Cutting Out the Middleman - Republicans have hired scores of former lobbyists to write laws.

[groovedaddy]

For six years, Doug Stafford was a lobbyist for the National Right to Work Committee, an anti-labor group financed by business and conservative interests. His job changed last year but his duties did not when he became the chief of staff to Senator Rand Paul, Republican of Kentucky. Mr. Paul is a chief sponsor of the National Right to Work Act, which he said would end forced unionization and “break Big Labor’s multibillion-dollar political machine forever.”

Brett Loper’s career path is a similar one. When he was an executive for the Advanced Medical Technology Association, an industry group, he lobbied hard against President Obama’s health care reform. Now, as the chief policy adviser for Speaker John Boehner, he is helping to organize the effort to repeal the health care law. The only difference is that the taxpayers are paying his salary.

There has long been a regular shuttle service between Capitol Hill and Washington’s K Street, but the numbers now are striking. Since last year’s Republican victories, nearly 100 lawmakers have hired former lobbyists as their chiefs of staff or legislative directors, according to data compiled by two watchdog groups, the Center for Responsive Politics and Remapping Debate. That is more than twice as many as in the previous two years.

In that same period, 40 lobbyists have been hired as staff members of Congressional committees and subcommittees, the boiler rooms where legislation is drafted. That again dwarfs the number from the previous two years.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/03/opinion/03sun2.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha211

[Andy823]

1. Back to the Bush years

Why the public isn't up in arms over this kind of BS is beyond me! Sure the brain dead right wing base don't care, hell they don't even know what is going on in this country, they simply listen to fox news and buy everything they hear, but the rest of the country needs to wake up and start screaming their heads off that we don't want more of the BUSH YEARS!

[Citizen Worker]

2. Andy823, are you suggesting that the American electorate become engaged? How dare you. We are more

than satisfied as passive observers. To become involved between elections would be stepping well outside of our comfort zone. We'd much rather leave that to other people.