K Street Lines Up for Romney: Lobbyist Campaign Officials

The two GOP frontrunners, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum, never registered as lobbyists; this statement, though, does not apply to their campaign officials.  Rick Santorum counts just three people affiliated with his campaign who have been registered lobbyists, two representing major healthcare companies and one who was involved in the Abramoff scandal.

• James A D’Alessio:  A lobbyist for BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina
• Jennifer Vesey Rossman:  A lobbyist at Jeffrey J. Kimbell and Associates representing major health care clients. Key Clients: Roche; Abbott; Covidien; Astellas
• James Hirni:  A former lobbyist, who was involved with the Abramoff scandal.

Mitt Romney boasts the most lobbying connections to his campaign, with nine advisors and one official campaign staffer who has registered as lobbyists in the past.  The Romney-affiliated lobbyists are anything but ordinary lobbyists: these professionals represent some of the heavy hitters on K Street.  They boast impressive resumes of government experience, six of whom swung through the revolving door working for the government, and are among the leaders at their firms.

Collectively these lobbyists affiliated with Romney have represented 256 clients who have paid their firms over $88.0 million since 2004 for their services (See Appendix C).  Of the 256 clients, 22 of them have spent over $1.0 million since 2004 with a Romney campaign-affiliated lobbyist.  In 2011 these lobbyists have represented 42 clients paying over $5.0 million for their services (See Appendix D).  While no organization can claim to have hired three or more Romney-affiliated lobbyists, eight organizations have hired two Romney-affiliated lobbyists.

Mitt Romney’s Campaign Lobbyists

Gene Schaerr

• Justice Advisory Committee – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – Winston & Strawn, LLP (2007–2009)
• Key Client: American Association of Presidents of Independent Colleges & Universities

Lee A. Casey

• Justice Advisory Committee – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – Baker & Hostetler LLP (2004–2008)
• Key Clients: Tyco; ESP Global; Southern Company

Richard F. Wiley

• Justice Advisory Committee Chair – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist- Wiley Rein LLP (2004-2007)
• Key Clients: A.H. Belo; Gannett

Richard Williamson

• Foreign Policy & National Security Advisor – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – Winston & Strawn, LLP (2009-2009)
• Lobbyist – Mayer Brown LLP (2004-2006)
• Key Clients: Boeing; Pfizer; Roche

Roderick DeArment

• Justice Advisory Committee Chair – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – Covington & Burling LLP (2004-present)
• Key Clients: Amazon; John Hancock; Alcatel-Lucent

Ronald Kaufman

• Senior Advisor – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – Dutko Worldwide, LLC (2004–2010)
• Key Clients: Eisai; Allergan; American Pacific

James Talent (former Senator (2002-07) and Representative (1993-2001) from Missouri)

• Economic Policy Team – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – Arent Fox (2001-2001)

Stephen Rademaker

• Foreign Policy & National Security Advisor – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – Podesta Group, Inc. (2011–Present)
• Lobbyist – Barbour Griffith & Rogers, LLC (2007–2010)
• Key Clients: Textron; Raytheon; Kurdistan Regional Government

Vin Weber (former Representative (1981-93) from Minnesota)

• Foreign Policy & National Security Advisor – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – Clark & Weinstock (now known as Mercury/Clark & Weinstock) (2004-Present)
• Key Clients: Hyundai; Sallie Mae; eBay

Lanhee Chen

• Policy Director – Mitt Romney
• Lobbyist – The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC) (2001-2003)