Barack Obama has made a big whoop-de-doo about not taking campaign contributions from lobbyists. But he’s raised lots and lots of money from those with lobbyist connections, as the Examiner’s Tim Carney reported in a piece logged in at the web yesterday, October 27, at 5:06pm. Carney’s lead: “President Obama doesn’t take campaign contributions from lobbyists — unless you count the owners and CEOs of lobbying firms, corporate vice presidents for government relations, or managing directors for public policy.” And his article goes on to provide chapter and verse.
Eric Lichtblau wrote a similar story for the New York Times, His lead: “Despite a pledge not to take money from lobbyists, President Obama has relied on prominent supporters who are active in the lobbying industry to raise millions of dollars for his re-election bid.” The web version of Lichtblau’s story is dated October 27, but it seems it appeared in the October 28 print edition of the Times (it’s on their home page right now and the first of 166 comments logged in is dated October 28 at 8:43am).
In contrast, the October 28 edition of the Washington Post missed this story altogether. It has a page A3 story headlined in the print edition “Romney leads the Republican pack in donations from lobbyists” and in the web version “Lobbyists play key role in 2012 fundraising” by reporters Dan Eggen and T. W. Farnam. The lead: “K Street is playing an increasingly central role in the 2012 presidential race, as hundreds of lobbyists representing some of the world’s largest corporations and trade groups pour money into Republican coffers.” Chapter and verse follow. But is the Obama campaign getting any money channeled by lobbyists? Heaven forfend. Here’s their paragraph on that issue. “As he did in 2008, Obama has made a point of refusing to accept donations from lobbyists or corporate PACs, and his campaign has repeatedly portrayed Republicans as beholden to Wall Street and other well-funded interests. But Obama faced his own criticism this week after hiring a former corporate lobbyist as a senior campaign adviser.” Later in the story, we learn: “Obama’s practice of refusing lobbyist contributions fits into a broader goal of seeking to curb the influence of special interests in Washington. After The Post inquired this week about two lobbyists who gave to the campaign, spokesman Ben LaBolt said the contributions would be returned.”
Further down we encounter LaBolt again: “LaBolt said Johnson [the recently hired lobbyist] will refrain from any issues involving past clients.’For years the President has fought to ensure that Washington lobbyists don’t have undue influence over the policymaking process,’ LaBolt said in a statement. ‘There’s no doubt that special interests are pouring contributions into the coffers of our potential opponents and their allies because they believe that large corporations and millionaires and billionaires should get tax cuts instead of the middle class and that Wall Street should be able write its own rules again.'”
Pure 100% unadulterated Obama spin. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney couldn’t have done it better.
The bottom line on the Obama lobbyist-connected fundraising: the Washington Examiner got the story first, the New York Times got the story soon after and the Washington Post missed it altogether. Not good for a newspaper that has prided itself over the years, and for good reason, on its political reporting.
