Learning to be a 1)Lobbyist

Broadcast: Jan 27, 2003

 

When Congress returned to session earlier this month, one of the first orders of business was to revise an ethics¹ standard known as the "Pizza Rule", a law that makes it acceptable for lobbyists to send complimentary² food to congressional staffers working late at night. The "Pizza Rule" is one example of the kinds of ethical³ issues being discussed in one of the most popular classes now being offered at American University in Washington, D.C.

"Here I came to D.C. thinking‘Oh, I'm going to make a lot of money as a lobbyist.' Turns out I did end up working on the Hill and learned that most lobbyists who really follow their heart, don't make that much money," says Kate Arnold, a political science undergraduate. She is one of about three dozen students enrolled⁴ in the annual two-week workshop at AU's Public Affairs and Advocacy Institute, formerly⁵ known as the Lobbying Institute.

Taking advantage of its setting in the nation's capital, the class features guest speakers from the American University ²⁾faculty⁶, as well as leading lobbyists from around the country, representing corporations, trade associations, labor⁷ unions and public interest and lobbying firms. Coordinating⁸ the workshop is academic director, Patrick J. Griffin, who is also president and founder⁹ of his own lobbying firm in Washington.

Mr. Griffin says while a lobbyist is defined as a person who works to bring about the passage of laws favorable to the special interest group they represent, the job encompasses¹⁰ much more. "I think it takes this is a very personal town -- and relationships are a very essential component¹¹ of most ³⁾advocacy work here in town. But it's more than that," he says. "You have to have a good understanding of policy, you have to have a good understanding of process and how to relate those elements together. And I think, that, with the integrity of how you deal with that will constitute the foundation for being a good lobbyist."

But for many people, the term lobbyist may sound vague or confusing conjuring¹² a kind of negative ⁴⁾caricature of a rich, portly figure who wines and dines lawmakers, while slipping money into their pockets. American University student Bob Nardo says that image is one that is fast fading from reality.

"The people who are trying those techniques are people who are losing remarkably¹³, from everything we learned here," he says. "The great thing about this institute is that there has been a heavy emphasis on ethics and understanding of why we do what we do and recognizing that those sort of patters have existed in the past and still do exist. But that pattern is out of style. It has almost been humorous at times the most effective lobbyists here are people that lobbied on things like NAFTA [North American Free Trade Agreement] who led up those coalitions¹⁵, have actually come in and chuckled¹⁶ at that notion of lobbying, saying that 'In a world that's as information rich as it today, it's not possible for you to just come in and slap a few backs and pass out some cigars.'"

American University professor Patrick Griffin agrees that lobbyists come in all "shapes and colors and get all different size paychecks." "The individuals working for the Children's Defense¹⁷ Fund or the Sierra Club are not burdened by their salaries. These make reasonable incomes but are not exorbitant¹⁸ by any stretch and they are lobbying on behalf of the issues that are important to them," he says. "It is also a lucrative¹⁹ field for those working in the consulting business to organizations and institutions or people who work in a corporation as a permanent lobbyist here in Washington. It is a very diverse field, but I think a very essential field to decision-making in Washington."

Some of the speakers who have participated in the Public Affairs workshop have included a bureau chief for Fortune magazine; a vice²⁰ president of health policy for the Institute for Higher Education Policy; and a corporate²¹ vice president of Honeywell Corporation.

Political science student Kate Arnold describes the class as "wonderful" for the opportunity to meet and talk with experts in the field. "And I mean experts, real working professionals who have been in the business of lobbying and been in the business of legislation and public policy and grass roots and coalition¹⁴ building and everything that you could possibly imagine under the sun. And they've been doing it here and elsewhere for years," she says. "It's priceless, really. So (you know) this course has has given us not only a lot of insights, but a lot of networking opportunities and lots of connections. I went down my list of presenters²² and put a big star next to half a dozen of them that I intend to call on after I'm finished with my education to ask for a job, frankly²³."

Student Bob Nardo says while many of his classmates are hoping to find jobs on Capitol Hill, he plans to use the skills he's learned working outside of Washington, D.C. in school reform. He says he believes most of the students taking the class are fueled by their desire to be able to make a difference. "I wish you could take a picture and transmit it across radio because if you could look at the range of faces and the starry²⁴ eyes of the idealistic twenty year-olds in here, I think you'd forget instantly about the cigar-smoking and backslapping image of a lobbyist and think of the kind of young person who you know who knocked on your door walking down the street at every election season, asking you to think about what's important to them and what's important to you," he says. "That's what public affairs policy advocacy is all about - at least, as we can see from this class, which will probably comprise the next generation of quote-unquote-lobbyists."

