Lobbying and Other Fun Games

Sen. Trent Lott's (R-MS) resignation announcement requires a revisiting of lobbying practices in Washington D.C.
Under new Senate rules, Lott would be prohibited from directly lobbying his former colleagues for two years were he to depart after the current session adjourns. If he resigns prior to that, as he intends, he will be eligible to lobby starting in January, 2009.
In August, Congress passed the “Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007” which, among other things, banned "travel junkets" paid for by lobbyists on behalf of members of congress and their staffs. But whatever the legislation accomplished, it obviously wasn't as comprehensive as it might have been since, as Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) observed in the NY Times, “this will continue the earmarking and pork-barrel projects. We are passing up a great opportunity and again the American people will have been deceived.”
While reform of a type might have been achieved by the legislation, the complications--and loopholes--in such legislation are obvious. From OMB Watch: "The FEC [Federal Election Commission] asked for feedback on various questions, including whether the requirements for disclosure should extend beyond registered lobbyists to include money bundled by other employees of a lobbying organization."
And, as the Washington Post noted, the gamesmanship,
by lobbyists allows for business as usual: "In recent days, about 100 members of Congress and hundreds of Hill staffers attended two black-tie galas, many of them as guests of corporations and lobbyists that paid as much as $2,500 per ticket. Because accepting such gifts from special interests is now illegal, the companies did not hand the tickets directly to lawmakers or staffers. Instead, the companies donated the tickets back to the charity sponsors, with the names of recipients they wanted to see and sit with at the galas."
The failure to address this problem honestly and comprehensively makes it clear how far we still need to go to ensure the American people have open, transparent and responsive government--responsive, that is, to the people and not to K Street.