K Street Snares Another Former Senator
By ANNE C. MULKERN of Greenwire
Published: January 31, 2011
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Correction appended.
Retired Sen. Evan Bayh has landed on K Street.
The Indiana Democrat, who left the Senate last year after two terms, becomes a partner at McGuireWoods LLP. He will also work as strategic adviser to the law firm's public affairs and lobbying subsidiary, McGuireWoods Consulting.
Bayh, 55, sat on the Senate's Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Speaking about his new job, Bayh told The Wall Street Journal that even with the divided Congress, there could be action on energy and climate issues as EPA moves on carbon regulation and businesses ask Congress to help clarify what rules will be in the future.
McGuireWoods Consulting's lobbying clients include utilities Dominion Resources Inc. and Duke Energy Corp., and mining company Alpha Natural Resources Inc.
Bayh will not register as a lobbyist, McGuireWoods LLP spokesman Michael Kulstad said in an e-mail. Former senators are restricted from lobbying for two years after they leave office.
Bayh, a moderate Democrat, also served two terms as Indiana governor. When he announced his retirement from the Senate last February, he criticized the lack of bipartisanship in Congress and said that "my passion for service to my fellow citizens is undiminished, but my desire to do so by serving in Congress has waned.
"I simply believe I can best contribute to society in another way: creating jobs by helping grow a business, helping guide an institution of higher learning, or helping run a worthy charitable endeavor," Bayh said at the time.
The law firm said Bayh will "help us and our clients understand how to get things done in an environment rife with partisan perils but aching for sensible, common ground solutions."
"Senator Bayh provides a rare and timely perspective for our clients," said McGuireWoods Chairman Richard Cullen. "Throughout his long and distinguished career in public service he was known for working with Democrats and Republicans, not to score political points, but rather to drive consensus around issues that mattered most."
Bayh also is a senior adviser at equity firm Apollo Global Management in New York.
The revolving door between Congress and K Street has been spinning rapidly. Last week Alston & Bird announced they had grabbed former House Energy and Commerce Chairman Billy Tauzin (R-La.) (Greenwire, Jan. 27). And earlier this month former Sens. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) and Bob Bennett (R-Utah) joined Arent Fox LLP (Greenwire Jan. 11).
Correction: This story was updated to include the firm's statement that Bayh will not register as a lobbyist. It was corrected to state Bayh's positions as partner with the law firm and strategic adviser to the firm's lobbying subsidiary.
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