http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/ en Copyright 2009 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:18:38 GMT http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification From this morning's Earlybird: • "Seven major American and foreign banks have hired a prominent financial lawyer to lobby on legislation that would restrict how banks do business in the multitrillion-dollar derivatives market," The Hill Reports. "Edward Rosen, a partner at Cleary Gottlieb, registered as a lobbyist for the banks at the end of October and received at least $200,000 in the third quarter, according to congressional lobbying records.... Rosen has been a central player on derivatives legislation throughout the financial regulatory overhaul debate this year. " • "The American Petroleum Institute plans to announce Thursday that Martin J. Durbin http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/banks-hire-derivatives-expert.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/banks-hire-derivatives-expert.php EARLYBIRD Earlybird Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:18:38 GMT http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/pr-for-pariahs-acorns-long-roa.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/pr-for-pariahs-acorns-long-roa.php Business of Lobbying Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:15:23 GMT The jury in the trial of former Jack Abramoff lobbying associate Kevin Ring was split -- eight to convict and four to acquit -- according to a juror interviewed by Main Justice. Ring was on trial on eight counts of conspiracy, illegal gratuities and honest services wire fraud, and the judge declared a mistrial after jurors announced they were deadlocked for three consecutive days. The jury originally arrived at a verdict on one of the honest services wire fraud charges, but later lost unanimity on that charge. Jurors had found Ring not guilty on that charge, but after further deliberations http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/ring-jury-was-split.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/ring-jury-was-split.php Ring Trial Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:30:00 GMT On Friday, the American Future Fund plans to run a week's worth of ads on CNN, Fox and the four Sunday talk shows to try and derail the House health care reform bill. Nick Ryan, a spokesman for the little-known Iowa-based non-profit says that the initial cable buy will be $450,000 and that the ads might run longer depending on whether the vote is pushed back. The fund spent more than $200,000 over the last two weeks on a round of print and radio ads that have run inside the Beltway which are also aimed at killing the House bill. http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/sdfa.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/sdfa.php Interest Groups; Labor Unions Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:09:08 GMT As the House's version of health care reform legislation approaches a floor vote, the AARP and the American Medical Association, two groups that represent significant voices in the health care debate, endorsed the bill today. At a press conference this afternoon, President Obama expressed the significance of the endorsements and thanked the groups for their support ahead of the House's scheduled Saturday vote on the bill. "We are closer to passing this reform than ever before," Obama said, according to the AP. "Now that the doctors and medical professionals of America are standing with us, now that the organizations charged http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/aarp-ama-endorse.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/aarp-ama-endorse.php Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:40:00 GMT http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/bonner.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/bonner.php Ethics Questions Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:04:03 GMT From this morning's Earlybird: • "In a coup for House Democrats, AARP will endorse sweeping health care overhaul legislation headed for a history-making floor vote, officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday," the AP reports. "An endorsement from the seniors' lobby was critical when then-President George W. Bush pushed the Medicare prescription drug benefit through a closely divided Congress in 2003...An announcement from the 40-million member group is expected Thursday, said officials with knowledge of the group's decision." • "The House ethics committee is likely to exonerate five members of the Congressional Black Caucus who were accused of taking an http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/aarp-to-endorse-house-health-c.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/aarp-to-endorse-house-health-c.php EARLYBIRD Earlybird Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:46:58 GMT http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/us-chamber-letter-a-rorschach.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/us-chamber-letter-a-rorschach.php Associations Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:19:00 GMT Three years after losing the Montana Senate seat he held for nearly two decades, Republican Conrad Burns is still talking about how the Jack Abramoff scandal cost him the tight 2006 race against Democrat Jon Tester that came down to 3,562 votes. In an interview this week with KTVQ in Billings, Burns (who is now a registered federal lobbyist at Gage LLC) said the Department of Justice's handling of investigations allowed his name to be tarnished during the campaign, when contributions he received from Abramoff and his office's relationship with the now imprisoned lobbyist were called into question. "If you http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/burns-still.