Podcast appearances and mentions of timothy lapira

The topic of this episode is, “What is the relationship between lobbyists and Congress?” My guest is https://www.jmu.edu/polisci/people/faculty-lapira.shtml (Timothy LaPira). He is a professor of political science at James Madison University and a faculty affiliate at the Center for Effective Lawmaking at the University of Virginia. Tim, I should add, is the lead editor of our volume https://amzn.to/3NuwH5P (Congress Overwhelmed: The Decline of Congressional Capacity and Prospects for Reform) (University of Chicago Press, 2020). But even more relevant to the subject of this podcast episode is that Professor LaPira coauthored the book https://amzn.to/35n7JUu (Revolving Door Lobbying: Public Service, Private Influence, and the Unequal Representation of Interests). This makes him an especially apt person to answer the question for us, “What is the relationship between lobbyists and Congress?” Kevin Kosar: Welcome to Understanding Congress, a podcast about the first branch of government. Congress is a notoriously complex institution, and few Americans think well of it, but Congress is essential to our republic. It's a place where our pluralistic society is supposed to work out its differences and come to agreement about what our laws should be. And that is why we are here: to discuss our national legislature and to think about ways to upgrade it so it can better serve our nation. I'm your host, Kevin Kosar, and I'm a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank in Washington, DC. Tim, welcome to the podcast. Timothy LaPira: Thank you for having me. Glad to be here. Kevin Kosar: Let's start very simply, with the definition of a lobbyist. Now, under the First Amendment, anyone can petition the government for a redress of grievances, as the Constitution says. So plenty of people do talk to Congress, and the executive branch and judiciary, for that matter. In fact, in my job at a think tank, I am often asked to comment on bills or testify before Congress by congressional staff or even legislators who approach me. But I'm not a lobbyist. So what makes a lobbyist a lobbyist? Timothy LaPira: This is a great question. It's one that's often misunderstood. There's many definitions of what a lobbyist is, but I tend to think of—there's two ways to think about this. First, the more comprehensive, academic version of thinking about a lobbyist. It could go by the name of policy advocate, government relations professional, policy strategist, or something along those lines. These are people who make money to represent other people's interests. Those interests are typically going to be collected in organizations, but it's not just representing those interests in speaking. It's representing those interests in the policymaking process. There has to be a connection between the private sector and the government. So that's a very broad definition. There is, further, a statutory definition, primarily through the https://www.congress.gov/bill/104th-congress/senate-bill/1060 (Lobbying Disclosure Act) of 1995, which has been updated a number of times. In that law, there's a three-test definition of what a lobbyist is. First, they have to earn money. There's a minimum amount of money that's frankly not all that much given the size of the lobbying industry. It's about $5,000 a month. Second, they have to contact more than one government official. The purpose of this in the law, of course, is not to simply capture everyone, as you suggested. They might want to call up their member of Congress and say, "Vote for the bill,” or “Vote against a nominee," or what have you. The third point of the definition is most critical and frankly controversial: the lobbyist must spend more than 20 percent of her time on lobbying services in a given three-month reporting period. Now, https://www.congress.gov/member/carl-levin/L000261?q=%7B%22house-committee%22%3A%22Rules%22%7D (Senator Levin), when he originally wrote this law—the...

