executive Office of the President?
Which companies spend the most on lobbying? |
Chamber of Commerce for the USA |
$193 million |
Altria Group Inc. |
$125 million |
Verizon Communications Inc. |
$105 million |
General Electric Co. |
$105 million |
Edison Electric Institute |
$100 million |
Which companies spend the most on outside lobbyists? |
Lockheed Martin |
$39 million |
Altria Group Inc. |
$37 million |
AT&T Corp. |
$31 million |
Verizon Communications Inc. |
$26 million |
PhRMA |
$26 million |
Who do lobbyists lobby? |
U.S. House of Representatives |
17,300 companies |
U.S. Senate |
17,200 companies |
Dept. of Defense |
2,400 companies |
Dept. of Commerce |
2,300 companies |
Dept. of Treasury |
2,300 companies |
Dept. of Transportation |
2,200 companies |
Executive Office of the Pres. |
2,000 companies |
White House Office |
1,900 companies |
Dept. of Agriculture |
1,800 companies |
What are the top issues lobbied? |
Federal budget and appropriations |
6,800 companies |
Health issues |
4,100 companies |
Defense |
3,700 companies |
Taxation & Internal Revenue Code |
3,500 companies |
Transportation |
3,300 companies |
As part of the Lobby Watch project,
The Center For Public Integrity has included a searchable database. Searching the database for
General Electric, rated fourth on the list of companies spending the most on lobbying covering the
period from 1998 to 2003 reveals the following:
General Electric
Lobbying 1998-2004*: $105,166,256
Lobbying 2003: $21,038,500
Since 1998, this company has hired 60 firms to lobby the federal government on its behalf.
In 2003, the last full year for which data is available, it had 32 on retainer.
It has employed 339 lobbyists itself or through a firm since 1998 (129 during 2003)
of whom 119 formerly worked for Congress or the federal government.
By far the most sobering facts on the Lobby Watch
site occur in its
Summary of Findings.
Out of that $13 billion, almost $600 million was tax and tuition dollars spent by states,
local governments and universities.
Records show that in 2003 alone lobbyists spent $2.4 billion and records for 2004
are expected to show expenditures of at least $3 billion. That's about twice as
much as was spent on campaign finance in the same time period.
"For years the media and the public have focused on campaign finance as the key to
congressional and governmental accountability," said Roberta Baskin,
the Center's executive director. "Our report reveals that each year since
1998 the amount spent to influence federal lawmakers is double the amount
of money spent to elect them."
The Center also found that the revolving door is turning dizzyingly fast.
Nearly 250 former members of Congress and agency heads are active lobbyists,
and more than 2,000 lobbyists used to work in senior government positions.
There is a large financial incentive for the move.
The report shows that the federal disclosure system is in disarray.
Forty-nine out of the top 50 lobbying firms failed to file one or more
required forms during the last six years. Similarly, 20 percent of the
companies registered to lobby failed to file one or more required forms.
With its new Lobby Watch project,
The Center For Public Integrity has provided both an elegant and powerful new tool to the American citizen.
As one of those citizens I say 'Bravo'.