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Freedom Fighter
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Giuliani's Firm Lobbied for Bill Considered Threat
By ERIC LIPTON and RUSS BUETTNER December 4, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/us/politics/04giuliani.html?hp=&pagewanted=all
WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 - Although Rudolph W. Giuliani is campaigning as
President Bush's staunch ally in the war on terror, his law office has
lobbied Congress on behalf of legislation that the Bush administration calls
a threat to antiterrorism efforts in the Horn of Africa.
Mr. Giuliani was not personally involved in the lobbying last year on behalf
of the company's client, the American wing of a dissident Ethiopian
political party known as the Coalition for Unity and Democracy, leaders of
the group said.
But the firm, Bracewell & Giuliani, used Mr. Giuliani's name in its pitch to
win the assignment, and his clout was a reason it landed the job, said
Seyoum Solomon, an Ethiopian-American from Maryland who helped negotiate the
deal.
"He is a popular Republican, a good friend of the president and he might
have some influence on the State Department," Mr. Solomon said to explain
the hiring decision.
The legislation sought by the dissidents proposes restrictions in American
aid if Ethiopia does not agree to share power with opposition parties and
take other steps promoting democracy. As part of its work, the Giuliani
group set up a meeting at the White House last year at which the
administration was urged to consider the viewpoint of a consortium of
Ethiopian political parties that included Mr. Solomon's group, as well as a
more militant rebel organization.
The Ethiopian effort demonstrates the complications Mr. Giuliani confronts
as he simultaneously runs for president and remains a name partner in a law
firm that lobbies in Washington. He is the only Republican candidate who
remains engaged in business pursuits.
The Bush administration supports the government in Ethiopia as a bulwark
against terrorism and has characterized the legislation as a liability in
that effort.
A White House spokesman declined comment on Bracewell & Giuliani's role. A
State Department official described the legislation that the firm helped to
push as detrimental. "The reality is, in fact, it does harm a relationship"
with an ally, the official said.
The Ethiopian opposition has many supporters in Congress, in part because of
concerns about the existing government's reputation for repression. Even the
Bush administration is not critical of the coalition as an organization and
has refrained from classifying as terrorists the more militant opposition
parties in the consortium that some coalition leaders helped establish.
But the administration believes, said one State Department official who was
not authorized to speak on the record about the matter, that the existing
government is making progress toward creating a democratic government and
has helped to combat an extremist Islamic insurgency in neighboring Somalia,
where it has sent troops and worked to aid American operations against Qaeda
suspects.
Maria Comella, a spokeswoman for the Giuliani campaign, said Mr. Giuliani's
views were not necessarily consistent with the lobbying stands taken in
Washington by Bracewell & Giuliani.
"At the end of the day, the mayor's position and ideas on the campaign trail
are his own," Ms. Comella said.
Scott H. Segal, a lobbyist for Mr. Giuliani's firm, said its primary mission
had been to secure American support for the release of jailed Ethiopian
opposition leaders, not to promote the legislation. He said Mr. Giuliani's
firm primarily sought to use the legislation to draw attention to those
disenfranchised in Ethiopia.
"Not everything we did on behalf of the client was 100 percent consistent
with United States foreign policy at the time," he said. "Our job was to
cajole the U.S. foreign policy establishment into taking a principled stand
in Ethiopia."
The lobbying contract, signed in January 2006, is one of the few that Mr.
Giuliani's firm, based in Houston, has had with clients looking to influence
United States foreign policy.
The law firm, which Mr. Giuliani joined in 2005 and which pays him more than
$1 million a year, specializes in corporate finance and energy matters. But
several years ago, the firm was approached by an Ethiopian-American who knew
Marc F. Racicot, the former Montana governor and Republican Party leader who
once worked at Bracewell as a lobbyist.
"We did not go to the firm because of Giuliani," said Solomon Bekele, an
leader of the American affiliate of the coalition who was involved in the
hiring decision. "It was a plus."
When the contract was signed, the country had suffered through a bloody few
months after a May 2005 federal election that was first heralded as the most
democratic in the country's history. Soon, protests organized in part by the
Coalition of Unity and Democracy turned violent as demonstrators began to
complain about election fraud. The government claimed some protesters were
armed, while observers said the police and armed forces had overreacted,
sparking conflicts in June and November of 2005 in which 199 people were
killed, including six police officers.
The government arrested thousands, including coalition leaders who had just
been elected to Parliament, including Hailu Shawul, the chairman, and
Birtukan Midekssa, a vice president.
Last year, the firm was able to persuade the House Foreign Affairs
subcommittee on Africa to insert language into a bill that condemned the
violence and the arrests. One new provision in the bill, introduced by
Representative Christopher H. Smith , Republican of New Jersey, demanded
that the country reconfigure its national election board to include
representation by opposition parties.
