Post by graybeard on Sept 27, 2008 8:28:11 GMT -6
Makes you feel all warm inside, huh?
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Lobbyists Sprint in Round-the-Clock Race to Shape Rescue Plan
By Lorraine Woellert
Sept. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Wall Street trembled when House Republicans pushed back against a $700 billion financial- services rescue package this week.
K Street didn't blink.
The boulevard, home to many of Washington's top lobbyists, has bustled almost around the clock as hired guns for interest groups -- including banks, mortgage lenders, unions and consumer advocates -- work to shape what may be the most important piece of legislation they'll ever see. With Congress trying to agree on a plan as soon as this weekend, there's not much time to leave a mark.
``I'm doing Blackberry or on the phone until 11:30 p.m. or midnight,'' said Bruce Josten, top lobbyist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. ``This has got to be the single biggest seat-of- the-pants exercise I've ever been in.''
The wrangling over a plan to revive credit markets has been a weeklong sprint to influence the contents of a bill that didn't even exist on paper until Sept. 25. Along the way, lobbyists for paper mills, trucking companies, retirees, electric utilities and other interests jumped into the fray.
The starting gun fired the afternoon of Sept. 19. In a conference call with White House officials, business lobbyists were briefed on Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's proposal to spend as much as $700 billion to relieve financial companies of bad debt, Josten said. On the call, Josten raised objections to provisions rumored to be in the package, such as changing bankruptcy laws to help homeowners who can't afford their mortgage payments.
`Bailout Busters'
At about the same time, a loose-knit collection of anti-tax and free-market organizers -- calling themselves the Bailout Busters -- were having a conference call of their own.
The group brainstormed about how to present a united front against Paulson's plan, said Pete Sepp, a spokesman for the National Taxpayers Union. ``Many of us were struck by the sheer arrogance'' of the proposal, Sepp said.
By the time Congress returned on Monday, Sept. 22, lobbyists were trolling House and Senate office buildings, looking for lawmakers or aides to win over, and e-mails were flying. Capitol Hill phones were besieged with complaints from angry constituents about a ``bailout'' for rich bankers.
``At the outset, the anti-rescue-package contingent seemed to have the upper hand,'' said Jim Owen, spokesman for the Edison Electric Institute, which represents some of the nation's biggest utilities and supports a rescue package.
Call for Help
By Tuesday, Sept. 23, Republicans were abandoning their own party's administration in droves. The White House and other proponents turned to business leaders and lobbyists for help convincing skeptics that the package was necessary.
On Wednesday morning, Paulson briefed chief executives with the Business Roundtable in a conference call.
``Our lobbyists have been getting that message, from leadership on both sides, that industry needs to make the case for this with legislators,'' said John Mechem, spokesman for the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Business groups that had stayed on the sideline began getting into the game, urged on by a trio of K Street heavy- hitters: Josten at the Chamber, Dirk Van Dongen, president of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors, and Business Roundtable President John Castellani.
Businesses Suffer
By mid-week, large organizations such as the American Trucking Associations and the National Association of Manufacturers, and single-industry trade groups like the Aluminum Association, were telling Congress that business owners and employees could suffer unless lawmakers moved quickly to loosen capital markets.
Lumber and paper companies ``are capital-intensive businesses that need access to functioning capital markets,'' Donna Harman, president and CEO of the American Forest & Paper Association, wrote to Congress.
The business groups also maneuvered to protect their own interests.
Consumer advocates such as AARP have joined forces with labor unions to push for provisions that help Main Street consumers and enterprises, including mortgage relief for homeowners in bankruptcy.
``We continue to push for the bankruptcy provision, that's what I am really obsessed with,'' said Nancy Zirkin, executive vice president of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights. ``It's unclear whether politically we will be able to survive in the bill.''
Bankruptcy Fault Line
That's because bankruptcy has emerged as a key fault line in the debate. The Bankruptcy Coalition of trade groups, formed a year ago to fight similar legislation, is back in action, led by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Business groups also warn that a cap on executive pay could hurt the plan's goals, by making it hard to attract the best- qualified people to run financial companies.
Mostly, business lobbyists are seeking information about plans being drafted behind closed doors.
``We're seeing interest from clients in all sectors -- health care, financial services, insurers, hedge funds, banks, but also manufacturing clients, guys who are interested in the credit markets generally, utility companies,'' said Mike Zolandz of the law firm Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal. ``We've been involved in large coalitions and grassroots efforts before, but this is unique in its sense of breadth.''
