I personally am not a fan of the exemption and not a fan at all of the Supreme Court’s decision but that is an issue for another topic. As far as the exemption goes, I understand the politics behind it but feel that the House leaders opened themselves up as unnecessary targets to the claim that they are pawns of special interests. Granted the NRA can mobilize constituents very well but if this bill is meant to correct the problems with the Supreme Court’s decision doesn’t it lose credibility when you start exempting groups out of the bill?

To me this states that there are different rules for different players and that to me is the biggest problem with the Court’s decision in the first place. Do corporations, as an entity, have the same rights as an individual does? Maybe their employees and shareholders do but the corporation itself, I don’t think so. By allowing this, you create a greater divide between the people and their ability to have their individual voices heard compared to the flow of cash that a corporation can throw at an issue.

When I first came to town in the early 90’s, the newest “advocacy” method was solid grassroots campaigns. And I am not referring to postcard bombardment of the Hill. I worked at a small grassroots firm that has now become a household name in the business. Even back then the “gray hairs” didn’t get grassroots and most direct lobbyists shunned it as not needed. Nowadays, most everyone incorporates grassroots and grasstops strategies in every big campaign.

Now that I am one of the “gray hairs,” I stand amazed (and try to keep up) at how important social media tools are making democracy more available to the masses. Obama used it to mobilize the masses and tools like Twitter, Facebook, You Tube and many others are changing the ways campaigns are run and how money is raised. I am still on the fence about the ultimate value it brings to the process because everybody is now an armchair quarterback and believes in the Michael Moore mentality of gotcha politics. One thing that is for certain thought is that social media is not goin

The State of the Union was exactly what I thought it was going to be as it pertains to lobbyists. It was once again time to blame the boogeyman and take little accountability for himself. The President’s comments on more transparency is laughable because his policies over the past 12 months he have reduced transparency more so than any president before him.

The President call on lobbyists to report every contact with Congress is equally foolish because once again he is discriminating against a single class of identifiable people. What about the CEO’s or “frequent visitors or special advisors? I guess they are just visiting the House or Senate for the fun of it. If Congress wants to seriously follow through with this policy then I would state that the responsibility should be on the Member’s office since they are ultimately accountable to their constituents.

In his speech he lambasted lobbyists seven times, seven. He also blamed the community for killing all of his work, but here’s a newsflash Mr. President: Lobbyists don&rsq

In my opinion, the best lobbying campaign has to go to President Obama and the Hill Democrats for taking on and passing (almost there) healthcare reform. I know some may find it perplexing that I am crediting the Administration with an excellent lobbying campaign due to the fact that I have spent a large portion of my year fighting the Administration on their anti-lobbying campaign, but if we are to look at simply the most complex lobbying effort with the most moving parts, we have to credit these folks. I am making no judgment on whether this is a good or bad thing because only time will tell if this effort was good for our country, but to be on the threshold of keeping a campaign promise as large as “universal healthcare”, the effort has to be considered as one of the top lobbying campaigns of the year.

In breaking down this campaign we need to look at the vision, coalitions and strategic alliances that were needed, the grassroots, grasstops and direct lobbying that went into getting this far with the healthcare bill. Hill Democrats took a huge beating over t

May you live in interesting times a wise man once said and if you are a federal lobbyist here in Washington well, then let's just say it has been some very interesting times. As the President of the American League of Lobbyists and the guy that has been on point for the lobbying profession in every battle since the new Administration came in on January 20th, it is evident that these folks in the White House are waging an all-out war on the profession.

From the first ill-advised Executive Order, prohibiting lobbyists from working in their areas of expertise and also banning them from lobbying the Administration after they left the job, (oh, by the way how's filling those jobs working out, not so good I hear. Go figure.) to the latest gaffe of kicking lobbyists off trade advisory boards and committees, what this Administration has done has ultimately decreased transparency, not increased it. Not only did they drive transparency underground, but they are limiting some of the best minds in D.C. from going into the Administration and leaving subject matter expertise on the sideli