Members of Mr. Smith's staff said they had received advice on the bill from
many parties, including Bracewell & Giuliani and a lobbying firm hired by
the Ethiopian government, DLA Piper. The Ethiopian government position is
that the legislation is being pushed by "extremists in Ethiopian politics
who reject peaceful and legal avenues of political participation," according
to a statement issued by its embassy in Washington.
Mr. Smith said support for the bill hardly constituted weakness toward
terrorism. "The war on terror is very, very important," he said in a speech
in October about the proposal. "But no regime that terrorizes its own
citizens can be a reliable ally in the war on terror."
In June 2006, the Giuliani firm set up a meeting for coalition leaders with
Michael J. Gerson, at the time one of Mr. Bush's senior policy advisers.
At the meeting, coalition leaders asked the United States to put pressure on
Ethiopia to negotiate with a new consortium of opposition parties that
included both the coalition and more militant members like the Ogaden
National Liberation Front, a separatist group, according to a written
account of the meeting provided by coalition party officials.
About a year after the meeting, the Ogaden group was involved in an attack
on a Chinese-run oil field in which more than 70 people were killed.
Mr. Solomon said the coalition had always been a peaceful party and did not
condone the attacks. But he would not condemn what he called "freedom
fighters."
Mr. Segal said his firm had lobbied the administration only on behalf of the
coalition, not the larger alliance of opposition groups.
A White House spokesman, Scott M. Stanzel, said Mr. Gerson could not recall
details of the meeting but described it as merely informational.
Last summer, the administration worked behind the scenes to win the release
of the jailed opposition leaders, as the coalition had urged. But the
administration has consistently opposed the legislation in letters written
to the House sponsors.
The lobbying contract between Bracewell & Giuliani and the American
affiliate of the coalition ended last year. Mr. Solomon said the coalition's
affiliate had terminated the deal because the firm had not lined up more
news coverage and never delivered on a promised meeting with Mr. Giuliani.
The law firm said a meeting had never been promised.
Lobbying disclosure records indicate the firm was paid $210,000 in 2006, but
Mr. Solomon said his group had actually paid $90,000.
Nonetheless, the legislation that the firm helped push has moved forward and
passed by a voice vote in the House of Representatives in October.
Though Bracewell & Giuliani is no longer employed by the Ethiopian
dissidents, its communications director, Frank Maisano, arranged a news
conference in October on the topic at the National Press Club. Mr. Segal
said that Mr. Maisano had been involved in that function as a member of the
press club and that his help was not related to the former Bracewell
contract.
Jeffrey Gettleman contributed reporting from Kenya.
By ERIC LIPTON and RUSS BUETTNER December 4, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/us/politics/04giuliani.html?hp=&pagewanted=all
WASHINGTON, Dec. 3 - Although Rudolph W. Giuliani is campaigning as
President Bush's staunch ally in the war on terror, his law office has
lobbied Congress on behalf of legislation that the Bush administration calls
a threat to antiterrorism efforts in the Horn of Africa.
Mr. Giuliani was not personally involved in the lobbying last year on behalf
of the company's client, the American wing of a dissident Ethiopian
political party known as the Coalition for Unity and Democracy, leaders of
the group said.
But the firm, Bracewell & Giuliani, used Mr. Giuliani's name in its pitch to
win the assignment, and his clout was a reason it landed the job, said
Seyoum Solomon, an Ethiopian-American from Maryland who helped negotiate the
deal.
"He is a popular Republican, a good friend of the president and he might
have some influence on the State Department," Mr. Solomon said to explain
the hiring decision.
The legislation sought by the dissidents proposes restrictions in American
aid if Ethiopia does not agree to share power with opposition parties and
take other steps promoting democracy. As part of its work, the Giuliani
group set up a meeting at the White House last year at which the
administration was urged to consider the viewpoint of a consortium of
Ethiopian political parties that included Mr. Solomon's group, as well as a
more militant rebel organization.
The Ethiopian effort demonstrates the complications Mr. Giuliani confronts
as he simultaneously runs for president and remains a name partner in a law
firm that lobbies in Washington. He is the only Republican candidate who
remains engaged in business pursuits.
The Bush administration supports the government in Ethiopia as a bulwark
against terrorism and has characterized the legislation as a liability in
that effort.
A White House spokesman declined comment on Bracewell & Giuliani's role. A
State Department official described the legislation that the firm helped to
push as detrimental. "The reality is, in fact, it does harm a relationship"
with an ally, the official said.
The Ethiopian opposition has many supporters in Congress, in part because of
concerns about the existing government's reputation for repression. Even the
Bush administration is not critical of the coalition as an organization and
has refrained from classifying as terrorists the more militant opposition
parties in the consortium that some coalition leaders helped establish.
But the administration believes, said one State Department official who was
not authorized to speak on the record about the matter, that the existing
government is making progress toward creating a democratic government and
has helped to combat an extremist Islamic insurgency in neighboring Somalia,
where it has sent troops and worked to aid American operations against Qaeda
suspects.
