Obama Enacts Policy to Bar Thousands of Paid Lobbyists

[berni_mccoy]

He's out to destroy K-street. This is real change.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/26/AR2009112602362.html

Hundreds, if not thousands, of lobbyists are likely to be ejected from federal advisory panels as part of a little-noticed initiative by the Obama administration to curb K Street's influence in Washington, according to White House officials and lobbying experts.

The new policy -- issued with little fanfare this fall by the White House ethics counsel -- may turn out to be the most far-reaching lobbying rule change so far from President Obama, who also has sought to restrict the ability of lobbyists to get jobs in his administration and to negotiate over stimulus contracts.

The initiative is aimed at a system of advisory committees so vast that federal officials don't have exact numbers for its size; the most recent estimates tally nearly 1,000 panels with total membership exceeding 60,000 people.

Under the policy, which is being phased in over the coming months, none of the more than 13,000 lobbyists in Washington would be able to hold seats on the committees, which advise agencies on trade rules, troop levels, environmental regulations, consumer protections and thousands of other government policies.

[OneGrassRoot]

1. This is the type of significant change, that lies at the core corruption....

of our system, that I long to see enacted.

Thanks! K&R

[ensho]

2. hooray and thank you Obama team

nt

[NJmaverick]

3. That's change we can believe in

:applause:

[Obamanaut]

19. As I read the OP, those exact words flashed across the screen

crawler in my mind.

If this is true, I love it.

[phasma ex machina]

32. +1

:applause: :applause:

[BeFree]

4. It is a start.

The empty seats need to be filled with common folks.
Make it more democratic and all that jazz.

[Deja Q]

5. Yippee!

I am starting to feel rather better.

This is the sort of news that will do more than merely reassure people.

Thank you, Mr. President!!

[chill_wind]

6. more

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4162033

[HughMoran]

7. Good stuff - very important change.

Oh, and maybe give the one in GD:P a boost that has a head start on this one http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x20298

[hughee99]

8. They'll quickly find a way around this...

New "non-profit" think-tanks will pop up with members who will pull a very good salary. Those think-tanks will receive funding from a "concerned entity" (lobbying firms or the companies who would hire them). Members of these think tanks will begin to find themselves taking the spots of the paid lobbyists on the panels.

[Moondog]

9. +1

[SammyWinstonJack]

17. +1000 nt

[berni_mccoy]

21. They can try, but it's unlikely given this policy.

The policy forces Corporate executives to do their own lobbying. This is a good thing as they'll be exposed to both sides of the issue directly and will be forced to be transparent about their arguments. They won't have skilled expert debates doing their dirty work for them.

[hughee99]

38. Seriously...

They're just going to give up all this influence as this law will be so well written that they won't be able to find a loophole. I'll bet some of the people on these committees don't even leave their positions, they just change their work arrangements so they're no longer officially lobbyists.

[Cha]

26. Sure that's what bitterenders do..they predict shit

and hope to shit it comes true.

Fucking downers.

[hughee99]

39. That sounds very much like what's going on here...

some people predict this law will fix a major lobbying problem, and hope that comes true.

[treestar]

35. That is what rich people do

Every time new tax loopholes are closed, their accountants look for more. For instance the estate tax - it applied over a certain amount, so they'd put that amount in trust and voila! Have nothing!

But progress is progress. Every little squeeze makes it harder for them to find the loopholes.

[tabbycat31]

10. should have happened on 1/20/09

but better late than never

[RufusTFirefly]

11. Available now!: Ocean Front Property in Des Moines

Obama Puts Monsanto Lobbyist In Charge Of Food Safety

Obama to Name Oil Industry Crony to Top Position

Obama's Pick for Dep. Pentagon Chief Violates Pledge About Lobbyists

... and there are many more examples.

[SammyWinstonJack]

18. Heh

:evilgrin:

[Cha]

23. Just as I thought..nothing Pres Obama does is

good enough because your bitterness won't let it be.

Fucking pathetic.

There are many more examples of the change that has come about but you wouldn't be interested in the positive only the negative for the bitterenders.

[berni_mccoy]

25. +1. Fucking pathetic is right.

[Cha]

28. Thanks

bernie.

[lunatica]

12. The backlash means he must be doing it right

from the same article:

"Lobbyists up in arms

The reaction from the lobbying community has been swift and overwhelmingly negative. Some of the loudest criticism has come from the Industry Trade Advisory Committees (ITACs), a collection of more than a dozen panels that provide policy advice and technical assistance to the Commerce Department and the U.S. Trade Representative. The ITACs, whose roughly 400 members include at least 130 lobbyists, officials say, have taken the lead in attacking the White House policy as misguided and harmful to U.S. business interests; a letter to Obama from committee chairs last month included executives from Boeing, IBM, Harley-Davidson and International Paper."

************
Anything that makes lobbyists go nuts is good for Americans and bad for Corporations. Period

[jtrockville]

13. Bravo!

[bvar22]

14. LOUD Applause.

Thank You for this first step.
:patriot:

[cowcommander]

15. "...top corporate officers are free to sit on advisory panels as long as they aren't lobbyists."

So what's the point?

[Donnachaidh]

16. that just might have something to do with all those UN-REGISTERING lobbyists lately, huh?

There was a story in the last month how there seems to be a flood of lobbyists suddenly becoming *NOT* lobbyists. Guess the lobbyists got an advanced warning about this feature, huh?

Yeah, that's change, ain't it? :sarcasm:

here's a link --

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2009/11/02/lobbyists-quit-in-record-numbers/

[berni_mccoy]

20. Along side Union leaders and Issue experts. Which is a GREAT thing... here's why

Corporate Officers have to get their own hands dirty and must hear out the other side of the issue directly.

When a paid lobbyist does it, the information is one way: pushing the corporate perspective onto the panel. There are experts at crafting arguments and messages and these are the ones being hired to sway Congress. Putting a real person who must hear the other side of the issue will open the communication in both directions.

Furthermore, it's far more transparent than paid lobbyists.

[Barack_America]

22. If only cable news would follow his lead.

And at least openly disclose the lobbyists they bring on as "policy analysts", if not ban them outright.

[Lyric]

24. Good. Definitely a positive change, and hopefully a herald of more to come.

:thumbsup:

[Cha]

27. Thanks for the positive news, Bernie..

I don't care how many sour responses there are.

[berni_mccoy]

36. There are alway sour responses when Obama does something outstanding

like when he won the Nobel Peace prize or saved the U.S. from the brink of economic disaster by acting quickly to pass a much needed stimulus package.

[librechik]

29. MORE LIKE THIS--And Thanks, Presidentr Obama n/t

[backscatter712]

30. AWESOME!!!

This is the kind of thing that doesn't look like much, but over the longer term will do a tremendous amount to drain the swamp in the Beltway.

[arthritisR_US]

31. this is huge and I sincerely hope people get the implications...

government for the people by the people is coming back!

[Orsino]

33. It's the start of something huge, or could be...

...but lobbyists are more the symptom than the disease.

[arthritisR_US]

37. indeed, corporatist politicians need to go too...or campaign finance reform in a major way! n/t

[Overseas]

34. K&R! Great news ! //nt