WaPo: New Obama Policy Bars THOUSANDS of Lobbyists [View All]

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WaPo:New Obama Policy Bars THOUSANDS of Lobbyists

by calchala

Apparently President Obama has, through Norm Eisen, the ethics advisor for the WH, barred THOUSANDS of Lobbyists from lobbying the federal government.

Change we can believe in: Lobbyists Barred from Lobbying Federal Agencies

Obama appears to be setting a very bright line for his administration and the difference between the administration (which he has power over) and Congress could not be more stark.

Hundreds, if not thousands, of lobbyists are likely to be ejected from federal advisory panels as part of a little-noticed initiative by the Obama administration to curb K Street's influence in Washington, according to White House officials and lobbying experts.

The new policy -- issued with little fanfare this fall by the White House ethics counsel -- may turn out to be the most far-reaching lobbying rule change so far from President Obama, who also has sought to restrict the ability of lobbyists to get jobs in his administration and to negotiate over stimulus contracts.

The initiative is aimed at a system of advisory committees so vast that federal officials don't have exact numbers for its size; the most recent estimates tally nearly 1,000 panels with total membership exceeding 60,000 people.

Lobbyists say they are being unfairly demonized by the WH through this measure and doing this is nothing more than scoring points for the White House. Well, as one commenter noted in the comments section for this article, HOME RUN!