New York Times: Ted Stevens' Departure's Impact on Lobbyists

Monay's New York Times has an article on the shakeup among lobbyists as Ted Stevens leaves the Senate, particularly a coterie of former Stevens staffers who left to become rich by lobbying Stevens. (Some did claim to have lots of other non-Stevens business, thank.) I suspect as time goes by, we'll be seeing more and more of what was going on behind the facade of the Uncle Ted image. Here are a few clips from the article. Click on the link above for the whole article.

With Stevens’s Fall, Pipeline for Lobbyists Shuts Off

By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK

Published: December 21, 2008

WASHINGTON — Until recently, there were few better ways to start a lobbying career than by leaving the office of Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska. . .

His power made his good will a valuable commodity on K Street, where many lobbying firms are located. During the past five years, just nine lobbyists and firms known primarily for their ties to Mr. Stevens reported over $60 million in lobbyist fees, not including other income for less direct “consulting.” The most recent person to leave his staff to become a lobbyist reported fees of more than $800,000 in just the last 18 months. . .

Mr. Stevens’s preference for one lobbyist over another was big news in industry trade publications, and he did not hesitate to exert his influence. . .

The article acknowledges that other Senators have done the same thing...

But Mr. Stevens — Alaska’s “Uncle Ted” — is in a class by himself. For most of the last decade he was a dominant voice on both the Senate appropriations and commerce committees, which govern federal spending and business regulation.