Posted on 06/22/2002 3:36:51 PM PDT by Registered
| June 24, 2002 Lott’s Son Lobbies Hill - Clients Include BellSouth http://www.rollcall.com/pages/news/00/2002/06/news0624b.html
By Mark Preston Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott’s (R-Miss.) son has quietly been lobbying Congress for more than a year on issues ranging from Internet gambling to telecommunications. Chet Lott joins a long list of Members’ relatives engaged in Washington’s influence-peddling business, including Joshua Hastert, the son of Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), who recently was named director of government relations for Federal Legislative Associates. Lott is a principal in Lott & Associates, a Lexington, Ky.-based firm that represents the likes of BellSouth and the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. It’s unclear whom Lott has partnered with, but he had been working with former Rep. Larry Hopkins (R-Ky.) in a firm named Lott & Hopkins this year, according to lobbying disclosure records. Unlike Hastert’s firm, Lott’s lobbying shop does not have a Washington office, but clients and sources said he frequently travels to D.C. for work. While it is perfectly legal for Lott, a successful Dominos pizza franchisee, to engage in the lobbying trade, eyebrows have been raised about the timing of his hiring by BellSouth. Lott & Hopkins registered as a lobbyist for BellSouth in October, at the same time the telecommunications giant was engaged in a fight in the House over the Tauzin-Dingell legislation that would deregulate the high-speed Internet business. BellSouth paid Lott & Hopkins about $60,000 for the firm’s work on communications issues, according to records received by the Secretary of the Senate’s office in March. Herschel Abbott, vice president of governmental affairs for BellSouth, said he didn’t think about Lott’s family connection when he hired Lott & Hopkins, saying that at the time his attention was focused on the "battle royal in the House. "I literally didn’t think about what was going on in the Senate," said Abbott, who added the firm is still employed by BellSouth. Abbott also dismissed talk that BellSouth hired Lott’s firm because his father is a top Senate leader. "We didn’t hire them because of the familial relationship," said Abbott who pointed out that "there have been sons in the lobbying business for a long time." Abbott said BellSouth retains the services of more than a dozen lobbying firms and oftentimes he finds success in hiring shops that employ former Members. "They know how to explain issues that are important to the Members," said Abbott, who acknowledged that both Hopkins and Lott work on the BellSouth account. "I talk to both of them," he said. As for those critics who suggest that BellSouth hired Lott & Hopkins because the Minority Leader’s son is a partner in the firm, Abbott said, "They just have to accept my word. "That is one of the most difficult things to do is prove a negative," he said. But a telecommunications lobbyist scoffed at BellSouth’s hiring of Lott, saying it was clearly a calculated move to curry favor with his father, the Minority Leader. "You don’t hear Joe Smight say, ‘Hey I am a lobbyist, hire me BellSouth," said the lobbyist. "He’s a pizza guy." Complicating the situation is that long-distance company WorldCom, which is based in Mississippi, and BellSouth are on opposite sides of the issue and the Senator has been cagey about who he supports on this issue. Lott did not return several messages, but when reached at his office he refused to talk about his lobbying work and quickly hung up the telephone. "I don’t have any comment for your article," Lott said. "Thanks for your call." But his father acknowledged his son’s work and said he has every right to do it. "He is down there in Lexington, Kentucky, so I don’t see him or hear too much out of him," the Senator said. "But like everybody else he has got a right to make a living. He makes most of his living off of Dominos pizza. To avoid any conflict of interest, the Senator added that he does not talk about legislation in which either of them are involved. "Not if it is something that I am going to be working on here in the Senate," said the Minority Leader. "Most of his work involves the Legislatures, and I don’t even know what all, but a lot of it is Kentucky-based stuff." The National Thoroughbred Racing Association is one of those Kentucky-based clients. Lott & Associates was hired by the association in April to work on gambling and trade issues. The racing association is closely following a House bill that would ban Internet gambling because it fears it could evolve into legislation that would threaten their ability to take bets from racetracks in other states. A spokesman for the association also denied it hired Lott & Associates to gain influence with the Minority Leader. "That is not the reason behind hiring this firm," said the spokesman, who refused to say how much it paid Lott’s firm. "Mr. Hopkins understands racing issues." Lobbying reports disclosing income for the first six months of 2002 will be released to the public later this year. In March, Lott & Associates also registered to lobby for Edison Chouest Offshore, a company that bills itself as "the most technologically advanced and fastest growing offshore vessel service company in the world," according to its Web site. Several telephone calls to the Galliano La.