Timmons & Company

Timmons & Company is an American lobbying firm based in Washington, D.C.. After William Timmons left the Ford White House in 1975, he founded this company along with Tom Korologos, who had reported to Timmons as Nixon's White House legislative liaison.[1] Nicknamed the "Rain Maker" for his aptitude to spur change on Capitol Hill, Timmons has used his clout in a scrupulous fashion. It was reported in 1982 that throughout his years of work in Washington, Timmons had given an honorable name to lobbying.[2]

Business aspects

The company has been described as ranking among the twenty most lucrative lobbying firms, with reported earnings of around $65 million since the start of public disclosures in 1998.[3] Also described as small but influential and bipartisan, it has founders and clients from both sides of the political spectrum including company president Larry Harlow; a veteran of the Reagan and first Bush administrations and company vice president Dan Shapiro, a senior policy advisor for the Obama campaign.[3][4]

According to a 2007 article in The Politico, Timmons and Company used a unique business model to build their small, but influential firm:[3]

Timmons & Co. caps its client roster and bills them all the same fee – with quarterly payments due in advance. It shuns big-name recruits, such as former senators and governors. It has never had a foreign client, and it has always been bipartisan. And, unlike many big firms, Timmons does not assign lobbyists to specific client accounts. Rather, they all work for all of their clients.[3]

Clients

Northrop Corporation retained Timmons and Company to work on the sale of the F-18 fighter jet to Congress.[1]

In 1979, Chrysler Corporation hired lobbyist Tommy Boggs to influence Democrats, and Timmons, "a man skilled in gaining Republican sympathy for corporate causes," in their work to secure government loan guarantees.[5][6]

Timmons and seven employees of Timmons and Company were listed as lobbyists for Bristol-Myers Squibb with "revolving door" connections to government in 2001 by Public Citizen;[7] they listed the same eight in 2002 and 2003.[8]

With eight lobbyists and about 20 clients in 2007 the firm includes clients such as the American Petroleum Institute, Daimler AG and Union Pacific Corporation, which have been clients of the firm for close to three decades.[3]

In 2008, Timmons and Company was reported to have represented organizations such as the American Petroleum Institute, the American Medical Association, Chrysler, Visa USA, Anheuser-Busch,[4] and Freddie Mac.[9]

Political mention

In 2008, the Obama campaign referred to Timmons as "one of Washington’s most famous and powerful lobbyists" when Timmons was tapped for planning help by the McCain campaign.[10] Time Magazine reported that Timmons's lobbying registrations "include work on a number of issues that have become flashpoints in the presidential campaign. He has registered to work on bills that deal with the regulations of troubled mortgage lenders Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, a bill to provide farm subsidies and bills that regulate domestic oil-drilling."[4]

The Obama campaign hired Daniel Shapiro of this company as "senior adviser and Jewish outreach coordinator" in August 2008 after he "deregistered" as a lobbyist on 11 August. Prior to his deregistration, he served Obama as an "unpaid advisor." [11]

References

  1. 1 2 Gordon Adams (1982). The Politics of Defense Contracting. Transaction Publishers. p. 146. ISBN 978-0-87871-012-6.
  2. ↑ Michael Kilian and Arnold Sawislak (1982). Who Runs Washington. p. 156.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Cummings, Jeanne (2007-03-08). "Firm Carves Unusual Path". The Politico. Capitol News Company, LLC. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
  4. 1 2 3 Scherer, Michael (2008-09-12). "McCain Taps Lobbyist for Transition - TIME". Time. Retrieved 2008-10-14.
  5. ↑ Robert B. Reich and John D. Donahue (1985). New Deals: The Chrysler Revival and the American System. Times Books. pp. 113, 149. ISBN 978-0-8129-1180-0.
  6. ↑ http://opencrs.com/document/R40005
  7. ↑ "Bristol-Myers Squibb Lobbyists in 2001, With Revolving Door Connections". Public Citizen. Retrieved 12 Jan 2008.
  8. ↑ "The Other Drug War 2003: Drug Companies Deploy an Army of 675 Lobbyist to Protect Profits". Public Citizen. June 23, 2003. Retrieved 15 Jan 2008.
  9. ↑ Jonathan D. Salant and Timothy J. Burger (September 23, 2008). "McCain Transition Head Lobbied for Freddie Mac Before Takeover". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved Jan 8, 2009.
  10. ↑ "Obama Press Call: Campaign Memo and Conference Call on a McCain Lobbyist-Run White House". Obama campaign memos. 2008Central.net. September 14, 2008.
  11. ↑ http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/08/20/1278270.aspx?p=1
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