A few minutes of searching on any of the popular job boards is all it takes to get a comprehensive view of the U.S. lobbying community and how it has changed in recent years.
Enter the word “lobbyist” into a search on the job boards Linkedin or Indeed, and your browser page will show you hundreds of jobs with different titles, the most common of which are “legislative coordinator” and “Director of Government Relations.
The duties and tasks of these positions include “supporting the company in pressuring federal and local governments by analyzing thousands of laws and providing information to senior management about current and future political trends.
In some cases, these positions require at least three years of experience working on a major Senate or House committee or in the office of a member of Congress, and the average annual salary for such positions ranges from $60,000 to $90,000.
The Director of Government Relations position, offered by Military Industries, is even more important because its tasks include identifying opportunities offered by the federal government and related agencies in planning, establishing and maintaining long-term relationships with policy makers and legislators, and providing them with necessary data and information in the company’s field.
Tasks also include providing input and outlook on the federal budget, congressional funding, and all legislation related to the business, and aligning with the priorities and values established by the company, while the annual salary for the position is often no less than $150,000.
These positions reflect the mission profile of professional “lobbyists” on different corporate and institutional teams. As the nature of the U.S. economy has changed dramatically, the nature of these positions and the tasks associated with them have also changed dramatically in the past few years.
A crossroads on K Street in Washington (French media)
Companies like Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple are no longer just seeking new hires to enable technology development and innovation, nor are they just attracting the best programmers and engineers; these tech giants have seen a huge expansion in recruitment and are racing to attract directors of government relations or legislative experts who have strong relationships with major committees in the House and Senate.
These and other companies have established large offices in Washington, D.C., and have hired hundreds of people with government experience to carry out their lobbying missions, targeting members of Congress and officials in relevant ministries and government agencies.
The activities of lobbying groups are not limited to the staff of individual companies and agencies, but also include a variety of other forms of presence.
Interest Groups
These are groups or institutions with influence in Washington that spend significant amounts of money to maintain that presence and exert influence in the U.S. policymaking process. One of the most important representatives of interest groups is the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which dates back to 1912 and has been working since then to directly support legislation and policies that benefit corporations and private businesses through its staff, as well as supporting tax cuts, government simplification, free trade agreements, aid legislation, and streamlined immigration procedures.
Lobbying Firms
These are private and professional firms that aim to profit from contracts with U.S. clients (companies, associations and unions) or foreign clients (institutions or countries). In most cases, these lobbying firms force members of Congress and government officials to push for policies and legislation that are in the interest of their clients in exchange for “big money”.
The Revolving Door Phenomenon
This is a phenomenon associated with lobbying in the United States that occurs when a former government official or member of Congress exits and enters a lobbying firm and returns to work for the government or Congress years later, and it can be repeated over and over again, through direct networking and the use of personal and private relationships to accomplish client assignments.
Akin Gump is one of the 20 largest lobbying firms on K Street (Reuters)
Former Democratic U.S. Representative Ariana Ross, for example, then joined a lobbying firm after retiring from political work in 2019.
She has been a member of the House of Representatives from the Miami, Florida, area since 1990 and joined the prestigious Akin Gump lobbying services firm immediately after quitting political work in 2019.
During her long years in the House, Aliana served as chair of the Foreign Relations Committee, which allowed her to build an extensive network of contacts and became her most important capital in attracting the attention of prominent lobbying firms.
K Street and the Origins of Lobbying in America
K Street is one of the most important streets in central Washington, D.C., and is now used as a synonym for lobbyists and lobbying firms.
Historically, many lobbying firms were headquartered on K Street, but this has changed in recent years as most major lobbying firms no longer operate from K Street, which is now Home to one lobbying firm, Akin Jump Strauss Hauer, one of the 20 largest lobbying firms on K Street.
The American word “lobby” LOBBY, which originally meant foyer, hall, dates back to 18th century England, when people began hanging out in the lobbies of London theaters in order to meet the powerful politicians who came to see the plays.
The phenomenon soon transferred to the United States. At the Time, the Willard Hotel, adjacent to the White House, became the epicenter of the phenomenon, and former U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant (who ruled from 1869-1877) would have breakfast every morning in the hotel, which was located just 200 meters from the White House, pushing rights activists into the hotel lobby with petitions or demands that they hoped to take directly to the president or his top aides.
Lobbying firms represent more than just vested interests, and much of their work is devoted to issues related to social justice, minority rights, and support for immigrants or refugees.
“K Street” has become synonymous with lobbyists and lobbying firms (French media)
Mechanisms of Lobbying Efforts
Many commentators believe that lobbying firms have a fourth power by supporting the approval or rejection of a piece of legislation. Companies adopt different strategies depending on the situation and the challenge.
These companies may launch media campaigns, backed by statistical data or research papers from so-called neutral research centers, with the aim of helping to shape public opinion and thus influence the behavior of legislators or policymakers in one way or another. In addition, others use advertising campaigns in traditional media and on social media platforms to support or reject a particular project.
Lobbying groups and their influence on politicians have attracted widespread criticism for their efforts. Some commentators argue that groups that lobby for particular industries – such as the pharmaceutical industry – influence legislation in ways that benefit that industry, rather than operating in ways that benefit the interests of ordinary Americans.
