I agree with SAT Lawyer and magiciansampras. I suppose it's great that he's being practical and all, but I'm disappointed that he has broken a major campaign promise already.
Despite President Barack Obama's pledge to limit the influence of lobbyists in his administration, a recent lobbyist for investment banking giant Goldman Sachs is in line to serve as chief of staff to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.
Mark Patterson was a registered lobbyist for Goldman until April 11, 2008, according to public filings.
Patterson first began lobbying for Goldman Sachs in 2005, after working as policy director for then-Senate majority leader Tom Daschle. According to publicly filed lobbying disclosure records, he worked on issues related to the banking committee, climate change and carbon trading and immigration reform, among others.
[. . .]
Patterson is one of over a dozen recent lobbyists in line for important posts in the Obama administration. . . .
As of January 21, Obama had nominated two recent lobbyists to high-level administration posts, and 14 of the 112 White House staffers that Obama had named had been registered as lobbyists at some point since 2005.
Ed Duffy calls out the Administration for its duplicity in his piece in the Denver News Examiner:
Quote:
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, in keeping with the theme of the new administration, issued tough new restrictions on lobbyists Tuesday. Then, in keeping with administration actual behavior, he hired one to be his chief of staff.
Mark Patterson worked as a lobbyist for Goldman Sachs up until April of 2008. Now he's part of the new "anti lobbyist" administration.
Lobbyists coming and going in Washington D.C. is nothing new. But the public ceremonies declaring that all that has changed followed within hours by the total disregard of the declarations is an insult to the American public, even if most of them don't seem to notice.
Geithner names ex-lobbyist as Treasury chief of staff
Quote:
WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner picked a former Goldman Sachs lobbyist as a top aide Tuesday, the same day he announced rules aimed at reducing the role of lobbyists in agency decisions.
Mark Patterson will serve as Geithner's chief of staff at Treasury, which oversees the government's $700 billion financial bailout program. Goldman Sachs received $10 billion of that money.
Treasury spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter said Patterson "brings significant expertise to the job." Patterson, who left the investment bank in April, signed the administration's ethics pledge, which requires him to recuse himself from issues "directly and substantially related to my former employer."
Melanie Sloan, executive director of the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said President Obama was retreating from his own ethics rules barring lobbyists from working on the issues they lobbied about during the previous two years. "It makes it appear that they are saying one thing and doing another," she said
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Ed Morrisey, quite correctly questions this lobbying change we can't believe in. First, he cites the executive order Senator Obama signed on his second day in office, promising to divorce lobbyists from influencing related policy as part of his Administration's commitment to ethics:
Quote:
"3. Revolving Door Ban Lobbyists Entering Government. If I was a registered lobbyist within the 2 years before the date of my appointment, in addition to abiding by the limitations of paragraph 2, I will not for a period of 2 years after the date of my appointment:
(a) participate in any particular matter on which I lobbied within the 2 years before the date of my appointment;
(b) participate in the specific issue area in which that particular matter falls; or
(c) seek or accept employment with any executive agency that I lobbied within the 2 years before the date of my appointment.
So let’s see. Patterson will serve as chief of staff to Geithner, which means deep involvement in the bailout money — unless Geithner won’t be involved in it himself, in which case the entire raison d’ętre of confirming Geithner evaporates. Goldman Sachs will get a big chunk of that money, and might come back for more. It appears that Patterson will by definition unavoidably violate sections 3(a), (b), and (c) of the new code of ethics in the Obama White House.
Will there be more exceptions to this rule … or have the exceptions already become the rule, eight days after Obama signed it? Change, baby!
President Obama promised during his campaign that lobbyists "won't find a job in my White House."
[. . .]
Here are former lobbyists Obama has tapped for top jobs:
Eric Holder, attorney general nominee, was registered to lobby until 2004 on behalf of clients including Global Crossing, a bankrupt telecommunications firm.
Tom Vilsack, secretary of agriculture nominee, was registered to lobby as recently as last year on behalf of the National Education Association.
William Lynn, deputy defense secretary nominee, was registered to lobby as recently as last year for defense contractor Raytheon, where he was a top executive.
William Corr, deputy health and human services secretary nominee, was registered to lobby until last year for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, a non-profit that pushes to limit tobacco use.
David Hayes, deputy interior secretary nominee, was registered to lobby until 2006 for clients, including the regional utility San Diego Gas & Electric.
Mark Patterson, chief of staff to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, was registered to lobby as recently as last year for financial giant Goldman Sachs.
Ron Klain, chief of staff to Vice President Joe Biden, was registered to lobby until 2005 for clients, including the Coalition for Asbestos Resolution, U.S. Airways, Airborne Express and drug-maker ImClone.
Mona Sutphen, deputy White House chief of staff, was registered to lobby for clients, including Angliss International in 2003.
Melody Barnes, domestic policy council director, lobbied in 2003 and 2004 for liberal advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the American Constitution Society and the Center for Reproductive Rights.
Cecilia Munoz, White House director of intergovernmental affairs, was a lobbyist as recently as last year for the National Council of La Raza, a Hispanic advocacy group.
Patrick Gaspard, White House political affairs director, was a lobbyist for the Service Employees International Union.
Michael Strautmanis, chief of staff to the president’s assistant for intergovernmental relations, lobbied for the American Association of Justice from 2001 until 2005.
My understanding is Obama had a statute of limitations (2yrs I think) on it, and it was for federal lobbyists. The person cited in the OP breaks this rule, but not everyone on SAT's list in post #25.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by uastarflyer
My understanding is Obama had a statute of limitations (2yrs I think) on it, and it was for federal lobbyists. The person cited in the OP breaks this rule, but not everyone on SAT's list in post #25.
Once again, for our friends who are a little slow on the uptake:
Quote:
Originally Posted by then-Senator Obama
I am in this race to tell the corporate lobbyists that their days of setting the agenda in Washington are over. I have done more than any other candidate in this race to take on lobbyists - and won. They have not funded my campaign, they will not get a job in my White House, and they will not drown out the voices of the American people when I am President.
Once again, for our friends who are a little slow on the uptake:
And your point is? A former lobbyist isn't a lobbyist, after all.
Maybe the broader point is no efforts should be made at all, just bring K street into the white house, to avoid threads such as this. That would be better I suppose.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by uastarflyer
And your point is? A former lobbyist isn't a lobbyist, after all.
The stupidity of this statement is breathtaking. It just goes to show you how pathetic the defenses that President Obama's sycophants will offer are going to be.
Quote:
Maybe the broader point is no efforts should be made at all, just bring K street into the white house, to avoid threads such as this. That would be better I suppose.
No. What would be better is for our President to have been honest with the American people. Don't promise that no lobbyist will get a job in your White House as part of the great change you are bringing to Washington, and then proceed to stack it with lobbyists.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SAT Lawyer
No. What would be better is for our President to have been honest with the American people. Don't promise that no lobbyist will get a job in your White House as part of the great change you are bringing to Washington, and then proceed to stack it with lobbyists.
Wait politicians lie?? I didn't know this and heck according to my friends Obama isn't a politician he is "change"! Let's face it the public doesn't understand how things work inside the beltway and ate this up like candy.
Cheers
Howie
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