To contact the reporter on this story: Lorraine Woellert in Washington at lwoellert@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: September 27, 2008 01:03 EDT
-------------
Lobbyists Sprint in Round-the-Clock Race to Shape Rescue Plan
By Lorraine Woellert
Sept. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Wall Street trembled when House Republicans pushed back against a $700 billion financial- services rescue package this week.
K Street didn't blink.
The boulevard, home to many of Washington's top lobbyists, has bustled almost around the clock as hired guns for interest groups -- including banks, mortgage lenders, unions and consumer advocates -- work to shape what may be the most important piece of legislation they'll ever see. With Congress trying to agree on a plan as soon as this weekend, there's not much time to leave a mark.
``I'm doing Blackberry or on the phone until 11:30 p.m. or midnight,'' said Bruce Josten, top lobbyist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. ``This has got to be the single biggest seat-of- the-pants exercise I've ever been in.''
The wrangling over a plan to revive credit markets has been a weeklong sprint to influence the contents of a bill that didn't even exist on paper until Sept. 25. Along the way, lobbyists for paper mills, trucking companies, retirees, electric utilities and other interests jumped into the fray.
The starting gun fired the afternoon of Sept. 19. In a conference call with White House officials, business lobbyists were briefed on Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's proposal to spend as much as $700 billion to relieve financial companies of bad debt, Josten said. On the call, Josten raised objections to provisions rumored to be in the package, such as changing bankruptcy laws to help homeowners who can't afford their mortgage payments.
`Bailout Busters'
At about the same time, a loose-knit collection of anti-tax and free-market organizers -- calling themselves the Bailout Busters -- were having a conference call of their own.
The group brainstormed about how to present a united front against Paulson's plan, said Pete Sepp, a spokesman for the National Taxpayers Union. ``Many of us were struck by the sheer arrogance'' of the proposal, Sepp said.
By the time Congress returned on Monday, Sept. 22, lobbyists were trolling House and Senate office buildings, looking for lawmakers or aides to win over, and e-mails were flying. Capitol Hill phones were besieged with complaints from angry constituents about a ``bailout'' for rich bankers.
``At the outset, the anti-rescue-package contingent seemed to have the upper hand,'' said Jim Owen, spokesman for the Edison Electric Institute, which represents some of the nation's biggest utilities and supports a rescue package.
Call for Help
By Tuesday, Sept. 23, Republicans were abandoning their own party's administration in droves. The White House and other proponents turned to business leaders and lobbyists for help convincing skeptics that the package was necessary.
On Wednesday morning, Paulson briefed chief executives with the Business Roundtable in a conference call.
``Our lobbyists have been getting that message, from leadership on both sides, that industry needs to make the case for this with legislators,'' said John Mechem, spokesman for the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Business groups that had stayed on the sideline began getting into the game, urged on by a trio of K Street heavy- hitters: Josten at the Chamber, Dirk Van Dongen, president of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors, and Business Roundtable President John Castellani.
Businesses Suffer
By mid-week, large organizations such as the American Trucking Associations and the National Association of Manufacturers, and single-industry trade groups like the Aluminum Association, were telling Congress that business owners and employees could suffer unless lawmakers moved quickly to loosen capital markets.
Lumber and paper companies ``are capital-intensive businesses that need access to functioning capital markets,'' Donna Harman, president and CEO of the American Forest & Paper Association, wrote to Congress.
The business groups also maneuvered to protect their own interests.
Consumer advocates such as AARP have joined forces with labor unions to push for provisions that help Main Street consumers and enterprises, including mortgage relief for homeowners in bankruptcy.
``We continue to push for the bankruptcy provision, that's what I am really obsessed with,'' said Nancy Zirkin, executive vice president of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights. ``It's unclear whether politically we will be able to survive in the bill.''
Bankruptcy Fault Line
That's because bankruptcy has emerged as a key fault line in the debate. The Bankruptcy Coalition of trade groups, formed a year ago to fight similar legislation, is back in action, led by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Business groups also warn that a cap on executive pay could hurt the plan's goals, by making it hard to attract the best- qualified people to run financial companies.
Mostly, business lobbyists are seeking information about plans being drafted behind closed doors.
``We're seeing interest from clients in all sectors -- health care, financial services, insurers, hedge funds, banks, but also manufacturing clients, guys who are interested in the credit markets generally, utility companies,'' said Mike Zolandz of the law firm Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal. ``We've been involved in large coalitions and grassroots efforts before, but this is unique in its sense of breadth.''
To contact the reporter on this story: Lorraine Woellert in Washington at lwoellert@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: September 27, 2008 01:03 EDT