Before he entered the 2020 race, his American Possibilities political action committee had no such prohibition. But they are also players in the influence game.īiden's pledge to reject money from lobbyists is a change for him. Cohen, a Comcast executive who oversees the telecom giant's lobbying operation.īiden's campaign says the fundraiser hosts are not registered lobbyists and often have diverse work portfolios that include much more than government relations. His campaign kickoff fundraiser was at the Philadelphia home of David L. Several days before, Biden attended a fundraiser at the Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, home of Peter Shields, the leader of Washington-based Wiley Rein, a firm with recent lobbying clients that include AT&T, global mining company Glencore, Nucor steel, Verizon and former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. The global public affairs firm represents Chevron, General Electric, Walmart and Uber, but notes on its website that the list only includes "the ones we can mention." Cunningham, president and co-founder of McLarty Associates and a former adviser to Bill Clinton. In August, Biden was feted at the home of Nelson W. Several recent fundraisers held for Biden highlight his ties to prominent figures in the influence business, many of whom have been active in Washington for decades. Every other White House hopeful received far less. Kamala Harris and roughly $100,000 more than South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, both of whom made similar pledges but have been in the race longer than him. Still, he collected about $30,000 more from employees of top lobbying firms than California Sen. And many of Biden's Democratic rivals have made similar pledges that also include subtle caveats and omissions. President Donald Trump vowed to "drain the swamp" but has since reaped contributions from powerful industries with business before his administration. But it "can certainly change what issues seem the most salient and whose voice gets heard."īiden is not alone in accepting contributions from the influence industry. Such an embrace "doesn't mean your positions are up for sale," said John Wonderlich, executive director of the Sunlight Foundation, a nonpartisan group that advocates for government transparency. Both have sworn off big-dollar fundraisers, while Biden has embraced them. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who have built their campaigns around a vow to reject big money in politics. Spokesman Matt Hill said in a statement that Biden will "fight the influence of corporations and special interests in our political system, which is why his campaign refuses donations from corporations, their PACs, and federal lobbyists."īiden's approach contrasts sharply with Sens. He was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison in 2000 after being found guilty of participating in an elaborate fake legislation scheme that bilked clients out of more than $400,000 in lobbying fees, according to court records.Įxcluded from Biden's pledge are lobbyists who work at the state level and those who lobby, or supervise lobbyists, but do not meet the legal threshold requiring them to register. He was convicted months later of tax evasion and using campaign cash to settle a gambling debt. Smith left Congress in 1993 after it was revealed he bounced 161 bad checks. Smith, a federally registered lobbyist representing the city of Pembroke Pines, gave Biden $1,000 after attending a fundraiser in May. In at least two instances, donations came from lobbyists with criminal records who have served time in federal prison.įormer Florida Rep. An additional $5,750 was donated by two lobbyists who had been registered shortly before making contributions to Biden's campaign, records show. His campaign accepted roughly $6,000 in contributions from at least six federally registered lobbyists, including representatives of Google, aerospace and defense giant Lockheed Martin, and pharmaceutical companies, records show. But thousands of dollars did come from federally registered lobbyists, and Biden's campaign said it is returning such donations. Biden's pledge applies only to federally registered lobbyists, and most of the money tracked by the AP was from others in the influence industry.
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