Timothy LaPira and Herschel Thomas are the authors of Revolving Door Lobbying: Public Service, Private Influence, and the Unequal Representation of Interests (University Press of Kansas, 2017). LaPira is associate professor of political science at James Madison University; Thomas is assistant professor of political science at University of Texas, Arlington. What is the consequence of the rapid spin of the revolving door in Washington? Once a rarity, today nearly half of members of Congress join a lobbying firm after their time on the Hill ends. In Revolving Door Lobbying, the authors show that they are not alone. Former aides join the ranks of lobbyists and generate massive amounts of revenue for lobbying and law firms. These patterns have changed the political economy of Washington politics. LaPira and Thomas mine a decade of new Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) data to show the way the rise of revolving door lobbying has made representation less equal and enhanced private influence. The host of this week's podcast is Heath Brown, associate professor of public policy at the City University of New York, John Jay College and the CUNY Graduate Center. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timothy LaPira and Herschel Thomas are the authors of Revolving Door Lobbying: Public Service, Private Influence, and the Unequal Representation of Interests (University Press of Kansas, 2017). LaPira is associate professor of political science at James Madison University; Thomas is assistant professor of political science at University of Texas, Arlington. What is the consequence of the rapid spin of the revolving door in Washington? Once a rarity, today nearly half of members of Congress join a lobbying firm after their time on the Hill ends. In Revolving Door Lobbying, the authors show that they are not alone. Former aides join the ranks of lobbyists and generate massive amounts of revenue for lobbying and law firms. These patterns have changed the political economy of Washington politics. LaPira and Thomas mine a decade of new Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) data to show the way the rise of revolving door lobbying has made representation less equal and enhanced private influence. The host of this week’s podcast is Heath Brown, associate professor of public policy at the City University of New York, John Jay College and the CUNY Graduate Center. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timothy LaPira and Herschel Thomas are the authors of Revolving Door Lobbying: Public Service, Private Influence, and the Unequal Representation of Interests (University Press of Kansas, 2017). LaPira is associate professor of political science at James Madison University; Thomas is assistant professor of political science at University of Texas, Arlington. What is the consequence of the rapid spin of the revolving door in Washington? Once a rarity, today nearly half of members of Congress join a lobbying firm after their time on the Hill ends. In Revolving Door Lobbying, the authors show that they are not alone. Former aides join the ranks of lobbyists and generate massive amounts of revenue for lobbying and law firms. These patterns have changed the political economy of Washington politics. LaPira and Thomas mine a decade of new Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) data to show the way the rise of revolving door lobbying has made representation less equal and enhanced private influence. The host of this week’s podcast is Heath Brown, associate professor of public policy at the City University of New York, John Jay College and the CUNY Graduate Center. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timothy LaPira and Herschel Thomas are the authors of Revolving Door Lobbying: Public Service, Private Influence, and the Unequal Representation of Interests (University Press of Kansas, 2017). LaPira is associate professor of political science at James Madison University; Thomas is assistant professor of political science at University of Texas, Arlington. What is the consequence of the rapid spin of the revolving door in Washington? Once a rarity, today nearly half of members of Congress join a lobbying firm after their time on the Hill ends. In Revolving Door Lobbying, the authors show that they are not alone. Former aides join the ranks of lobbyists and generate massive amounts of revenue for lobbying and law firms. These patterns have changed the political economy of Washington politics. LaPira and Thomas mine a decade of new Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) data to show the way the rise of revolving door lobbying has made representation less equal and enhanced private influence. The host of this week’s podcast is Heath Brown, associate professor of public policy at the City University of New York, John Jay College and the CUNY Graduate Center. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timothy LaPira and Herschel Thomas are the authors of Revolving Door Lobbying: Public Service, Private Influence, and the Unequal Representation of Interests (University Press of Kansas, 2017). LaPira is associate professor of political science at James Madison University; Thomas is assistant professor of political science at University of Texas, Arlington. What is the consequence of the rapid spin of the revolving door in Washington? Once a rarity, today nearly half of members of Congress join a lobbying firm after their time on the Hill ends. In Revolving Door Lobbying, the authors show that they are not alone. Former aides join the ranks of lobbyists and generate massive amounts of revenue for lobbying and law firms. These patterns have changed the political economy of Washington politics. LaPira and Thomas mine a decade of new Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) data to show the way the rise of revolving door lobbying has made representation less equal and enhanced private influence. The host of this week’s podcast is Heath Brown, associate professor of public policy at the City University of New York, John Jay College and the CUNY Graduate Center. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timothy LaPira and Herschel Thomas are the authors of Revolving Door Lobbying: Public Service, Private Influence, and the Unequal Representation of Interests (University Press of Kansas, 2017). LaPira is associate professor of political science at James Madison University; Thomas is assistant professor of political science at University of Texas, Arlington.... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timothy LaPira and Herschel Thomas are the authors of Revolving Door Lobbying: Public Service, Private Influence, and the Unequal Representation of Interests (University Press of Kansas, 2017). LaPira is associate professor of political science at James Madison University; Thomas is assistant professor of political science at University of Texas, Arlington. What is the consequence of the rapid spin of the revolving door in Washington? Once a rarity, today nearly half of members of Congress join a lobbying firm after their time on the Hill ends. In Revolving Door Lobbying, the authors show that they are not alone. Former aides join the ranks of lobbyists and generate massive amounts of revenue for lobbying and law firms. These patterns have changed the political economy of Washington politics. LaPira and Thomas mine a decade of new Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) data to show the way the rise of revolving door lobbying has made representation less equal and enhanced private influence. The host of this week’s podcast is Heath Brown, associate professor of public policy at the City University of New York, John Jay College and the CUNY Graduate Center. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices