Saudi Arabia lobby in the United States

An article by journalist John R. MacArthur in Harper's Magazine details "The Vast Power of the Saudi Lobby". According to MacArthur, According to Seymour Hersh the power of Prince Bandar and the Saudi lobby was so great that Bandar effectively joined the Bush administration as a virtual member of the cabinet. Role of Bandar bin Sultan In the assessment of The Economist, "No Arab ambassador—perhaps no ambassador—has come close to matching Prince Bandar's influence in the American capital. At the height of his powers he was indispensable to both sides: in Mr Ottaway's words, "at once the king's exclusive messenger and the White House's errand boy". The Prince's "feats" of lobbying legerdemain included securing the purchase of AWACS surveillance aircraft in the teeth of fierce Israeli and congressional opposition, and augmenting his influence with the Reagan administration by quietly supplying $32m to the Contras in Nicaragua and $10m to anti-communist politicians in Italy. ==Lobbying firms==

In the first decade of the 21st century, the Saudis paid approximately $100 million to American firms to lobby the American government. Hogan Lovells U.S., L.L.P., formerly Hogan & Harston, worked for Saudi Arabia in 2009. The Middle East Policy Council has received large payments from Saudi Arabia to lobby for the Kingdom, including $1 million in 2007. A partial list of firms that have been paid by Saudi Arabia to lobby the American government includes: A partial list of lobbyists that have been paid by Saudi Arabia to lobby for the Kingdom: the Podesta Group, founded by John Podesta and Tony Podesta, the Glover Park Group, former Senator Norm Coleman, H.P. Goldfield, vice chair of Madeleine Albright's Albright Stonebridge Group, the BGR Group, the Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, the Squire Patton Boggs, the DLA Piper, the Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, and the Qorvis/MSLGroup. ==See also==