Former Rep. Bart Gordon Heads to K Street
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Former Rep. Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.) is joining the K&L Gates law firm, following a parade of his fellow Blue Dog Democrats to K Street.
Gordon, who retired from Congress last year after serving 26 years, will be part of the firm’s public policy team, which also includes former Rep. Jim Walsh (R-N.Y.) and former Sen. Slade Gorton (R-Wash.).
In a release announcing his hiring, the firm said Gordon’s areas of emphasis will include technology-related issues, renewable energy and nuclear energy.
Gordon was chairman of the House Science and Technology Committee, which oversees NASA, and served on the Energy and Commerce Committee as well as the Financial Services, Budget and Rules panels.
“Bart’s committee service in the House was extraordinary by any measure and will add considerably to our policy practice’s capabilities in the technology-dense 21st century and especially in the energy sector,” Peter Kalis, K&L Gates chairman and global managing partner, said in a statement.
K&L Gates clients last year included the Commercial Spaceflight Coalition, Dell, the NanoBusiness Alliance and NextEnergy.
In Congress, Gordon was a member of the Blue Dog Coalition of fiscally moderate Democrats who represented swing districts, many in the South. In last year’s midterm elections, many of these lawmakers either retired or were defeated in the Republican wave.
But they have rebounded quickly with K Street firms eager to snatch up these former lawmakers because of their pro-business leanings and reputation for working with both parties.
Other Blue Dog Democrats recently joining lobbying firms include former Rep. John Tanner (D-Tenn.), who is now with the Prime Policy Group, and Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-S.D.), who was hired by Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Bode Matz.
