Lobby Lobby Lobby Get Your Access Here

In news to precisely nobody, the Obama administration gets lots of visits from lobbyists.  The lobbyists want things from the White House.  In other breaking stories, ursine animals show an overwhelming behavioral tendency towards defecating in arboreal environments.

The visitor logs for Jan. 17 — one of the most recent days available — show that the lobbying industry Obama has vowed to constrain is a regular presence at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. The records also suggest that lobbyists with personal connections to the White House enjoy the easiest access.

More than any president before him, Obama pledged to change the political culture that has fueled the influence of lobbyists. He barred recent lobbyists from joining his administration and banned them from advisory boards throughout the executive branch. The president went so far as to forbid what had been staples of political interaction — federal employees could no longer accept free admission to receptions and conferences sponsored by lobbying groups.

“A lot of folks,” Obama said last month, “see the amounts of money that are being spent and the special interests that dominate and the lobbyists that always have access, and they say to themselves, maybe I don’t count.”

The White House visitor records make it clear that Obama’s senior officials are granting that access to some of K Street’s most influential representatives. In many cases, those lobbyists have long-standing connections to the president or his aides. Republican lobbyists coming to visit are rare, while Democratic lobbyists are common, whether they are representing corporate clients or liberal causes. 

Don't hate the player, hate the game, I guess.  This particular president has definitely fufilled some promises on transparency with lobbyist activity, but it only goes to show you just how depressingly common lobbyists buying access to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is, and will continue to be long past the time Barack Obama is out of the office.