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In politics, lobbying or advocacy, is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies, but also judges of the judiciary. Lobbying, which usually involves direct, face-to-face contact in cooperation with support staff that may not meet directly face-to-face, is done by many types of people, associations and organized groups, including individuals on a personal level in their capacity as voters, constituents, or private citizens; it is also practiced by corporations in the private sector serving their own business interests; by non-profits and non-governmental organizations in the voluntary sector through advocacy groups to fulfil their mission such as requesting humanitarian aid or grantmaking; and by fellow legislators or government officials influencing each other through legislative affairs in the public sector. Lobbying or certain practices that share commonalities with lobbying are sometimes referred to as government relations, or government affairs and sometimes legislative relations, or legislative affairs. It is also an industry known by many of the aforementioned names, and has a near complete overlap with the public affairs industry. Lobbyists may be among a legislator's constituencies, for example amateur lobbyists such as a voter or a bloc of voters within their electoral district acting as private citizens; others like professional lobbyists may engage in lobbying as a business or profession; while others are government relations support staff who work on behalf of professional lobbyists but do not actively participate in influencing or meeting face-to-face with targeted personnel enough to be considered registered lobbyists while working in the same professional circles as professional lobbyists who are legally designated as registered lobbyists.
Astroturfing is the practice of hiding the sponsors of a message or organization to make it appear as though it originates from, and is supported by, grassroots participants. It is a practice intended to give the statements or organizations credibility by withholding information about the source's financial backers. The term astroturfing is derived from AstroTurf, a brand of synthetic carpeting designed to resemble natural grass, as a play on the word "grassroots". The implication behind the use of the term is that instead of a "true" or "natural" grassroots effort behind the activity in question, there is a "fake" or "artificial" appearance of support.
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Jack Allan Abramoff is an American lobbyist, businessman, film producer, writer, and convicted felon. He was at the center of an extensive corruption investigation led by Earl Devaney that resulted in his conviction and 21 other people either pleading guilty or being found guilty, including White House officials J. Steven Griles and David Safavian, U.S. Representative Bob Ney, and nine other lobbyists and congressional aides.
The American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity is a U.S. non-profit advocacy group representing major American coal producers, utility companies and railroads. The organization seeks to influence public opinion and legislation in favor of coal-generated electricity in the United States, placing emphasis on the development and deployment of clean coal technologies.
The Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal was a United States political scandal exposed in 2005; it related to fraud perpetrated by political lobbyists Jack Abramoff, Ralph E. Reed Jr., Grover Norquist and Michael Scanlon on Native American tribes who were seeking to develop casino gambling on their reservations. The lobbyists charged the tribes an estimated $85 million in fees. Abramoff and Scanlon grossly overbilled their clients, secretly splitting the multi-million dollar profits. In one case, they secretly orchestrated lobbying against their own clients in order to force them to pay for lobbying services.
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The Jack Abramoff CNMI scandal involved the efforts of Jack Abramoff, other lobbyists, and government officials to change or prevent, or both, Congressional action regarding the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and businesses on Saipan, its capital, commercial center, and one of its three principal islands.
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The Podesta Group was a lobbying and public affairs firm based in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1988 by brothers John and Tony Podesta and has previously been known as Podesta Associates, podesta.com and PodestaMattoon. John Podesta left the firm in 1993, and Tony Podesta left the firm on October 30, 2017, after finding out about increased scrutiny of the firm. It has essentially ceased to exist since then. The firm reorganized in January 2007 after chairman Tony Podesta split with former business partner Dan Mattoon.
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Lobbyit is a bipartisan lobbying firm headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded as a one-man shop in 2009 by company president Paul Kanitra. By 2014, Lobbyit had grown to seven employees and projected $1 million in annual revenue. The firm is known for its pricing structure, which is “unique” among DC lobbying firms: it offers its clients set monthly prices based on a tier system with retainers that are much lower than traditional lobbying firms and month-to-month contracts.
DCI Group is an American public relations, lobbying and business consulting firm based in Washington, D.C. The company was founded in 1996 as a consulting firm, and has since expanded its practice to become a public affairs company offering a range of services. DCI Group provides communications and advocacy services to clients including large US corporations, trade associations, non-profit organizations, educational institutions, and government organizations. Services include communication campaigns to solicit public action on legislative issues, including, it has been alleged, the creation of grass-roots fronts for corporate campaigns, and campaigns for clients on social media websites. DCI has been described as having "a knack for creating grassroots organizations and recruiting third party allies to advocate for a cause or an issue".
References
- ↑ STEPHEN ENGELBERG (17 March 1993). "A New Breed of Hired Hands Cultivates Grass-Roots Anger". The New York Times . Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ JOEL BRINKLEY (30 July 1993). "Special Pleaders: A periodic look at lobbying.; Lobbyists Appear Inept When They're the Issue". The New York Times . Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ "Grassroots Lobbying". C-SPAN . Retrieved 26 September 2015.
- ↑ Jeanne Kouhestani (1 January 2012). "Deep Roots: Bonner & Associates Recognizes ROA's Credibility on National Issues". Highbeam . Archived from the original on 27 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ Kenneth M. Goldstein (1999). Interest Groups, Lobbying, and Participation in America by Kenneth M. Goldstein. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 052163962X.
- ↑ "Grassroots Lobbying Strategies". C-SPAN . Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ "Veterans enlist Bonner to heighten political profile". Prweek.com. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ "Bonner & Associates recognizes ROA's credibility on national issues" (PDF). Retrieved 22 September 2015.
- ↑ KEITH SCHNEIDER (18 December 1986). "FRAUD IS ADMITTED ON U.S. BOOK ORDERS". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
- 1 2 Victor Zapanta (July 31, 2009). "NAACP-Forgery Group, Bonner & Associates, Has A Decades-Long History Of Astroturf Tactics". thinkprogress.org.
- ↑ "Firm Forged Letters to Lawmaker on Climate Bill". Associated Press. July 31, 2009.
- ↑ "Washington Lobbying Firm Caught Sending Fake NAACP Letters". Democracy Now!. August 3, 2009.
- ↑ David A. Fahrenthold (1 August 2009). "Lobbying Frm[sic] Says Ex-Staffer Forged Letter to Lawmaker". The Washington Post . Retrieved 26 September 2015.