FuzzyLumpkins
01-18-2017, 04:19 PM
Despite President-elect Donald Trump’s much-publicized efforts to keep lobbyists out of his administration, they have continued to offer policy advice, recommend job candidates and contribute money to his transition team, according to a POLITICO investigation.
And while they’re barred from donating to the $200 million in inaugural festivities this week, lobbyists have been collecting checks on Trump’s behalf, according to four lobbyists interviewed by POLITICO who are directly helping raise the funds.
The loopholes in Trump’s restrictions are so widespread that many lobbyists said they’ve concluded Trump’s ethics rules aren’t really meant to change how business is done in Washington.
“I’ve known Donald Trump for 30 years. I think he’s serious for wanting to keep what he calls ‘special interests’ out of the process as much as possible,” said Charlie Black, chairman of the lobbying firm Prime Policy Group. “But that said, he kind of knows how these things work.”
Indeed, Black — whose firm represents Google, the drug titan GlaxoSmithKline, and telecommunications giant AT&T, among other major industry players — has been helping Trump by passing along résumés for key positions in federal agencies to members of the transition team.
And that’s just one of the work-arounds that lobbyists have utilized to maintain their ties to the president-elect.
For instance, while registered lobbyists aren’t allowed inside the transition team’s D.C. headquarters, they’ve been able to join top transition officials for lunch and meet with them at other organizations’ offices. Meanwhile, the transition team itself allowed lobbyists to attend unpublicized “listening sessions” on issues including technology, health care and Native American issues held at other groups’ offices before the holidays, lobbyists and others present told POLITICO.
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/01/trump-administration-lobbying-purge-233736
And while they’re barred from donating to the $200 million in inaugural festivities this week, lobbyists have been collecting checks on Trump’s behalf, according to four lobbyists interviewed by POLITICO who are directly helping raise the funds.
The loopholes in Trump’s restrictions are so widespread that many lobbyists said they’ve concluded Trump’s ethics rules aren’t really meant to change how business is done in Washington.
“I’ve known Donald Trump for 30 years. I think he’s serious for wanting to keep what he calls ‘special interests’ out of the process as much as possible,” said Charlie Black, chairman of the lobbying firm Prime Policy Group. “But that said, he kind of knows how these things work.”
Indeed, Black — whose firm represents Google, the drug titan GlaxoSmithKline, and telecommunications giant AT&T, among other major industry players — has been helping Trump by passing along résumés for key positions in federal agencies to members of the transition team.
And that’s just one of the work-arounds that lobbyists have utilized to maintain their ties to the president-elect.
For instance, while registered lobbyists aren’t allowed inside the transition team’s D.C. headquarters, they’ve been able to join top transition officials for lunch and meet with them at other organizations’ offices. Meanwhile, the transition team itself allowed lobbyists to attend unpublicized “listening sessions” on issues including technology, health care and Native American issues held at other groups’ offices before the holidays, lobbyists and others present told POLITICO.
http://www.politico.com/story/2017/01/trump-administration-lobbying-purge-233736