Candidates Vie to Be The Anti-Lobbyist
Obama Cites Conflicts in McCain Camp

By Matthew Mosk and Michael D. Shear
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, May 20, 2008; A01

BILLINGS, Mont., May 19 -- Sen. Barack Obama accused Sen. John McCain on Monday of running a presidential campaign bought and paid for by lobbyists and criticized the presumptive Republican nominee for waiting more than a year to address the conflicts of several key advisers.

During a speech at a high school here, Obama said voters should be concerned that "after nearly three decades in Washington, John McCain can't see or won't acknowledge what's obvious to all of us here today -- that lobbyists aren't just part of the system in Washington, they're part of the problem."

McCain's campaign shot back quickly, challenging Obama to "shed light on the long list of federal lobbyists advising him on policy issues" and accusing him of diverting attention from more serious matters.

"Every moment that Senator Obama spends attacking individual volunteers on our campaign is time he's not using to address issues of real importance in the lives of Americans," said McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds.

Over the past week, McCain has publicly purged his ranks of several advisers who have lobbied for countries and corporations in an attempt to retain his reputation as a reformer on questions of ethics and influence in Washington. But several former lobbyists, including campaign manager Rick Davis and political strategist Charles R. Black Jr., remain as top advisers.

Obama's attacks on Monday -- and the McCain campaign's fast retort -- underscore how both candidates plan to take aim at K Street lobbyists and the influence they peddle at the White House and in Congress. The two men are essentially competing to be known as the anti-lobbyist candidate.

"Lobbyists have become a popular pi¿ata of late," said Carlos Bonilla, a Washington lobbyist who has been advising McCain on economic policy. "Everyone likes to swing at pi¿atas."

Bonilla said he disclosed his clients to the campaign and promised not to lobby McCain or his staff, as required under a new conflict-of-interest policy that covers all such campaign volunteers. The policy, put into force last week, requires all paid staff members to either quit the campaign or cease all lobbying connections.

On Sunday, the new rules ensnared McCain's top finance chief, former congressman Tom Loeffler (Tex.), who became the fifth adviser to publicly leave the campaign because of ties to lobbying or outside political groups. Former senator Phil Gramm (Tex.), another top McCain adviser, officially delisted himself as a registered lobbyist on April 18 so that he could stay with the campaign, records show.

The policy leaves in place Davis and Black, both of whom have had lucrative careers as lobbyists and campaign operatives. Black said he has retired as a partner at BKSH & Associates, a Washington lobbying firm. A spokeswoman said Davis has taken a complete leave of absence from Davis Manafort, his lobbying firm. Both are "in compliance" with McCain's new policy, the campaign said.

McCain's policy leaves the door open to lobbyists who serve as volunteers as long as they do not lobby him or his staff. Several who were contacted Monday said they are "in compliance" with the policy, including Bonilla and fundraiser Wayne Berman, a lobbyist with Ogilvy Government Relations.

Top aides said the idea is to ensure that McCain is not distracted by controversies surrounding his advisers and fundraisers.

"Senator McCain wanted to set a higher standard than any presidential candidate ever had about conflict of interest and lobbying," Black said. "The next question is: Will Obama do the same and enforce it?"

Some of McCain's advisers said Monday they are mystified by the new policy, which they said gives Obama an opening to attack their candidate.

"The most interesting thing in every campaign is the self-inflicted wound. This is a great case," said one GOP fundraiser, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss McCain's campaign decisions candidly. "When asked to name the 10,000 things people think are the most important issue, this doesn't make the list."

Another adviser said: "There's scratching of heads. What is going on? Why are we doing this?"

Democrats seized the opportunity to hammer McCain by calling for more departures. Several groups focused on Black, who recently quit his lobbying practice to work on the campaign full-time. In an e-mail to members, the liberal group MoveOn.org called Black's role as a McCain adviser a "moral issue" because of Black's work as a lobbyist representing controversial foreign leaders. Black and his firm have represented the governments of Zaire (now Congo), Somalia, Angola and Nigeria.

Black, who has served on several presidential campaigns, said he has no intention of leaving. "Of course not," he said in an interview.

He told reporters on McCain's campaign plane that Obama's comments about him were "nonsense." And several campaign aides pointed out that the Democrat's pledge not to take money from lobbyists was not as ironclad as it may seem. Obama does accept money from the spouses of lobbyists and from many of the interests that lobbyists represent.

Obama's campaign does not allow paid staff members to be lobbyists, according to a spokesman. But it does allow volunteers to lobby the federal government while donating their time to Obama.

The Democrat's remarks Monday were his sharpest to date on a subject that has put McCain on the defensive. Obama first waded into the discussion Sunday, when he questioned McCain's judgment on the topic. That brought a pointed response from McCain aides, who said in an e-mail to reporters: "If Barack Obama is going to make associations the issue, we look forward to the debate about Senator Obama's associations and what they say about his judgment and readiness to be commander in chief."

They noted that "just a few years ago when Barack Obama was beginning his career in politics he was launching it at the home of William Ayers, an unrepentant domestic terrorist who his chief strategist said Senator Obama was certainly friendly with."

Obama, in turn, sharpened his comments, telling the crowd here that one of McCain's advisers had been lobbying for big energy companies, and two others had done work "for the military regime that's stopping aid from getting into Burma."

"I'm glad Senator McCain is taking these steps," Obama told the crowd. "But it's noteworthy that two of the most influential corporate lobbyists in Washington have taken time off to run his campaign. And they are still at the helm today."

Shear reported from Washington. Staff writer Paul Kane in Washington contributed to this report.