BulletProofBlog the blog on crisis communications

From day one, lobbyists have been squarely in President Obama’s sights as he set himself to the task of “changing the way business is done in Washington.” His first concrete steps included an Executive Order aimed at closing the “revolving door” and imposing strict rules on “gifts.” He then loudly proclaimed that “no lobbyists need apply” when it came to jobs in his White House.

In the latest salvo, the White House quietly announced in September that lobbyists would no longer be able to sit on the nearly 1,000 advisory committees that give federal agencies advice on thousands of government policies ranging from trade to the environment to consumer protection regulations.

The move was seen by many as a curious one – as advisory committees exist at least in part to afford private interests the opportunity to express their views on policy decisions affecting their industries and constituencies. Even if – as some administration officials assert – a few of K Street denizens were attempting to exert undue influence on these committees, the transparency mandated under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) dictates that their actions wouldn’t remain behind the scenes for long.

“Advisory committees are not some back-channel for special interests to communicate secretly with policy-makers,” says William Farah, a leading expert on campaign finance, lobbying, and government ethics for the law firm of Oldaker, Belair & Wittie. “Rather, they are a transparent instrument through which stakeholders have the opportunity to participate in shaping agency policy.”

Whether this policy shift was truly called for or simply represented some an easy political win for the administration is now a moot point. The White House’s efforts to marginalize the lobbying industry now means that business and industry stakeholders will have to employ more roundabout means of communicating – either by rallying their own “grassroots” or mounting public affairs campaigns to inform Congress and other decision makers of their points of view.

At a time when Joe Lobbyist is beginning to look more like Charlie Brown every day, any interest seeking to shape federal policy – whether the interest is “special” or not – is going to have to find new and creative ways to let its voice be heard.