Revolving door in the swamp

Greg Walden to become lobbyist.

I predicted he would leave the Congress and immediately become a lobbyist.

For Immediate Release: Monday, February 22, 2021

Following his recent retirement from Congress, Greg Walden, former Chairman of both the House Energy &Commerce Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee, today announced the creation of Alpine Advisors, a new policy and strategic advisory firm. Alpine Advisors is a partnership between Walden and the Alpine Group, a leading Washington government affairs firm.

Walden will serve as Chairman of Alpine Advisors, which will service a wide range of clients, with a particular focus on the energy, technology, telecommunications and health care sectors, issue areas in which he developed significant expertise during his more than two decades in the House and service in the House leadership.

Readers did not believe me. People said I was trolling Greg Walden, making predictions without any basis. I was guessing, yes, but I could see the handwriting, even three years ago, back when my prediction was "unthinkable." I said that Walden's true home was as a lobbyist, cashing in on his relationships with the industries he had overseen, not staying as a Congressman.

It is the ugly side of the swamp, but Walden was an excellent swimmer in the gray waters of K-Street influence.

Tomorrow's blog will look back at my predictions of this. His choice to become a lobbyist is no surprise, but it affected how he did his job as Congressman, alas. He didn't want to burn bridges. That meant that he decided to follow the GOP, not help lead it. Too bad. He could have really made a difference.

Instead, he will make a fortune.