Maria Comella, a spokeswoman for the Giuliani campaign, said Mr. Giuliani's
views were not necessarily consistent with the lobbying stands taken in
Washington by Bracewell & Giuliani.
"At the end of the day, the mayor's position and ideas on the campaign trail
are his own," Ms. Comella said.
Scott H. Segal, a lobbyist for Mr. Giuliani's firm, said its primary mission
had been to secure American support for the release of jailed Ethiopian
opposition leaders, not to promote the legislation. He said Mr. Giuliani's
firm primarily sought to use the legislation to draw attention to those
disenfranchised in Ethiopia.
"Not everything we did on behalf of the client was 100 percent consistent
with United States foreign policy at the time," he said. "Our job was to
cajole the U.S. foreign policy establishment into taking a principled stand
in Ethiopia."
The lobbying contract, signed in January 2006, is one of the few that Mr.
Giuliani's firm, based in Houston, has had with clients looking to influence
United States foreign policy.
The law firm, which Mr. Giuliani joined in 2005 and which pays him more than
$1 million a year, specializes in corporate finance and energy matters. But
several years ago, the firm was approached by an Ethiopian-American who knew
Marc F. Racicot, the former Montana governor and Republican Party leader who
once worked at Bracewell as a lobbyist.
"We did not go to the firm because of Giuliani," said Solomon Bekele, an
leader of the American affiliate of the coalition who was involved in the
hiring decision. "It was a plus."
When the contract was signed, the country had suffered through a bloody few
months after a May 2005 federal election that was first heralded as the most
democratic in the country's history. Soon, protests organized in part by the
Coalition of Unity and Democracy turned violent as demonstrators began to
complain about election fraud. The government claimed some protesters were
armed, while observers said the police and armed forces had overreacted,
sparking conflicts in June and November of 2005 in which 199 people were
killed, including six police officers.
The government arrested thousands, including coalition leaders who had just
been elected to Parliament, including Hailu Shawul, the chairman, and
Birtukan Midekssa, a vice president.
Last year, the firm was able to persuade the House Foreign Affairs
subcommittee on Africa to insert language into a bill that condemned the
violence and the arrests. One new provision in the bill, introduced by
Representative Christopher H. Smith , Republican of New Jersey, demanded
that the country reconfigure its national election board to include
representation by opposition parties.
Members of Mr. Smith's staff said they had received advice on the bill from
many parties, including Bracewell & Giuliani and a lobbying firm hired by
the Ethiopian government, DLA Piper. The Ethiopian government position is
that the legislation is being pushed by "extremists in Ethiopian politics
who reject peaceful and legal avenues of political participation," according
to a statement issued by its embassy in Washington.
Mr. Smith said support for the bill hardly constituted weakness toward
terrorism. "The war on terror is very, very important," he said in a speech
in October about the proposal. "But no regime that terrorizes its own
citizens can be a reliable ally in the war on terror."
In June 2006, the Giuliani firm set up a meeting for coalition leaders with
Michael J. Gerson, at the time one of Mr. Bush's senior policy advisers.
At the meeting, coalition leaders asked the United States to put pressure on
Ethiopia to negotiate with a new consortium of opposition parties that
included both the coalition and more militant members like the Ogaden
National Liberation Front, a separatist group, according to a written
account of the meeting provided by coalition party officials.
About a year after the meeting, the Ogaden group was involved in an attack
on a Chinese-run oil field in which more than 70 people were killed.
Mr. Solomon said the coalition had always been a peaceful party and did not
condone the attacks. But he would not condemn what he called "freedom
fighters."
Mr. Segal said his firm had lobbied the administration only on behalf of the
coalition, not the larger alliance of opposition groups.
A White House spokesman, Scott M. Stanzel, said Mr. Gerson could not recall
details of the meeting but described it as merely informational.
Last summer, the administration worked behind the scenes to win the release
of the jailed opposition leaders, as the coalition had urged. But the
administration has consistently opposed the legislation in letters written
to the House sponsors.
The lobbying contract between Bracewell & Giuliani and the American
affiliate of the coalition ended last year. Mr. Solomon said the coalition's
affiliate had terminated the deal because the firm had not lined up more
news coverage and never delivered on a promised meeting with Mr. Giuliani.
The law firm said a meeting had never been promised.
Lobbying disclosure records indicate the firm was paid $210,000 in 2006, but
Mr. Solomon said his group had actually paid $90,000.
Nonetheless, the legislation that the firm helped push has moved forward and
passed by a voice vote in the House of Representatives in October.
Though Bracewell & Giuliani is no longer employed by the Ethiopian
dissidents, its communications director, Frank Maisano, arranged a news
conference in October on the topic at the National Press Club. Mr. Segal
said that Mr. Maisano had been involved in that function as a member of the
press club and that his help was not related to the former Bracewell
contract.
Jeffrey Gettleman contributed reporting from Kenya.