LegiStorm

After plying his father's political trade as governor of Missouri, Matt Blunt has officially joined his stepmother's profession by filing his first lobbying papers on behalf of the American Automotive Policy Council.

Son of Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), Matt Blunt has worked in the private sector since leaving the Missouri governor's mansion in 2009, having declined to make a bid for reelection. Blunt also served in the state legislature and as Missouri secretary of state prior to the 2004 gubernatorial election.

Blunt was named president of the American Automotive Policy Council in 2011 but did not immediately file lobbying papers. The Council represents the interests of the so-called "Big Three" American auto manufacturers - Ford, General Motors and Chrysler - on Capitol Hill.

Blunt's stepmother is Abigail Perlman Blunt, a longtime K Street alum and well-known D.C. socialite. The Kraft Foods lobbyist married Roy Blunt in 2003 following a controversial courtship. 

 

 

Dozens of former congressional staff have become federal lobbyists in the first quarter of 2014.

So far this quarter, 76 former congressional staffers have filed lobbying papers for the first time since leaving Congress. More revolving door lobbyists are expected as the filing deadline approaches tonight. By comparison, 328 congressional staff made the transition into lobbying in the last election year.

This group contained first-time lobbyists, including Craig Albright, who served as chief of staff for Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas) from 2009 to 2010. He became vice president of legislative strategy in March for the Business Software Alliance.

A number of this quarter's revolving door lobbyists have been in the private sector as a lobbyist before. They include: Courtney Lawrence, who lobbies for America's Health Insurance Plans after leaving as legislative director to Rep. Bill Cassidy (R-La.); Brian Crawford, who joined American Hotel and Lodging Association after serving as Rep. Tom Rooney's (R-Fla.) chief of staff; Maggie Lyons, a National Grocers Association lobbyist after being Rep. Steve King's (R-Iowa) deputy chief of staff; and Claire O'Rourke, who represents National Association of Development Companies after being an aide on Sen. Mary Landrieu's (D-La.) Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee.

Democratic staffers edged their Republican counterparts in getting lobbying jobs so far this year.

In political dynasties, the script usually reads "like father like son." Or as they might say in the Sununu family, "like son like father."

John H. Sununu, the sometimes irascible former White House chief of staff and New Hampshire governor, has become a Washington lobbyist, apparently for the first time. He joins two of his sons, Michael Sununu and the former Sen. John E. Sununu (R-N.H.), in the lobbying business. The father joined forces with former Rep. Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.) on the contract to help Healiance Pharmaceuticals get FDA approval for their "innovative diabetes treatment."

The treatment in question, Heberprot-P, is designed to treat diabetic foot ulcers. Healiance is an American subsidiary of Austria-based Digen Pharmaceuticals GmbH. Delahunt has lobbied the executive and legislative branches for close to a year now but only recently employed the assistance from the Granite State Republican.

Sununu was governor of New Hampshire from 1983 to 1989. After leaving Concord, the Republican executive served as President George H.W. Bush's chief of staff until a scandal over his use of military transportation helped forced his resignation in 1991. He has also served as the chairman of the Republicans Governors, the National Governors Association, the Coalition of Northeastern Governors and the New Hampshire Republican Party. Last week, the governor introduced former Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) at his campaign announcement rally in Portsmouth, N.H.

A senior policy aide for Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) has leveraged his considerable health care policy experience to become a lobbyist, taking on a number of health care-related clients.

Luke Hatzis left his position as Roskam's legislative director in March to serve as a principal for Capitol Counsel LLC. So far, his clients include Health Care Service Corp., Healthcare Leadership Council and Sanofi U.S. Services Inc., according to lobbying filings.

Prior to joining the private sector, Hatzis spent over ten years on the Hill. He started as a staff assistant in Speaker Denny Hastert's (R-Ill.) personal office and eventually transitioned into his Speaker's office. In 2007, Hatzis moved to the House Republican Conference Committee to serve as a floor assistant and later as a policy analyst. After two years with the Republican Conference, Hatzis became a clerk for the House Rules Committee. Hatzis also served some time in Rep. John Shimkus' (R-Ill.) office before settling down in Roskam's office.

As legislative director for Roskam, Hatzis assisted with the congressman's Ways and Means subcommittee assignments which included the Health Subcommittee.

A recent environmental decision by the Obama administration has ruffled Rep. Steve Pearce's (R-N.M.) feathers so much that he is holding no fewer than three town halls this week to discuss a little-known species of chicken.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officially listed the lesser prairie chicken as threatened in late March. The classification is second in severity only to endangered. That reclassification has drawn outrage from ranchers in Pearce's district, who contend the step is unnecessary, violates landowners' rights and limits the region's growing oil and gas industry.

Pearce has joined fellow southwestern Republican Randy Neugebauer (R-Texas) in publicly criticizing the move. The Fish and Wildlife Service called the listing a "response to the rapid and severe decline" of the animal. Pearce has invited constituents in Lovington, Roswell and Portales to come to question federal government officials on the decision, claiming they "owe New Mexicans an explanation."