Bank of America Corp (BAC), Morgan Stanley (MS): Why Bank Lobbyists Have Such Success Swaying Congress

The truth: Congress loves lobbyists
Do these lobbyists have too much influence over Congress? I think they do, but the fact is, Congress depends on these people. This isn’t surprising; after all, government officials do need input from those industries they impact, if only to ascertain how certain regulations will affect the day-to-day workings of these businesses.

Congress also uses these lobbyists to its own advantage. In late 2009, for example, then-House Minority Leader John Boehner led a sort of pep rally with fellow Republicans and over 100 lobbyists in an effort to rouse their fellows against the evils of the Democratic majority, who were supposedly gutting capitalism.

In 1987, Senate Majority Leader Robert C. Byrd gave a long speech on the merits of the unjustly reviled lobbyist, noting that this kind of political manueuvering had a long history, and sprung directly from the right of every citizen to have his voice heard by elected officials. It is an interesting piece, showing how the system evolved into its current state of — mostly — paid influencers of political agendas.

Perhaps the arrangement isn’t that bad. For investors, paying lobbyists surely takes money out of their pockets, but the biggest banks have made great strides back toward profitability, and some of this may be because of intense lobbying against certain laws perceived as being bad for business. Actually, I think activist shareholders can and should take a page out of the bank lobby’s book, using these two tactics to push their own agendas from within.

So, it is best to take a look on the bright side of lobbying, since it’s not going away. The political system has grown to embrace lobbyists, and politicians, at least, think they are necessary. As Senator Byrd’s speech concludes, “It is hard to imagine Congress without them.”

The article 2 Reasons Bank Lobbyists Have Such Success Swaying Congress originally appeared on Fool.com is written by Amanda Alix.

Fool contributor Amanda Alix has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Bank of America and Goldman Sachs. The Motley Fool owns shares of Bank of America and Citigroup.

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