Lobbyists: Bid to slow K Street’s revolving door

Lobbyists should be quaking with fear as Barack Obama is sworn in as president on Tuesday.

Promising to end the culture of influence-peddling in Washington, he told voters: “Your voices should speak louder than the whispers of lobbyists.”

Yet, far from threatening them, Mr Obama’s election has so far brought lobbyists nothing but good news.

His plans for a stimulus and expanded government role in several big industries have sparked a lobbying boom, as corporations and other interest groups scramble to influence policy.

Industries from construction groups to catfish farmers are vying for a slice of the stimulus package and many have hired lobbyists.

Financial institutions, carmakers, energy companies and healthcare groups are also doing more lobbying, as they brace for change.

For lobbyists, the burst of activity offers reassurance that hostile political rhetoric and tougher ethics rules have not diminished the basic need for their services.

But the new president still seems determined to close down, or at least slow, the “revolving door” between K Street – home of the Washington lobbying industry – and the White House.

Soon after the election, the Obama team announced what it claimed were “the strictest and most far-reaching” restrictions on lobbying in the history of presidential transitions.

There was no blanket ban on lobbyists, but transition officials were barred from advising on issues they had lobbied on in the past year. They also face a one-year ban on lobbying the new administration on any matters they worked on during the transition.

Critics complained that the rules excluded many top policy experts from advising Mr Obama. They cited people such as Henry Rivera, a former commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission, who was prevented from working on communications policy because he had lobbied on the issue within the past 12 months. He was instead given a role on the team handling science and technology, despite having less expertise in those fields.

Restrictions were also placed on the role of lobbyists in Tuesday’s inauguration. Mr Obama refused to accept donations from corporations, lobbyists or political action committees to fund the celebrations and placed a $50,000 limit on personal donations.

Despite the clampdown, the transition team included people with ties to lobbying and many are to take up positions in the administration. Some are former Clinton administration officials who have spent the intervening years trading on their experience and connections.

One such person is Ronald Klain, who is set to become chief of staff for Vice-President Joe Biden. He served in the same post for Al Gore during the Clinton years before going on to lobby for clients, including Fannie Mae, the stricken lender.

Critics argue that such appointments make a mockery of Mr Obama’s pledge that lobbyists “won’t find a job in my White House”. But the worlds of politics and lobbying are so intertwined in Washington that a firewall is difficult to achieve.

Mr Obama is not the first president to try shutting down the “revolving door”. Bill Clinton slapped a five-year federal lobbying ban on officials after they left his administration. But he rescinded the order in the final days of his administration – freeing aides to head straight to K Street.

Lobbyists and administration staff will be watching closely to see if Mr Obama’s clampdown proves any more durable.