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/burns-still.php Ring Trial Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:30:00 GMT Times are tough at the free-enterprise-oriented non-profit Competitive Enterprise Institute.CEI, which just celebrated its 25th anniversary, is still run by its bearded, Schumpeter-quoting founder, Fred Smith, and remains popular with conservative foundations and corporations. Its combination of free-market analysis with pro-industry advocacy on a broad range of environmental and consumer issues infuriates opponents, and has been a magnet for contributions in years past. The group's fudning rose nearly 70 per cent between 2004 and 2007, peaking at $5.2 million (the group's fiscal year ended September 30th 2008.) But this year, amidst economic turmoil, contributions are down 15 per cent and http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/cei-losing-money-and-a-profit.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/cei-losing-money-and-a-profit.php Think Tanks & Philanthropy Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:24:07 GMT Reform group Change Congress launched a campaign yesterday to shame Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., for voting against legislation that would help ensure victims of rape have the right to bring their case to court. The government reform group hit cyberspace with an email asking people to sign a 'national expression of outrage.' Citing $700,000 in campaign contributions from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the defense industry, Change Congress accused Burr of putting special interests before rape victims. Introduced by Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., the legislation would stop federal funding for defense contractors who used mandatory arbitration clauses to deny http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/change-congress-attacks-burr-o.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/change-congress-attacks-burr-o.php Interest Groups & Labor Unions Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:04:43 GMT From this morning's Earlybird: • "Two years after Congress toughened ethics laws that prevent lobbyists and corporations from paying for members' trips, lawmakers are still seeing the world courtesy of other outside groups," Politico reports. "Although the trips are permissible because the money doesn't come directly from lobbyists or corporations, the walls can be very thin. Some of the nonprofit groups that sponsor member travel are themselves funded by corporate sponsors, and the conferences that members attend on the groups' dime often put them in direct contact with representatives of the corporate sponsors." • "When a confidential document leaked into http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/groups-still-paying-for-lawmak.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/groups-still-paying-for-lawmak.php EARLYBIRD Earlybird Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:49:40 GMT (UPDATE@1:44 pm on Nov. 4 to add a link to prominent economist Jeffrey Sachs' reaction to Jankowsky's editorial)The Obama administration is talking out of both sides of its mouth regarding special interests, writes longtime D.C. lobbyist Joel Jankowsky in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece Tuesday. He argues the White House has welcomed top campaign donors while ostracizing lobbyists as tainted: "Campaign contributors, especially those who bundled large contributions from others, have been embraced by this administration. Because they aren't formally registered or regulated in the way lobbyists are, they enjoy the benefits and privileges of serving in the heart http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/the-obama-administration-is-ta.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/the-obama-administration-is-ta.php Ethics Questions Business of Lobbying Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:40:37 GMT A new business coalition that's led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and includes 10 other K Street powerhouses has launched a multimillion dollar national cable and local advertising drive in 19 states and 46 media markets that's aimed at blocking passage of the House health care reform bill which is slated to be voted on this weekend.The coalition, Employers for a Healthy Economy which also includes such big groups as the National Association of Manufacturers, the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors and the National Retail Federation, intends to have the ads air through Sunday but might extend the buy if http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/business-coalition-runs-big-an.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/business-coalition-runs-big-an.php Associations Money Trail Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:30:20 GMT From this morning's Earlybird: • "The disclosure that seven House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee members are being scrutinized for their ties to PMA Group, a now-defunct lobbying firm that raised money for lawmakers and won earmarks for clients, is not expected to have a chilling effect on negotiations to reach agreement on a final FY10 Defense spending bill," CongressDaily AM (subscription) reports. "According to analysts for watchdog groups that monitor the appropriations process, House-Senate discussions are probably too far along for negotiators to start weeding out earmarks." • "As the House Financial Services Committee begins its final push today in drafting http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/ethics-disclosure-will-not-hur.php http://undertheinfluence.nationaljournal.com/2009/11/ethics-disclosure-will-not-hur.php EARLYBIRD Earlybird Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:41:07 GMT