After several recent departures, Ogilvy Government Relations is shoring up its stable of lobbyists, adding two Republicans. Justin Daly and John O’Neill are joining the firm as senior vice presidents. Daly, who most recently was legal and policy adviser to Securities and Exchange Commissioner Kathleen Casey, once served as chief securities counsel to the House Financial Services and Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs panels.
O’Neill, who is joining from Venable, was tax counsel to the Senate Finance Committee and will lead the firm’s newly established tax practice. O’Neill was policy director and counsel to then-Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott (R-Miss.) and was an aide to then-Senate Finance Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa).
While the new additions bring the GOP-to-Democratic lobbyists ratio to an even 7-7, Ogilvy CEO Drew Maloney said he expects more personnel announcements soon.
“We have a great balance of senior-level Democrats and Republicans at Ogilvy,” Maloney said. “We are committed to adding more talent in the very near future to further expand our client capabilities.”
Capitol Investment. Nonprofit organizations that are affiliated with Congressional caucuses raked in big bucks from downtown last year, according to new disclosures on file with the Secretary of the Senate. The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation received $20,000 last summer from credit card provider Capital One Financial Corp., $10,000 in October from Deutsche Post World Net USA, and $95,000 in July from Union Pacific. The Laborers’ International Union of North America gave the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute $7,500 in September.
The CBC Foundation also received a combined $40,000 worth of donations from the American Petroleum Institute. The API also gave $25,000 to the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, the grant-making arm of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus.
Heating Up the Hill. After sending President Barack Obama a letter in support of climate change bills and running an ad before his State of the Union address, more than 200 business executives from companies including Nike, Seventh Generation, Starbucks and Sun Microsystems are descending on Capitol Hill on Tuesday and Wednesday to press for comprehensive energy and climate legislation. Part of the We Can Lead effort, they have more than 90 Hill meetings scheduled with Members of Congress, including Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) and Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.).
The latest push comes after representatives from 150 companies came to Washington in October 2009 to meet with Obama administration officials and more than 50 Members of Congress to promote climate change legislation.
They aren’t the only ones lobbying for movement on climate change bills. The Union of Concerned Scientists has gotten its wish. The group sent a missive earlier this month to the American Farm Bureau Federation, asking for a sit-down to talk climate science. The scientists and the farm bureau have long been on opposite sides of the debate. While a date for the meeting is still in the works, Liz Martin Perera, the scientists’ climate program Washington representative, said they are looking forward to talking with the farmers in the near future.
Rep. Bill Cassidy has his blood drawn by Alesha Barbour during a free hepatitis screening in the Rayburn House Office Building hosted by the Congressional Viral Hepatitis Caucus to recognize "National Viral Hepatitis Testing Day."
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