Tuesday, November 22, 2016

So This Is How Trump Fixes Things

DONALD TRUMP, IMPLEMENTING what one news outlet called a “tough lobbying ban“, swept several registered lobbyists out of his transition team last week.

[...]

The junk food lobbyist overseeing the agency that is responsible for the federal school lunch program will be replaced — by a former junk food lobbyist.

[...]

Joel Leftwich, a congressional staffer who just last year worked as a senior lobbyist for PepsiCo, which not only makes soda products, but is also the maker of brands like Cheetos, Doritos, and Frito-Lay [...] previously helped his firm weaken nutritional standards from the agency he will now help shape.

Leftwich earned $354,041 from PepsiCo as the company’s senior lobbyist, according to his ethics disclosure, but left his lobbying position in 2015, qualifying him for a seat on the Trump transition this year.

[...]

The Koch Industries lobbyist who was overseeing transition efforts on energy and the environment will be replaced — by a former Koch Industries lobbyist who leads a think tank funded by Koch Industries.

[...]

[Thomas] Pyle is currently the president of the Institute for Energy Research, a think tank founded directly by Charles Koch, the chief executive of Koch Industries, and also funded by Koch-backed nonprofits. IER broadly supports more drilling and mining of fossil fuels, and regularly criticizes climate change scientists for daring to call for controls on pollution. Before joining IER, Pyle worked as a registered lobbyist for Koch Industries and served as the Koch Industries Director of Federal Affairs, a lobbying job, from 2001 through 2005.

[...]

Some may simply deregister and continue to go about their lobbying careers, a phenomenon that has accelerated since President Barack Obama implemented his own prohibitions on lobbyists in his administration.

Take, for example, Rebecca Rosen, a lobbyist with Devon Energy, a drilling company heavily involved in fracking, who is also advising the transition on energy issues. E&E News reported that Rosen deregistered as a lobbyist last week, suggesting “she intends to continue to work for the transition.” She may even continue her role in Devon’s government affairs team.

[...]

[Mike] Dougherty is the current president of the Secure Identity & Biometrics Association, a trade group that lobbies on behalf of private contractors for equipment used for screening at airports, border crossings, and other security-related venues. [...But] Dougherty is not a registered lobbyist, making him perfectly acceptable for the Trump transition.

  The Intercept
Nice.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

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