Corporate Lobbying

A story about the campaign to confirm Kavanaugh

The Powell Memo (Drutman p. 57)

In Showdown at Gucci Gulch, Jeffrey H. Birnbaum and Alan S. Murray quote Reagan aide Richard Darman saying: “I couldn’t help thinking that if I were a lobbyist, I would stand in the hallway with a big sign saying EVERYONE INTERESTED IN KILLING THIS BILL, PLEASE MEET IN THE NEXT CORRIDOR … There would have been an enormous rush, and they would have seen the power of their collective action.” Nearly three decades later, all the lobbyists have read that book, and they know how to build coalitions.

(What happened to Birnbaum?  See here.)

The 1990s and health care





Lobbying presence


Review of why companies lobby (Drutman, p. 75)


...............................................Collective (Industry)............Selective (Company)

Proactive...............................Medicare presc. drug............Coverage of specific company drug

Reactive................................Preserve industry tax break..Preserve company contract


Drutman, p. 80:

1. Contacting Congressional staffers directly to present your point of view
2. Identifying allies in Congress who might serve as “champions” for your cause
3. Monitoring developments closely
4. Contacting members of Congress directly to present your point of view 
5. Consulting with members of Congress and/or their staff to plan legislative strategy 
6. Entering into coalitions with other organizations
7. Consulting with other organizations to plan legislative strategy 
8. Helping to draft legislation 
9. Contacting members of the executive branch directly to present your point of view 
10. Presenting research results or technical information
11. Contacting undecided members 
12. Writing position papers
13. Mobilizing constituents to contact their representatives 
14. Talking to people from the press and the media [also social media
15. Contacting members who are opposed to your position 
16. Testifying at hearings 
17. Attending political fundraisers
18. Consulting with members of the executive branch to plan legislative strategy 
19. Organizing political fundraisers 
20. Using issue advertising

Trade Associations

The Business of America

Transfer calls and other forms of Astroturf

The Privileged Position of Business?

Calvin Coolidge:

There does not seem to be cause for alarm in the dual relationship of the press to the public, whereby it is on one side a purveyor of information and opinion and on the other side a purely business enterprise. Rather, it is probable that a press which maintains an intimate touch with the business currents of the nation, is likely to be more reliable than it would be if it were a stranger to these influences. After all, the chief business of the American people is business. They are profoundly concerned with producing, buying, selling, investing and prospering in the world. I am strongly of opinion that the great majority of people will always find these are moving impulses of our life.

Attitudes on regulation
The USA is distinctive in this respect
Structure of US Government: competition among states

Drutman's theory (p. 7):

Why the growth of corporate lobbying matters (p. 24)

"L0w-salience" lobbying

Change is hard

Lobby jobs?  My email list and websites

Capacity

The Nadir of Business Influence

Prop 6 Update

At LAT, Patrick McGreevy reports that Republicans are shifting resources away from a measure to repeal a California gas-tax increase

After contributing $1.7 million to put a repeal initiative on the November ballot, Republican congressional leaders and GOP gubernatorial candidate John Cox are now conspicuously absent from the list of donors spending money to help convince Californians to pass the measure.

Construction firms, organized labor and Democrats have raised more than $30 million to defeat Proposition 6, while the main campaign committee in favor of the measure had just $83,291 in the bank as of Sept. 22, according to campaign finance statements made public Thursday.

The opposition campaign includes the California Chamber of Commerce, the League of California Cities and dozens of deep-pocketed construction firms and labor unions that would benefit from the tax’s billions targeted to road and bridge repair projects.

Do read the rest of the article. 

SCOTUS and Dark Money

At Open Secrets, Anna Massoglia writes about dark money and the SCOTUS battle:

At the helm of the money race is the Judicial Crisis Network (JCN), a non-disclosing 501(c)(4) nonprofit that has funneled millions of dollars in support of Kavanaugh’s confirmation as the next Supreme Court justice.

Anonymous donors pumping big money into Supreme Court nominations is nothing new, and this is not JCN’s first rodeo.

JCN first came on the scene in 2005 to promote President George W. Bush’s nominations to the high court as Judicial Confirmation Network before rebranding the “C” its name to stand for “crisis” and attacking President Barack Obama’s nominees.

Tax returns obtained by the Center for Responsive Politics in 2017 revealed that JCN has continued to be primarily funded by the Wellspring Committee, another nondisclosing politically active nonprofit, which is linked to Ann and Neil Corkery’s network of conservative “dark money” groups organized to influence public policy.

Leonard Leo, the Federalist Society’s executive vice president who has played a key role in Trump’s Supreme Court nominations, orchestrated finances related to the network and is also linked to BH Group, a mysterious LLC that donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural committee.

Becoming a key ‘dark money’ conduit for conservatives to funnel millions of dollars into Supreme Court battles while keeping their identities secret, JCN has established itself the preeminent advocate of conservative contenders for the U.S. Supreme Court as well as in key state supreme court races and attorneys general elections.

