Storm Tips: Harry Reid's $5 million-a-year man

Posted by LegiStorm on Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Want to find out how much money a highly successful lobbyist can make in Washington from a position of unparalleled influence?

Check out the financial disclosure of David Krone, the senior adviser Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's (D-Nev.) hired back in December. His lobbying income last year? More than $5 million in salary, severance and living reimbursements.

Based on financial disclosures of other lobbyists-turned-staffers, Krone's take-home amount is an extreme outlier. Typical lobbyists make generous six-figure, not seven-figure, salaries.

As a lobbyist for Comcast Corp. and before that the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, Krone was rewarded handsomely for being a confidant of the majority leader.

Krone served as senior vice preisdent for Comcast for less than 11 months. But he reported receiving more than $4 milllion for his efforts - $2,951,614 in "salary, severance and reimbursement", plus $1,196,887 for a "condo reimbursement."

Additionally, Krone reported receiving $952,884 in "deferred severance" from the National Cable and Telecommuncations Association.

Krone also reported having millions of dollars in assets, much of that wealth in non-publicly traded assets such as oil and gas partnerships.

This post is part of our occasional series "Storm Tips," in which we highlight interesting items we stumble across in our raw records.

Update: Rodell Mollineau, communications director for Sen. Reid's office, phoned us Thursday to point out - correctly - that Krone was not registered to lobby for Comcast at the time of earning his multi-million-dollar compensation in 2008. Federal law requires corporate officials to register when their job consists of 20% or more of lobbying activity. If it was less, he was not required to register. Krone had been a legally registered lobbyist for many years, including having Comcast as a client, but not for this past year when he served as senior vice president for corporate affairs.

posted in Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), personal financial disclosures, David Krone, Comcast Corp., National Cable and Telecommunications Association, Storm Tips
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6 comments so far

Posted by Lese Majeste on 08/06/2009 07:48 AM EDT
Only 5 million? That's chump change in a town that regularly rewards 'non-bid' contracts in the billions. It's one giant cesspool of corruption and what they're selling is the US of A.
Posted by anonymous on 07/16/2009 05:35 PM EDT
When a very successful lobbyist goes to work in the public sector, it is usually for passion and a desire to help, not for the money. We (the American people) need the David Krones of the world to monitor, manage and help the Gentlemen from Nevada, create solutions that will fix our economy for years to come. Atta-Boy Mr. Krone, glad you came back to Washington from Philadelphia.
Posted by Heisenberg on 07/14/2009 11:45 AM EDT
I ask a bunch of questions because I am uncertain. Is Reid getting good media coverage? Are the jackals of the press being easy on him? What role did Comcast have in the NSA spying operation? How aggresive has Reid been in disrobing responsibilities of the telco industry in being a part of doing that NSA spying thing to the public?
Posted by anonymous on 07/10/2009 04:23 PM EDT
Sorry... legal, not leagal!
Posted by anonymous on 07/10/2009 04:22 PM EDT
He didn't hire and pay millions to the lobbyist. He couldn't. His senate office budget could not handle that much. The article states the lobbyist made millions Last YEAR at the hands of COMCAST, and Krone is NOW a staffer for Reid as of December but must disclose such things as a leagal term of employment. Though the real question now becomes, what exactly made Krone so valuable to Comcast and the telecom community. I think its safe to say we're not going to see affordable fiber optics in the near future!
Posted by anonymous on 07/08/2009 11:29 PM EDT
This is the most outrageous thing I have heard of in a while. Why would a senator need to hire and pay millions to a marketing expert? We have got to vote these bums out.

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