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John McCain's Lobbyist Universe
There's been a lot of talk in the last few weeks and months about John McCain's ties to lobbyists. So here at TPMmuckraker, we decided to do a little digging to officially catalog the possibilities. What we came up with, we fondly call "John McCain's Lobbyist Universe," a working guide to the presidential hopeful's connections. Click on each of the familiar faces to get a synopsis of their role in the campaign and their lobbyist ties. We expect to be growing and expanding this chart as more facts come in, and as always we welcome any tips or knowledge that you, our readers, have to offer.
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Josh
Zachary
Wow, that's quite the list of sleezeballs. It really puts in perspective the ridiculousness the feigned outrage from the McCain camp re Jim Johnson.
July 4, 2008 2:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thank Jeebus for finally doing this. McCain is virtually devoid of any original proposals. His "advisers" are the key to his platform and its true intentions.
You should make Phil "the Blackhand" Gramm's picture larger and give him a white suit and fedora.
July 4, 2008 2:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
Here is an older list but worth noting.
http://www.mccainsource.com/corruption?id=0006
July 4, 2008 2:24 PM | Reply | Permalink
Charlie Black link makes no mention of lobbying ties on behalf of Colombia.
[Charlie] has earned more than $1.8 million representing the Occidental Petroleum Corporation, the leading foreign producer of gas and oil in Colombia
Significant in view of McCain's trip this week to said country.
July 4, 2008 2:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Sorry, forgot link.
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/07/01/1177176.aspx
July 4, 2008 2:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Don't forget Tom">http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2007/03/mccain_elevates_loeffler.html">Tom Loeffler, paid lobbyist to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Sure they jettisoned Loeffler before anyone had the chance to draw the obvious implications:
www.asecondlookatthesaudis.com
Nonetheless, this certainly tends to explain McSame's apparent commitment to follow the Bush administration policy of kissing Saudi royal ass no matter how many Americans they kill.
July 4, 2008 2:35 PM | Reply | Permalink
OK, I guess McSame isn't the only one having problems figuring out the Google. Here's that Tom Loeffler link:
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2007/03/mccain_elevates_loeffler.html
July 4, 2008 2:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
They didn't include enough about McCain's economic adviser Phil Gramm's past. He was a senator who took cash from the banking industry and introduced - and passed - a law that removed consumer safeguards in place since the Great Depression. This allowed banks to merge with financial investment institutions and begin selling risky investment products, including speculating on mortgages. This led to the subprime meltdown we have today which is destroying our economy. Then Gramm quit the Senate and went to work for UBS, a gigantic international bank that took advantage of Gramm's new law and gobbled up investment firms, then had Gramm lobby George W. Bush to remove the remaining consumer safeguards on predatory lending. Gramm is a giant POS, and McCain has nothing but praise for the man, he even wants to put him in charge of the Federal Reserve - the guy who had led us into a recession would be in charge of getting us out!
Read more here: http://www.ickypeople.com/2008/04/bill-clinton-major-part-in-subprime.html
July 4, 2008 3:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
My point exactly.
here is my timeline http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/04/redpill-economics-for-the-elec.php
Phil Gramm is the co-captain of the SS Straight Talk campaign and is the Goose to his Maverick. Phil Gramm; aka “Enron Loop” Gramm (Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000), aka “Subprime Fleece” Gramm (Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act), aka “McCain’s economic brain” Gramm ... repost
July 4, 2008 3:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, Phil Gramm, the man more responsible than any other single person in government for both Enron and the mortgage meltdown, is John McCain's economic adviser. This should definitely be shouted from the rooftops.
July 7, 2008 12:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
Maybe the question is not who his advisors might be, but who are not. As the last standing Republican he has his pick of the entire campaign warehouse. Is this the best he can do? I suspect the bigger story may be why the best talent has abandoned the project. Might be because being the Captain of the Titanic puts you on the wrong side of history.
July 4, 2008 5:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Can someone tell me why John Sydney McCorpse hasn't been called out about his visible lobbyist ties...please?
July 4, 2008 7:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Folks on this site with "Obamyopia."
July 4, 2008 7:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
Simply put - the corp media (beltway, male) can not get enough of him. and it's worse than that - it all comes down to their vanity - he pays attention to them and made them feel like insiders - really it's like they get to walk with the quarterback to his next class - blerrgghh
Media Matters guys have written a really good book on this - here's it's page, I recommend you read the excerpt
http://mediamattersaction.org/freeride/
here's another good link - election coverage
July 4, 2008 9:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
Looks to me as though McCain is really a front man for a group of Republican power wielders who already pull his strings and will continue to do so, hoping that they can secure the White House as puppeteers. Hey, that worked with Bush.
July 4, 2008 9:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
hey TPM Muckrakers
oh please do some of your phenomenal digging on The Reform Institute . . .
a so called reform entity - intially ran by Rick Davis - out of Davis' lobbying office
c'mon . . .pretty please
July 4, 2008 9:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Another good site that just did "Lobbyist Week" about McCain's advisors is:
http://reasonsnottovoteformccain.blogspot.com/
I can't decide which is more astounding, lobbying for the Burmese military junta or defending the UAE's enslavement of children.
Only with our media is this less newsworthy than Obama's nuance.
/jc
July 4, 2008 9:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
correction: Vladimir Putin is no longer (officially) Russia's President. He's now Prime Minister (though still essentially Big Brother).
July 5, 2008 2:17 AM | Reply | Permalink
(that's in the Rick Davis link)
July 5, 2008 2:18 AM | Reply | Permalink
well... i guess thats that for the more aptly titled Spin-Talk Express
Theres seems to be more lobby-looters here then at their anual bash.
July 5, 2008 12:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
that mc cain looks like a true fossil.
looks like he died 20-30 years ago.
a real scare-crow that one.
July 5, 2008 4:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Please add the history of these guys. Charlie Black, for example, may be on leave from his lobbying firm (of which he is a principal), but he has a history going back to 1980 of slipping back and forth between lobbying and advising/running political campaigns. He does this to earn the obligation of Republican politicians, which he then sells to his clients. It is both lucrative and obviously corrupt. However, simply showing the last iteration of this revolving process does not convey the way it works.
July 5, 2008 4:50 PM | Reply | Permalink