Your Weekend Getaway Packet

If you are writing about CA ballot measures, take a look at spending:

• https://www.sos.ca.gov/campaign-lobbying/cal-access-resources/measure-contributions/2018-ballot-measure-contribution-totals/ 
• https://ballotpedia.org/California_2018_ballot_propositions

Today, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) discussed course themes.

“Setting aside this botch, we go back to a Supreme Court that is so far too often dancing to the tune of a handful of big Republican special interests,” Whitehouse said. Big Republican special interests funding the Federalist Society that is now picking Supreme Court nominees. Big Republican special interests using the unlimited dark money power the Supreme Court gave them to mount TV ad campaigns for Supreme Court nominees.”

“And big Republican special interests on the winning side of those with 70, 5-4 partisan victories,” he continued. “The fruits of their political labor. People are catching on. The record of this is undeniable, and as I said, it will be a disaster for the court court.”

As we discussed this week, Whitehouse's questioning a year ago helped sink a nominee to the Council on Environmental Quality:


And finally, the scene that Matthew mentioned on Thursday:

Looking Ahead to Your Research Project

In the next week or so, each of you should choose an interest group or lobbying firm.  You will become our "resident expert" on that organization, and you will make a very brief oral presentation on it later in the semester.

By November 16, write an essay analyzing the organization that you have chosen.  In your answer, please answer these questions:

• Whom does the organization represent?
• How does the organization make decisions?
• What are its top current policy priorities?  Tell how it is seeking to change or preserve certain statutes, rules, or practices.
• What strategy is it pursuing?  Inside game or outside game?  Legislative, executive or judicial action?
• In light of the 2018 midterms, what are its prospects for success over the next year?

Instructions:

• Document your claims. Do not write from the top of your head. 
• Essays should be typed (12-point), double-spaced, and no more than eight pages long. I will not read past the eighth page.   As always, please submit papers to the Sakai dropbox as Word documents, not pdfs.
• Cite your sources with endnotes in Chicago/Turabian style. Endnote pages do not count against the page limit. 
• Watch your spelling, grammar, diction, and punctuation. Errors will count against you. 
• Due date is 11:59 PM on November 16.  Papers will drop a gradepoint for one day's lateness, a full letter grade after that.

California Survey

For those of you writing about California ballot propositions, here are important data.

News Release
EMBARGOED: Do not publish or broadcast until 9:00 p.m. PDT on Wednesday, September 26, 2018.

PPIC STATEWIDE SURVEY: CALIFORNIANS AND THEIR GOVERNMENT
Gas Tax Repeal, Rent Control Propositions Trailing
NEWSOM, FEINSTEIN HOLD ON TO DOUBLE-DIGIT LEADS

SAN FRANCISCO, September 26, 2018—A slim majority of California’s likely voters oppose Proposition 6, the measure on the November ballot to repeal recently enacted increases in the gas tax and vehicle registration fees. Proposition 10—which would expand the authority of local governments to enact rent control—is also trailing.
These are among the key findings of a statewide survey released today by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC).

When likely voters are read the Proposition 6 ballot title and label, 52 percent say they would vote no, 39 percent would vote yes, and 8 percent are undecided about the measure, which would repeal the tax increases on gasoline and diesel fuel signed into law last year to fund road repairs and public transportation.

Across parties, half of Republican likely voters (50%) would vote yes. Fewer independents (42%) and Democrats (33%) would do so. Across all demographic groups, fewer than half of likely voters say they would vote yes. Asked about the importance of the outcome of the vote on the measure, 47 percent of likely voters say it is very important to them (37% say it is somewhat important). Among those who would vote yes, 55 percent say the outcome is very important, while 45 percent of those who would
vote no express this view.

“A slim majority of likely voters say they would vote no on Proposition 6, the gas tax repeal,” said Mark Baldassare, PPIC president and CEO. “Across all of the state’s major regions, fewer than half say they would vote yes.”

Proposition 10 would repeal the 1995 Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, which restricts cities’ ability to implement rent control. Among likely voters, 48 percent would vote no on the proposition; 36 percent would vote yes and 16 percent are undecided.

Slim majorities of Republican and independent likely voters (52% each) would vote no on the measure. Democrats are divided (46% yes, 43% no). Regionally, support for Proposition 10 is highest in Los Angeles (45%) and lowest in the Inland Empire (29%). Across all demographic groups, support among likely voters for Proposition 10 tops 50 percent only among those age 18–34 (51%). When asked about the importance of the outcome of the Proposition 10 vote, 42 percent of likely voters say it is very
important (33% somewhat important).

“Proposition 10, the local rent control initiative, trails by a 12 point margin,” Baldassare said. “The yes votes are falling below a majority among both homeowners and renters.”