On Campaign Trail, Lobbies Spend Big but Gain Little

As Presidential Candidates Focus on Economy and Terrorism, Other Issues Fade to the Background

Ed in '08 is the richest lobbying effort targeting the presidential campaigns. Foundations run by Microsoft's Bill Gates and SunAmerica's Eli Broad have pledged up to $60 million for the organization, which is dedicated to getting the candidates to highlight education.

But so far its money has not produced much. Its leaders remain optimistic that their message will make a big difference but acknowledge that their generously bankrolled effort has sometimes failed to move the debate. "A presidential issue campaign has some real challenges for us," said former Colorado governor Roy Romer (D), chairman of Ed in '08.

Many lobbies try to influence presidential contenders, often by flooding campaign advisers with information and staging displays at campaign events. But few get much in return for their labors. The main reason: The candidates concentrate on mega-issues that are the hottest topics of the moment; this year, they have tended to be the economy and the war on terrorism. Other subjects fade into the background.

For instance, the One Campaign has pushed the candidates to emphasize the need to fight global poverty, a topic not often spotlighted on the campaign trail. Travel industry lobbies have pressured presidential contenders to support policies that would increase travel to the United States. It, too, has not seen much response.

One of the largest efforts is Divided We Fail, a coalition that is urging candidates to seek solutions to the problems of health care and long-term financial security. But that group, too, has had limited impact largely because it does not recommend specific solutions. Its members come from vastly different points of view: AARP (which represents senior citizens), the Business Roundtable (big business), the National Federation of Independent Business (small business) and the Service Employees International Union.

Ed in '08 was born after Gates and his wife, Melinda, appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in 2006 to make a pitch for education reform. Gates had already been talking privately with Broad about tackling the issue together. The television appearance gave their discussions a push.

They soon set up a lobby to target presidential candidates, pressing them to agree to policies that would increase teacher effectiveness, improve the performance of students and give them more classroom time. By the end of last year, the effort had spent at least $15 million.

Yet none of the five leading presidential campaigns credits Ed in '08 with altering their candidates' views about education or with persuading them to talk about the topic more often.

Ed in '08 has dispatched dozens of staffers and consultants to the early primary and caucus states -- Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada -- to conduct petition drives and attend candidate events. Supporters are often seen at rallies waving signs and passing out literature that says, "a strong America depends on strong American schools" and "it's time for leadership." Ed in '08 staffers have also provided campaign aides with detailed briefing papers and a lengthy "policy toolkit."

Romer promises his efforts will yield better results later in the campaign, especially when only two candidates are in the lobby's sights: the nominees for each party.

As "the economy becomes more central, education is going to be a part of that debate," he said. "You can't talk about economic progress without talking about education."

Already, Ed in '08 had reported that 12 of the 15 presidential candidates in the race at the time shared one or more of its basic principles. For instance, some candidates have called for teachers to be paid based on their performance, as had Ed in '08, though their proposals vary widely.

Prospects for Ed in '08 might be limited, however, because of a conflict it has on the performance pay issue with the nation's largest teachers organization, the National Education Association. The NEA, with more than 3 million members, has long been one of the country's largest and most powerful lobbying groups.

"We agree with many of the things that Ed in '08 is trying to do," said Reg Weaver, president of the NEA. "The one area we would not be supportive of would be merit pay."

The NEA does not think teachers' salaries should be set based on the performance of their students because it says many variables besides the teachers' skills and actions determine students' output.

Romer's Republican partner in running Ed in '08, Executive Director Marc Lampkin, is outspoken on the issue and has riled the NEA. Lampkin, a registered lobbyist at Quinn Gillespie & Associates for such companies as Verizon and AT&T, has not been afraid to confront the NEA. "Reform is so important we can't let the agents of the status quo stand in the way of change," he said.

The NEA, however, is not worried, said its executive director, John I. Wilson.

"They have a nice slogan. They have nice bumper stickers and pins. They try to get their logo in pictures," Wilson said. "But it just hasn't risen to the level of a $60 million campaign."