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Post by straydog on May 6, 2011 0:47:26 GMT -5
Quote from the article: "Mark Siegel, a partner in the Washington lobbying firm of Locke Lord Strategies -- which is paid $75,000 per month by the Pakistani government -- told Reuters on Thursday he had spoken twice to (President) Zardari since U.S. Special Forces killed bin Laden on Sunday and "countless" times to the Pakistani ambassador in Washington". "Pakistan Pays U.S. Lobbyists to Deny it Helped bin Laden" news.yahoo.com/s/nm/us_binladen_pakistan_lobbyingIt seems to me that people like Siegel and his colleagues live in their own little bubble in D.C.. As long as it's legal, then it's moral. |
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deziloooooo
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Post by deziloooooo on May 6, 2011 1:18:33 GMT -5
It is legal and as a attorney, they are hired to represent who ever is opaying them to present their case. Naturally they can present it , it doesn't mean the one being presented has to buy the presentation though.
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Post by straydog on May 6, 2011 3:12:16 GMT -5
It is legal and as a attorney, they are hired to represent who ever is opaying them to present their case. Naturally they can present it , it doesn't mean the one being presented has to buy the presentation though. Gotcha on the legal part, and I'm personally divided on foreign lobbying to tell the truth. Maybe the best way to get rid of half the problem would be to repeal the 17th amendment and just allow governors to pick senators. I guess that my original problem with this when I read the article was just that I was wondering that if this fellow and his colleagues were having coffee at a regular diner outside of D.C., would they really want to admit that they did this sort of thing for a living? I wouldn't. Another quote from the article: "But Siegel, referring to claims by the Afghan government that Pakistan must have known bin Laden's whereabouts, said, "must have known doesn't mean knew". Yeah, as if they knew he moved somewhere else from where they always knew he was, which was where we found him.  |
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mmhmm
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It's a great pity the right of free speech isn't based on the obligation to say something sensible.
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Post by mmhmm on May 6, 2011 3:23:17 GMT -5
Lobbying and, by extension, lobbyists are probably my top pet peeve. I can't understand how anybody could do what they do and sleep at night. It's beyond me.
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cme1201
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Tennis Elbow, Jock Itch, and Athletes Foot, every man has a sports life!
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Post by cme1201 on May 6, 2011 6:23:20 GMT -5
"But Siegel, referring to claims by the Afghan government that Pakistan must have known bin Laden's whereabouts, said, "must have known doesn't mean knew".
Is this anything like, depends on what your definition of is is?
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deziloooooo
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Post by deziloooooo on May 6, 2011 14:25:32 GMT -5
Lobbying and, by extension, lobbyists are probably my top pet peeve. I can't understand how anybody could do what they do and sleep at night. It's beyond me. The idea behind the idea of lobbyist I believe is, in all legislation, and topics that government is involved in, there are just so many facts that to expect any one, even the brightest , to understand all the repercussions, ins and outs, it's impossible. Even if say a legislature is really into the particular topic, example, say the late Senator Kennedy, on Health care, this was his baby, and even so, I am sure even he wasn't into all the ins and outs of how every part of a suggested bill would react on all of the issues, so these lobbiest are there to point out those ins and outs, try to clarify. Naturally it then behooves the one being presented with those facts, naturally slanted toward their clients benefits, to root that out , get opposing information, possible from lobbyist on the other side, before making a judgment. I think that's the idea of lobbyist, a tool, a profession, like any tool, any profession. To ask the legislatures staff to do all that, they are no more knowledgeable on all the issues then the legislatures plus don't have the time to garner all the issues in a understandable way. |
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billisonboard
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Post by billisonboard on May 6, 2011 14:36:33 GMT -5
... paid $75,000 per month by the Pakistani government ... US Lawmakers Debate Ongoing Aid to Pakistan in Wake of Bin Laden ...
40 minutes ago
Congress has approved $20 billion in aid over the past decade for Pakistan, making it one of the biggest US aid recipients. That is a lot of bang for the buck. Wish this guy was lobbying for something I supported. |
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Post by straydog on May 6, 2011 16:11:07 GMT -5
More on Pakistani lobbyist Mark Siegel of Locke Lord Strategies: From the article: * Worked in the Carter White House * Donated $1000.00 to Hillary's presidential campaign * Donated $3550.00 to Obama's presidential campaign * Wife Judith is a consultant to the State Department If this mess is ever going to get cleaned up, then either the 17th amendment should be repealed, or we should ban all former industry and government players from the lobbying game. www.opensecrets.org/news/2011/05/pakistans-lobbyists-dennis-kucinich-small-donors.html |
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