-
Three countries lobby to minimize fallout of political tug-of-war
By Lindsay Young Jun 3, 2011 1:49 p.m.South Korea, Panama and Colombia are lobbying to cement U.S. trade agreements that have been embroiled in political jockeying between the White House and Congress, recently filed foreign lobbying disclosures show.
Read all about it -
Egypt's PR shop terminates their US operation
By Lindsay Young May 26, 2011 6:17 p.m.A few weeks after Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak stepped down in response to the public outrage against his 30 year rule, the Egyptian government’s PR outfit in Washington terminated their operation, records show. Chlopak, Leonard, Schechter and Associates ended their representation of the Egyptian press office on February 28, 2011, shortly after Mubarak resigned on February 11.
Read all about it -
Lobbyists for Morocco go on a meeting spree soon after political upheaval
By Lindsay Young May 26, 2011 10:14 a.m.A nonprofit established by the government of Morocco went on a lobbying frenzy earlier this year, coinciding with the time when pro-democracy demonstrations in the country took an ugly turn. The Moroccan-American Policy Council, which is the registered agent of the Moroccan government met with 130 congressional offices on February 23, 24 and 25 just days after the riots broke out, FARA records show.
Read all about it -
Mexican government hires lobbyists, lawyer to help nationals facing capital punishment
By Anupama Narayanswamy May 12, 2011 2:45 p.m.The Mexican consulate in Tuscon hired Arizona-based lawyer Gregory Kuykendall for legal service and advice for Mexican nationals charged with crimes that could lead to a death sentence and for those already sentenced, recently filed disclosures under the Foreign Agents Registration Act filing show.
Read all about it -
Princess and the policy
By Lindsay Young Apr 28, 2011 10:21 a.m.There is a special role for princesses in international diplomacy and some like Princess Diana and Queen Noor of Jordan captivated the imagination of the world with their charm and humanitarian work, but others play a more formal diplomatic and public relations role and appear in foreign lobbying records.
Read all about it -
Unofficial Libyan ambassador registers with FARA
By Lindsay Young Apr 25, 2011 4:27 p.m.In a sign of the ambiguity of international policy toward Libya, Ali Suleiman Aujali, the diplomat who made headlines when he defected from the Gadafi Government in February, has registered as a foreign agent with the U.S. Justice Department to represent the Transitional National Council of Libya, the umbrella group representing the forces opposed to the rule of Muammar Gaddafi.
Read all about it -
Lobbying Tracker now follows foreign influence
By Lindsay Young Apr 6, 2011 10:27 a.m.Sunlight's Lobbying Tracker, which shows the latest hirings of K-Street professionals by special interests and when former congressional members and staff can legally lobby their old colleagues, now lets users track foreign influence as well. The Lobbying Tracker pulls in the latest filings made under the Foreign Agent Registration Act, allowing users to follow the latest foreign clients, see the most recent semi-annual disclosure reports and even see who the most recent individuals are to disclose their activities under the Foreign Agent Registration Act.
Read all about it -
Conflict minerals comment period delayed under corporate and congressional pressure
By Lindsay Young Feb 7, 2011 1:49 p.m.After a powerful committee chairman and several corporate interests wrote to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requesting an extension of the comment period for the agency’s proposed regulations requiring that companies disclose when they use “conflict minerals,” the agency granted the request.
Read all about it -
Egypt's Washington lobby helped country's military and U.S. defense firms
By Bill Allison Jan 28, 2011 1:34 p.m.At the Atlantic, Chris Good identifies some of the U.S. lobbyists who have registered to work for the Egyptian government. Filings required by the Foreign Agent Registration Act, and digitized and made searchable by Sunlight's joint project with ProPublica, the Foreign Lobbyist Influence Tracker, show that among foreign governments, Egypt has been one of the most prolific spenders. FARA filings show that the U.S.-Egyptian bilateral relation benefits American military contractors. The United States ships aid dollars to the Egyptian government, which in turn buys pricey items from American contractors, with deals often arranged with the help of U.S. lobbyists--who sometimes represent both the seller and the buyer. That's what PLM Group, a joint venture of the Podesta Group and the Livingston Group, did, as we reported with ProPublica in our initial release:
Read all about it -
Foreign agents lobbied on issues raised in Wikileaks cables
By Bill Allison Dec 2, 2010 12:45 p.m.As the cache of internal State Department cables released by Julian Assange and Wikileaks.org amply demonstrates, U.S. government officials offer frank opinions about the leaders, policies and political developments in other countries. Another treasure trove of documents, disclosure of which is required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act, shows how foreign governments use Washington lobbyists to challenge those judgments and plead their case in Washington. The Sunlight Foundation Reporting Group, thanks to a grant from ProPublica.org, has digitized and made searchable data from FARA filings. To see all the data, click here.
Read all about it -
International influence: Agents of foreign clients report thousands of lobbying contacts, millions in fees
By Anupama Narayanswamy Dec 2, 2010 12:45 p.m.In 2009, lobbying, public relations and other firms that represent some 328 clients —foreign governments, political parties and government-controlled entities including some for-profit corporations—reported receiving more than $60 million in fees—down by about $25 million from the total in the previous year, an analysis of disclosures required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) shows. The Sunlight Foundation Reporting Group has digitized and made searchable data from FARA disclosures.
Read all about it -
Coups, nuclear deals and Gitmo detainees featured in 2009 FARA filings
By Lindsay Young Dec 2, 2010 12:36 p.m.Denounced by their Latin American neighbors, the Obama administration and world opinion following the removal from power and immediate exile of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, the acting Honduran government turned to Washington lobbyists to launch a media and lobbying campaign on Sept. 19, 2009, to regain legitimacy in the United States.
Read all about it -
Washington Post cites Russian role in Kyrgyzstan unrest
By Bill Allison Apr 12, 2010 4:56 p.m.The Washington Post reports that "Kremlin-friendly television stations and newspapers" and Russian economic sanctions played a key role in the toppling of Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.
Read all about it -
Senate committee calls for tighter regulations on property, bank accounts of foreign politicians
By Aisha Qidwae Feb 10, 2010 5:36 p.m.The subcommittee's 325-page report found that U.S. bankers, lawyers, real estate agents and escrows overlooked foreign political officials moving millions of dollars into the country. For years, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, the 40-year-old eldest son of Equatorial Guinea's president was using U.S. banks to move $110 million. Obiang Mangue, also the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry of the oil and timber rich western African country, used U.S. financial institutions, including Wachovia Bank, Citibank, Union Bank of California and Bank of America to move money through five shell companies, attorney-clients and other accounts.
Read all about it
Search the Blog
Real Time Ticker
Recent Posts
Reporting we're watching
- OpenSecrets: Millionaire Freshmen Make Congress Even Wealthier
- Sunlight Foundation: Why does the IRS regulate political groups? A look at the complex world of campaign finance
- Sunlight Foundation: Update on FedBizOpps data
- OpenSecrets: Site Spotlight #3: Anomaly Tracker
- Sunlight Foundation: OpenGov Voices: Day of Action on Sunday: Know the influence behind your grocery purchase
