Corporate lobbyists are prepping to shift gears towards the newly expected Republican majority in both chambers of Congress ahead of the results of the 2022 midterm elections, according to Politico.
The downtown K Street community of lobbyists has predicted a change of power and is working to narrow in on the issues that the Republican majority prioritizes, according to Politico. The organizations are working to bring in GOP aides with ties to leadership while removing existing ones who may be targeted for their past on Capitol Hill, Politico reported. (RELATED: As Americans Continue To Suffer, One Industry Is Raking In Massive Profits: DC Lobbyists)
“It’s going to be a different Congress for a lot of reasons,” GOP lobbying firm CGCN aid Tim Pataki said, according to Politico. “I think it’s fair to say helping out corporate America is not at the top of the priority list.”
In October, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck (BHFS) added Will Dunham, a top aide for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy prompting the shift, according to Politico. Durham was a long term aid for McCarthy and recently served as his chief of staff for policy before shifting to BHFS as a policy advisor.
“I think generally, the conventional wisdom is that Republicans are the party of CEOs and executives, and I don’t think that can be further from what’s actually going to be the case next Congress,”John Stipicevic, a CGCN lobbyist who also worked for McCarthy said, according to Politico.
A new administration means a shift of priorities in Washington, and that means more work for K Street.
Though revenues may be down for some compared to the record-breaking first quarter of 2020, lobbyists say they expect a big year ahead.https://t.co/t258PjCYKi
— OpenSecrets.org (@OpenSecretsDC) April 23, 2021
While the predicted GOP takeover could ultimately be a win for the business community, former GOP aid and partner at Narrative Strategies Ken Spain believes it will be rough at first, according to Politico. “The Republican takeover will be a win for the business community overall.”
Though it may be a win, “You can’t just dust off the old playbook because Republicans are taking over Congress,” Spain said. “There are industries that will have to grapple with a new contingent of populist-minded Republicans.”
As President Joe Biden continues to hold the power to veto items on the Republican agenda, the party’s ability to subpoena and create oversight agendas leaves companies looking for insight, Aaron Cutler, Hogan Lovells’ lead person on congressional probes, told Politico.
Furthermore, tech companies are predicted to face further oversight on both sides of the aisle in connection to business with China, Cutler continued, according to Politico. “That’s gonna make it very difficult for somebody testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee or the House Judiciary Committee next year to prepare for that, because literally, you’re gonna get punched from all sides.”
Brian Ballard of Ballard Partners emphasized his firm’s ties to lawmakers connected to the GOP just two years after asserting that the organization was bipartisan, according to Politico.
“We really are institutionalized with so many Republicans that came up through the Florida legislature or what have you, that are now in pretty senior places in Congress. I think our current clients are going to be very happily situated. Obviously business is going to be good for Republicans,” Ballard said, according to Politico.
CGCN and BHFS did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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