"To the Victor belong the spoils." THE WRAP - CBS
No Democrats Need Apply:
The Washington Post takes a close look at the growing GOP domination of Washington?s lobbying community, nicknamed Gucci Gulch, where an ever-increasing stream of Republicans are taking over powerful jobs once held by Democrats.
The so-called K Street Project - an effort to blacklist Democratic lobbyists begun by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in the 1990s and re-invigorated since President Bush took office by House Majority Whip Tom Delay - has, by all accounts, been highly successful in strong arming lobbying groups into hiring lobbyists friendly to GOP causes.
Another factor, the Post reports, is the Republican control of both houses of Congress as well as the White House.
Many of the most powerful lobbying groups in Washington, like the Recording Industry of Association of America and the Motion Picture Association of America, are slowly but surely pushing out their lobbyists with Democratic ties in favor of former Republican politicians and staffers. The names of former Pentagon spokeswoman Torie Clark and Republican Rep. Mary Bono have surfaced as possible replacements for Democrats Hilary Rosen and Jack Valenti. In addition, the Post reports, several Fortune 500 companies - including GE, Comcast and Citigroup, have hired former Bush administration and GOP Hill aides for their top lobbying jobs. The Post reports that a "Republican National Committee official recently told a group of GOP lobbyists that 33 of 36 top-level Washington positions he is monitoring went to Republicans."
The money is so alluring, the top lobbyists at the top firms make in excess of $500,000 annually, that many GOP lawmakers have reportedly considered leaving their posts to become lobbyists, including Rep. Chip Pickering, R-Miss., who?s reportedly on the shortlist to run the Cellular, Telecommunications & Internet Association for at least $750,000 a year.
Some of the more brazen Republican tactics, include a move last year by Rep. Michael Oxley, R-Ohio, to have the Invest Company Institute, a mutual fund lobbying group, remove its top lobbyist, a Democrat. In exchange, Oxley's staff suggested to ICI leaders that a House Financial Services Committee probe into the mutual fund industry might be eased.
The Post also says that the K Street Project organizers were warned by the Senate Ethics Committee that their plan to track the political affiliation and contributions of lobbyists would violate Senate rules if access were denied to Democrats. Still, the Post says, the threat alone was enough to scare most lobbying groups into cowing to the GOP.
"I am hearing of a lot of pressure, and it's not subtle," said House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland.
But, the Post reports that most of the GOP maneuvering takes place in far more backroom ways. The Post says Sen. Rick Santorum, GOP Conference Chairman, and other GOP leaders monitor openings on K Street. Santorum and the others then meet with lobbyists to discuss the job, how much it pays and then "suggest" Republican candidates. These candidates, some of whom are administration or Hill lawmakers who've been urged to quit their public-sector jobs, are vetted by Nels Olsen of the headhunting firm Korn/Ferry International. Then, GOP lawmakers and other government officials push the candidate until he or she is hired. The RNC takes this seriously enough to assign a staffer to keep a running tab of the openings and which are filled by GOP-friendly types, the Post reports.
As one GOP lobbyist, Dan Mattoon, tells the Post: "There is a recognition that Republicans are in a position to continue to control both houses of Congress for the next 10 years, and the K Street community should be reflective of the party with power." cbsnews.com |