-based company were not returned, but a lobbying disclosure report states that Lott & Associates was lobbying on maritime, boating and manufacturing issues. Edison Chouest also boasts on its Web site that it "has under charter the largest number of privately owned and operated special-purpose vessels to the U.S. Government." Another firm with strong ties to the federal government that Lott & Hopkins represents is Day & Zimmerman, which provides munitions products and services and engineering and construction services among a host of other services to private and public clients. Day & Zimmerman, based in Philadelphia, inherited Hopkins who was working as a consultant for The Mason & Hanger Group when it bought the company, said Bill Yoh, senior vice president of Day & Zimmerman. "We did not go out and seek Larry Hopkins," said Yoh, whose company paid Lott & Hopkins about $30,000 last year. Yoh said his company has used "Chet on several occasions," and "he has been helping with a myriad of issues, primarily defense-related." Gary Ruskin, director of the Congressional Accountability Project, said it is "important not to penalize family members just because they have another family member serving in the House or Senate." Ruskin cautioned, however, that both the Member and relative-lobbyist have to be careful not to cross ethical lines. "But the question is, ‘Does the Member provide special favors or benefits for family member lobbying clients," Ruskin said. A seasoned GOP lobbyist said Lott is taking the right steps to keep a low profile. "He has the right last name, but to the kid’s credit, he is smart enough not to be a big splash here," lobbyist said. A spokesman for Hastert said the Speaker supports his son but is careful not to cross ethical lines. "This is not an unusual situation where a family member is a lobbyist," said John Feehery, Hastert’s spokesman. "It is a common occurrence. The Speaker and Josh will adhere strictly to all ethics rules." Some Members have put ground rules in writing to deal with a family member who is a lobbyist. Senate Majority Whip Harry Reid (D-Nev.) wrote a memo to his staff instructing them not to give special treatment to his relatives who work as lobbyists. Reid’s son, Key, is a lobbyist for Lionel, Sawyer & Collins, as is his son-in-law, Steven Barringer, who works for McClure, Gerard & Neuenschwander. And Senate Majority Leader Thomas Daschle’s (D-S.D.) wife, Linda Hall Daschle, voluntarily does not lobby the Senate from her perch at Baker, Donelson, Bearman & Caldwell. |
What they spend most of their time doing is trying to get on TV with therir sound-bites. What they don't do is listen to their constituents.
If they spent more time at home they would realize how un-important they really are. They have all this power--and spend most of their time playing politics.
The longer they're there, the worse they become.
If one of them died tonight, a ballgame wouldn't be cancelled.
Our elected have beome representatives of the corporations rather than the people and I'm not comfortable with any national office holder with family doing business in positions that can influence our nations policy. Being anyones son or daughter should be cause for conflict of interest especially in high level goverment administrative jobs. POTUS, Senators, Congressmen, and Cabinet Members should refrain from having family working in other goverment agencies in administrative post.
As well families should take care as not to put their business matters in such a manner as to give conflict of interest either. If you want the privlidge to lead then you should take the responsibility to serve all and not open yourself to scandle or conflicts.
I think we have too many representatives who are held hostage to special interest groups who, all too often, produce nothing and demand more and more from those who do produce.
My congressman, Jim Turner claims to be a "conservative" Democrat, President of the "Blue Dogs" but votes more often than not with Sheila Jackson-Lee, votes against tax relief, and always votes for pay raises and increased benefits to himself.
He's a lawyer. They're worse than corporations.
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