Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

spanone

(135,900 posts)
Thu Aug 9, 2018, 09:32 AM Aug 2018

What We Found in Trump's Drained Swamp: Hundreds of Ex-Lobbyists and D.C. Insiders

For the first time, political appointee and federal financial disclosure information is publicly searchable.

When the Trump administration took office early last year, hundreds of staffers from lobbying firms, conservative think tanks and Trump campaign groups began pouring into the very agencies they once lobbied or whose work they once opposed.

Today we’re making available, for the first time, an authoritative searchable database of 2,475 political appointees, including Trump’s Cabinet, staffers in the White House and senior officials within the government, along with their federal lobbying and financial records. Trump Town is the result of a year spent filing hundreds of Freedom of Information Act requests; collecting and organizing staffing lists; and compiling, sifting through and publishing thousands of financial disclosure reports.

Here’s what we found: At least 187 Trump political appointees have been federal lobbyists, and despite President Trump’s campaign pledge to “drain the swamp,” many are now overseeing the industries they once lobbied on behalf of. We’ve also discovered ethics waivers that allow Trump staffers to work on subjects in which they have financial conflicts of interest. In addition, at least 254 appointees affiliated with Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and at least 125 staffers from prominent conservative think tanks are now working in the federal government, many of whom are on teams to repeal Obama-era regulations.

Drilling down even further, at least 35 Trump political appointees worked for or consulted with groups affiliated with the the billionaire libertarian brothers Charles and David Koch, who also have a network of advocacy groups, nonprofits, private companies and political action committees. At least 25 Trump appointees came from the influential Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank founded in 1973, and at least two came from Heritage Action, its related political nonprofit. Heritage says the Trump administration, in just its first year, has enacted nearly two-thirds of its 334 policy recommendations.


https://www.propublica.org/article/what-we-found-in-trump-administration-drained-swamp-hundreds-of-ex-lobbyists-and-washington-dc-insiders
2 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
What We Found in Trump's Drained Swamp: Hundreds of Ex-Lobbyists and D.C. Insiders (Original Post) spanone Aug 2018 OP
The whole idea True Dough Aug 2018 #1
This Goes Along With AM Joe's Calling The Trump & The Repugs A.... global1 Aug 2018 #2

True Dough

(17,338 posts)
1. The whole idea
Thu Aug 9, 2018, 09:37 AM
Aug 2018

of draining the swamp with that swamp creature at the head of government was such a farce from the outset.

global1

(25,285 posts)
2. This Goes Along With AM Joe's Calling The Trump & The Repugs A....
Thu Aug 9, 2018, 09:44 AM
Aug 2018

'culture of corruption'.

Campaign ads for the Dems for the Midterms practically write themselves.

Actually - a very effective campaign ad can be developed out of the information provided in the original post.

Latest Discussions»General Discussion»What We Found in Trump's ...