Russia's Gazprom Hires former American Senators to Lobby Against Sanctions - Polidicks

Talking the common tongue now: [URL]http://www.publicintegrity.org/2014/09/02/15450/russian-bank-hires-two-former-us-senators[/URL] [QUOTE]Gazprombank GPB (OJSC), a Russian bank targeted with sanctions by President Obama over the Ukraine crisis, has hired two former U.S. senators to lobby against those sanctions, according to a new disclosure filed with the Senate. Gazprombank is controlled by Russia’s state-owned energy company Gazprom, the country’s largest gas producer; it supplies about a third of Europe’s natural gas. In a [URL="http://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=getFilingDetails&filingID=6837f722-cb0c-4e36-87d9-5f8783e8743d&filingTypeID=1"]filing[/URL] submitted Friday and effective that day, former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., and former Senator John Breaux, D-La., are listed as the main lobbyists under the Gazprombank account for the firm Squire Patton Boggs, lobbying on “banking laws and regulations including applicable sanctions.” Gazprombank GPB (OJSC) is a subsidiary of Gazprombank, Russia’s third largest bank. On July 16th, the U.S. Treasury Department added it to a [URL="http://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/pages/jl2572.aspx"]list[/URL] of Russian firms barred from debt financing with U.S. institutions. Lott and Breaux left public service almost a decade ago and are among more than 300 members of Congress who’ve become lobbyists, and begun petitioning former colleagues on behalf of clients, [URL="http://www.opensecrets.org/revolving/top.php?display=Z"]according to the Center for Responsive Politics[/URL]. In 2008, they started a lobbying firm with their sons, Breaux Lott Leadership Group, which was acquired by D.C.-lobbying powerhouse Patton Boggs in 2010. Patton Boggs merged with Squire Sanders to form Squire Patton Boggs in June.[/QUOTE]

arrest them for treason

this is alarming on two levels, first that a forign state under sanctions is allowed to actually lobby against said sanctions in congress second is that there are firms that exist soley to lobby for various groups cutting them checks and that they are bought and merged like any other firm when they are a poison to the legal and regulatory systems of this country

And here I thought bankers were the most morally corrupt money-grabbing assholes

[QUOTE=demoguy08;45873528]And here I thought bankers were the most morally corrupt money-grabbing assholes[/QUOTE] It's a tough race with a lot of competition.

Anything to bring the Obama Admin. & this country down. The low of the lowest. But again, this is Louisiana & Mississippi for you.

not corruption because its not bribery. Its ~lobbying~

Anyone can lobby. It's just you going up to a congressman and talking to them about your issues. What's wrong with it is that organizations backed with unlimited support and funding hire people whose sole job is to hound legislators about their group's concerns and demands.

[QUOTE=mdeceiver79;45874032]not corruption because its not bribery. Its ~lobbying~[/QUOTE] If you actually understood how pressure groups were organized in the US you wouldn't say such an ignorant thing. It's okay, maybe the europeans and us have a different way in which we handle demands from non-parties pressure groups using the neo corporativism, but to call THEIR way of handling those demands (pluralism) "corruption and bribery" is just being dumb.

[QUOTE=mdeceiver79;45874032]not corruption because its not bribery. Its ~lobbying~[/QUOTE] I move to officially rename lobbying to fancy bribery and see if people still think it should be legal.

[QUOTE=l337k1ll4;45875651]I move to officially rename lobbying to fancy bribery and see if people still think it should be legal.[/QUOTE] Thankfully lobbying that is actually bribery is already illegal, both to try to persuade a politician via financial means, and for a government employee to accept a gift in excess of regulated quantities. I get the sense that a lot of people who liken lobbying to legalized bribery don't really understand what it is.

Writing to your congressman to try and get him to vote a certain way is lobbying.

This really shouldnt be news other than it being from Russia. Politicians often turn to lobbyists after their career

[QUOTE=Explosions;45876127]Writing to your congressman to try and get him to vote a certain way is lobbying.[/QUOTE] Difference is if they get a whole load of money they are more likely to pay attention and a Company, most of the time, has more money to spare than you do. Meaning a company has more power to lobby than your average person. Which I think is pretty bad.

[I]Isn't it fucked up that foreign nations can use lobbyist to influence America government?[/I]

[QUOTE=cqbcat;45878596][I]Isn't it fucked up that foreign nations can use lobbyist to influence America government?[/I][/QUOTE] No, everyone can participate in American democracy.

[QUOTE=Dr.C;45882253]No, everyone can participate in American democracy.[/QUOTE] Except poor Americans. They don't have enough money to say anything.

Gazprom're all ex-Stasi anyway.