Lobbyists' Power Wanes as Election Day Nears

"We in the tech community are very frustrated with the various promises that have been made and not lived up to," said Ralph Hellmann, senior vice president of the Information Technology Industry Council and a former top Republican aide in the House.

The dispute was aired during a private meeting at the White House earlier this month that was supposed to be a routine briefing of prominent lobbyists about the GOP's legislative agenda for autumn. According to participants, several lobbyists for various interests disagreed openly about the wisdom of keeping the large bill intact, particularly if the tactic delayed approval of the widely popular extenders.

Although many lobbies have all but given up on winning much this week, several say their prospects will improve after Election Day. "Things will be difficult over the next few days," said Daniel J. Mattoon, the senior Republican partner in the lobbying firm Podesta Mattoon. But lawmakers "will come back with a vengeance in November," he added. "Congress can do six months of work in six weeks."

The election results could determine how active Congress will be. "A lot of us have been warning people that there is going to be a lame-duck session -- maybe a long lame duck -- and that they need to be patient," said Charles R. Black Jr., chairman of the lobbying firm BKSH & Associates. He predicted that at least some leftover legislation will be finished if Republicans keep control of Congress. But, he added, "if either house slips to Democratic control, then very little will get done."

More gridlock, though, is also a strong possibility no matter how the elections turn out. If Democrats win a majority in the House, the Senate or both, they probably will find a way to put off most legislation until next year, when their control kicks in, lobbyists and congressional aides said. And if the partisan balance remains unchanged, Democrats are likely to continue to find ways to slow GOP measures, especially in the Senate, as they have all year.

"What we traditionally call the 'silly season' because an election is upcoming seems to be have been extended for most of the year, so it's been hard to get things through Congress," Anderson said.

As a result, many interest groups have resigned themselves to a mediocre year. "Because things are so partisan and nasty, people have factored in since the summer that this would be a disappointing year if your goal was to get legislation passed," said Mark Isakowitz of the Republican lobbying firm Fierce, Isakowitz & Blalock.

"We have come to understand that this is a less bountiful session," Mattoon agreed. "There's much more that needs to be done, but those things will have to wait."