Bob Nardo is an undergraduate student at American University's Public Affairs and Advocacy Institute. Workshop coordinator²⁵ Patrick Griffin says whether or not the students actually become lobbyists themselves, the class provides a window on how Washington works, what lobbying is about, and how it can be done with integrity and ethical foundations.

This is Robin²⁶ Rupli.

 

 

1)     lobbyist[5lRbIIst]n.活动议案通过者, 说客

2)     faculty [5fAkElti]n.全体教员, (大学的)系, 科,

3)     advocacy [5AdvEkEsi]n.拥护, 鼓吹, 辩护

4)     caricature [7kArikE5tjuE]n.讽刺画, 漫画, 歪曲(或拙劣)的模仿

 

1 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

2 complimentary   

adj.赠送的，免费的，赞美的，恭维的

参考例句：

• She made some highly complimentary remarks about their school.她对他们的学校给予高度的评价。
• The supermarket operates a complimentary shuttle service.这家超市提供免费购物班车。

3 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

4 enrolled   

adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 )；登记，招收，使入伍（或入会、入学等），参加，成为成员；记入名册；卷起，包起

参考例句：

• They have been studying hard from the moment they enrolled. 从入学时起，他们就一直努力学习。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He enrolled with an employment agency for a teaching position. 他在职业介绍所登了记以谋求一个教师的职位。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

6 faculty   

n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员

参考例句：

• He has a great faculty for learning foreign languages.他有学习外语的天赋。
• He has the faculty of saying the right thing at the right time.他有在恰当的时候说恰当的话的才智。

7 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

8 coordinating   

v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的现在分词 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• He abolished the Operations Coordinating Board and the Planning Board. 他废除了行动协调委员会和计划委员会。 来自辞典例句
• He's coordinating the wedding, and then we're not going to invite him? 他是来协调婚礼的，难道我们不去请他？ 来自电影对白

9 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

10 encompasses   

v.围绕( encompass的第三人称单数 )；包围；包含；包括

参考例句：

• The job encompasses a wide range of responsibilities. 这项工作涉及的职责范围很广。
• Its conservation law encompasses both its magnitude and its direction. 它的守恒定律包括大小和方向两方面。 来自辞典例句

11 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

12 conjuring   

n.魔术

参考例句：

• Paul's very good at conjuring. 保罗很会变戏法。
• The entertainer didn't fool us with his conjuring. 那个艺人变的戏法没有骗到我们。

13 remarkably   

ad.不同寻常地，相当地

参考例句：

• I thought she was remarkably restrained in the circumstances. 我认为她在那种情况下非常克制。
• He made a remarkably swift recovery. 他康复得相当快。

14 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

15 coalitions   

结合体，同盟( coalition的名词复数 )； （两党或多党）联合政府

参考例句：

• History testifies to the ineptitude of coalitions in waging war. 历史昭示我们，多数国家联合作战，其进行甚为困难。
• All the coalitions in history have disintegrated sooner or later. 历史上任何联盟迟早都垮台了。

16 chuckled   

轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She chuckled at the memory. 想起这件事她就暗自发笑。
• She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered his astonished look. 想起他那惊讶的表情，她就轻轻地暗自发笑。

17 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

18 exorbitant   

adj.过分的；过度的

参考例句：

• More competition should help to drive down exorbitant phone charges.更多的竞争有助于降低目前畸高的电话收费。
• The price of food here is exorbitant. 这儿的食物价格太高。

19 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

20 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

21 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

22 presenters   

n.节目主持人，演播员( presenter的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Each week presenters would put the case for their favourite candidate. 每个星期主持人推出他们最喜欢的候选人。 来自互联网
• Karaoke was set up to allowed presenters to sing on the stage. 宴会设有歌唱舞台，可让出席者大演唱功。 来自互联网

23 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

24 starry   

adj.星光照耀的, 闪亮的

参考例句：

• He looked at the starry heavens.他瞧着布满星星的天空。
• I like the starry winter sky.我喜欢这满天星斗的冬夜。

25 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

26 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。