The Washington Times has an article exposing how a law firm is simultaneously doing legal work on a program for the government while also lobbying for more handouts from that program. Here’s an excerpt from the expose:
One of the law firms hired to provide legal work for the Treasury Department on a multibillion-dollar federal loan program also lobbied Congress for a private client pushing to expand the same government initiative, records show. The Treasury Department retained Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal LLP more than a year ago to provide legal advice on the Federal Reserve’s Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF), a program aimed at boosting lending to small businesses and consumers. While advising the government on TALF last year, the law firm also lobbied Congress for the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA), an industry group seeking to expand TALF to include recreational vehicle loans. …Treasury said its officials did not know about the firm’s lobbying work. “Sonnenschein did not notify Treasury about its work on behalf of the RVIA,” spokesman Andrew Williams said when first contacted last year about the arrangement. In addition, Mr. Williams said, Treasury officials met with the firm “to discuss the issue and our expectations regarding notification of actual or potential conflicts of interest.” …According to a federal contracting database, the government has awarded more than $3 million to the firm in connection with its legal work on both TALF and auto-loan programs.
The broader lesson from this article is that big government creates big opportunities for corruption. This video explains why Washington is a rat’s nest of special interest deal making.
International Liberty 
[…] Most protectionism in America is the result of organized interest groups andpowerful unions trying to prop up inefficient practices. And they only achieve their goals by getting in bed with the Washington crowd in a process that is good for the corrupt nexus of interest groups-lobbyists-politicians-bureaucrats. […]
[…] Most protectionism in America is the result of organized interest groups andpowerful unions trying to prop up inefficient practices. And they only achieve their goals by getting in bed with the Washington crowd in a process that is good for the corrupt nexus of interest groups-lobbyists-politicians-bureaucrats. […]
[…] When you get big government, you get big corruption. […]
[…] Far from it. The income tax is unfair. It’s punitive. It’s discriminatory. It’s corrupt. And, when it was first adopted, it did generate a big new pile of revenue for the […]
[…] And if you think the former Congressman is genuinely apologetic….well, please get in touch with me. I’m selling a bridge in Brooklyn and need a gullible buyer – i.e., the kind of person who doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with this unseemly example of sleaze. […]
[…] buyer – i.e., the kind of person who doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with this unseemly example of sleaze. Rate this: Share this:PrintEmailFacebookTwitterMoredeliciousDiggFarkLinkedInRedditStumbleUponLike […]
[…] Most protectionism in America is the result of organized interest groups and powerful unions trying to prop up inefficient practices. And they only achieve their goals by getting in bed with the Washington crowd in a process that is good for the corrupt nexus of interest groups-lobbyists-politicians-bureaucrats. […]
[…] Most protectionism in America is the result of organized interest groups and powerful unions trying to prop up inefficient practices. And they only achieve their goals by getting in bed with the Washington crowd in a process that is good for the corrupt nexus of interest groups-lobbyists-politicians-bureaucrats. […]
[…] Most protectionism in America is the result of organized interest groups and powerful unions trying to prop up inefficient practices. And they only achieve their goals by getting in bed with the Washington crowd in a process that is good for the corrupt nexus of interest groups-lobbyists-politicians-bureaucrats. […]
[…] why the only solution to this sleaze is smaller government. LD_AddCustomAttr("AdOpt", "1"); LD_AddCustomAttr("Origin", "other"); […]
[…] a column published yesterday, in which the author reports on how Gov. Palin perfectly captures the reprehensible corruption that defines business-as-usual in Washington. Along with her familiar and predictable swipes at President Barack Obama and the “far left,” […]
[…] readers know I’m a big foe of political corruption and have repeatedly made the point that big government facilitates sleazy behavior, but I try to be fair. As such, I warn in the interview that something doesn’t smell right, […]
[…] Most of us understandably pay attention to the big policy issues, such as the ones covered by the three previous resolutions. But if we want better policy, it’s also important to change the culture on Capitol Hill. If Republicans abide by these three resolutions, they would be comparatively immune to the routine corruption that is so common in Washington. […]
[…] Most of us understandably pay attention to the big policy issues, such as the ones covered by the three previous resolutions. But if we want better policy, it’s also important to change the culture on Capitol Hill. If Republicans abide by these three resolutions, they would be comparatively immune to the routine corruption that is so common in Washington. […]
[…] Most of us understandably pay attention to the big policy issues, such as the ones covered by the three previous resolutions. But if we want better policy, it’s also important to change the culture on Capitol Hill. If Republicans abide by these three resolutions, they would be comparatively immune to the routine corruption that is so common in Washington. […]
The corruption is an act that destroy the hierachy of the institutions of government through ways that is not acceptable by law. This kind of act creating disturbances and unhapiness to other people.
Big government means big corruption it is relatively rigth, because it is depending on the rulers of the government. It is almost similar to classical thought of Aristoleses by saying that if the nation is too large/big will be difficult to be managed and if the nation is smaller will be difficult to maintain its existence. I do believe on this ancient thought, however, big government should be led by ritgh people with rigth job and righ personality and firmed to against up issues related to the corruption. I mean whoever (she or he) rule the nations should reject and avoid him/herself from the matters of corruptions, even a tiny act which can emerge the corruption. By doing so even the nation is big but the corruption can tumbled down.
This is my comment thank you .
Cornelio Barros
+670 7568541
Dili, Timor-Leste