Lobbying and Constitutional Rights
At the legal level, the phenomenon of lobbying and pressure groups was defined in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and incorporated into the Bill of Rights, which was ratified on December 15, 1791.
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states, “Congress shall pass no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the freedom and right of the people peaceably to assemble and to demand justice from their government.”
The lobby group argues that they are in fact exercising a fundamental constitutional right, and one of the five primary rights protected by the First Amendment, and that Congress is prohibited from making any law that restricts those rights, the fifth of which involves the right of the people to petition or complain to the government.
Based on the last paragraph of the Act, which relates to the protection of the right of citizens to petition or complain to the government, the phenomenon of citizens, corporations, associations or certain community groups exerting pressure on policy-making bodies has thus arisen, developed and continued, and it continues to expand, in an attempt to influence the U.S. government and its various decisions and positions.
Historically, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has played a central role in lobbying groups representing major U.S. businesses and corporations, but the complexity of the U.S. economy and its sheer size have forced these companies to intervene and exert pressure directly since the 1970s.
Effectiveness and Results
Lobbying is justified by the complexity of the political, economic and technological landscape of today’s world, which makes it difficult for members of Congress or government officials and their aides to understand the complexities and depths of the thousands of bills and resolutions.
Many lobbying firms have their headquarters on K Street (French Press)
The House of Representatives houses 435 legislators’ offices and the Senate 100, in addition to dozens of technical and quality committees. Lawmakers need a staff to assist them with a range of tasks, including researching and tracking legislation, communicating with the media and outsiders, writing speeches, responding to calls and letters from constituents, and coordinating with the White House and federal agencies.
Lobbying groups argue that they are simply helping a broad range of American groups exercise their First Amendment rights to petition the government and defend their causes. As government grows in size and complexity, petitioning the government becomes increasingly complex, and it is difficult for ordinary citizens to do so without the help of professional lobbying groups.
Data and Numbers
According to data from The Center for Responsive Politics, a research center specializing in lobbying and transparency, U.S. sectors, industries and associations will spend $3.5 billion on lobbying activities against the U.S. government in 2020.
According to the Center, U.S. companies account for the largest share of budgetary spending on lobbying, with 95 of the top 100 lobbying spenders in the world.
According to data provided by the Center, the industry employs 11,524 people in all sectors of the economy and society.
There is no sector of the economy that does not exert pressure on the U.S. government, and the following are the sectors that will spend the most on lobbying in the United States in 2020.
health sector: $615 million
Finance: $539 million
Communications and Technology: $436 million
Energy: $293 million
Defense Industry: $103 million
Human Rights Associations: $45 million
The center noted that each company receives an average return of $760 for every $1 invested in lobbying activities, in addition to the 3,200 companies and agencies that tried to influence the way the federal government spent last summer on financial support programs related to the new crown Epidemic, which totaled $3.2 trillion.
Data provided by the Center also shows that the health sector spent $168 million on lobbying and received $150 billion in government assistance, and the aviation sector spent $29 million on lobbying and received $32 billion in government assistance.
Lobbying Effectiveness
Turning to major lobbying firms is not meant to secure passage or rejection of certain draft legislation, and for each party that supports particular legislation, there are usually groups that oppose this or that legislation, particularly on issues related to public health policy or restrictions on the carrying of weapons.
The matter is different on foreign issues, where the state cannot pass legislation related to it unless it has support from a bipartisan or legislative group. This is evident in legislation related to U.S. foreign policy on the Arab-Israeli conflict, where legislators from both parties have given broad support to Israel.
The successes and failures of some countries are linked to the extent to which their lobbying agendas are dependent on policies supported by the political community in Washington. For example, within the phase of the Arab Spring, hostility to Iran or political Islamic forces became an agenda that was easily promoted in Washington, in contrast to the degree of difficulty in promoting the right of the Palestinian people to a free and independent state.
The issue here has nothing to do with the communication skills and strength of the lobbying firm, or the closeness of the firm’s team to members of Congress or White House officials, but depends largely on the direction of U.S. foreign policy supported by both parties, namely Democrats and Republicans.
Dozens of lobbying firms that Saudi Arabia contracted before 2016 have failed in their efforts to block passage of the JASTA bill. The law allows families of the victims of 9/11/01 to sue the Saudi government, and the bill sailed through Congress with unprecedented majorities in both the Senate and the House.
This was one of the very few instances where nearly all members of Congress voted in favor of the resolution, which was later stopped by former President Barack Obama using his presidential veto. Despite interventions by the White House, the Department of Defense, and many former foreign service officials and experts in an attempt to persuade Congress to abandon the decision, JASTA became official law when it passed the Senate by a majority of 97 to 1 and the House by a majority of 348 to 77.
The Lobbying Transparency Act, introduced in 1995, places restrictions and regulations on procedures, rules and regulations in the field of lobbying in the U.S., most importantly the need to register with the federal government and provide detailed information about their activities. amendments proposed in 2007 added restrictions on lobbying firms, for example, members of Congress are now already prohibited from having contact with staff of lobbying firms that have previously served on the same congressional committees. Contact.
Executive Order 13490, issued by former U.S. President Barack Obama, included a ban on accepting gifts from lobbyists and lobbying groups and prohibited any former government official from working for a lobbying firm within two years of the end of his or her government service.
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