How Outgunned Broadcom Won a Major Cellphone Battle

For its part, Qualcomm does not regret spending so much on what, so far, has turned out to be a losing venture. "Clearly we needed to take every possible step," said Jonas Neihardt, Qualcomm's vice president for federal government affairs.

Sometimes, though, tiny steps are enough.

What Are You Really Saying?

Presidential debates are great places to find both politicians and political activists. That's why interest groups, such as the one that advocates for "FairTax" (a kind of sales tax), tend to show up at them.

At the Republican debate in New Hampshire last week, an offbeat newcomer was also there -- well, in the sky overhead. Before the debate, a plane pulled a banner that read, "America's #1 Killer: What are you going to do about it?"

This was not a sly suggestion that the candidates were all sick. Rather, the coalition behind the ad, the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, was trying to get the candidates to talk about the importance of combating cancer, diabetes and heart disease as a way to reduce health-care costs.

One of the groups that helped launch the partnership was (surprise!) the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, better known as the drug lobby.

Retirements of the Week

Two fixtures of D.C.'s downtown scene have decided to move on.

Paul Hallisay is retiring as the director of government affairs at the Air Line Pilots Association after 30 years with the group. His replacement is Brendan Kenny, who has lobbied for the union for 22 years.

Also, Linda F. Golodner is retiring as president of the National Consumers League after 24 years with the organization, the nation's oldest consumer lobby.

Her successor is Sally Greenberg, formerly a senior attorney at Consumers Union. Greenberg said she wants to increase the organization's consumer and social activism, but in a cooperative way. "There are people who worry about me being an ogre," she said. "I don't want to come in and confirm their worst fears."

Hire of the Week

Want to know how fast lobbying is growing these days? Look no further than Mark Van de Water, the latest addition to the quickly expanding lobbying shop at the law firm Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz.

The longtime Senate appropriations aide is the sixth lobbyist to be hired this year by the firm, which started 2007 with only five lobbyists. Besides Van de Water, the hiring spree has included former congresswoman Nancy Johnson (R-Conn.), a 12-term veteran of the House, and former Senate staffer J. Keith Kennedy, who, remarkably, doubles as managing director of the entire Washington office. (Lawyers usually look down their noses at the lobbyists in-house.)

Lobbying "is a growth business," said Linda H. Daschle, chairwoman of the firm's lobbying practice and the wife of former senator Thomas A. Daschle (D-S.D.). Demand is especially strong, she said, for experts in health care, homeland security and appropriations.

Please send e-mail tokstreet@washpost.com.