"38 members of his fundraising team are members of law firms that extensively engage in lobbying...."

Every single large law firm in the United States "extensively engage in lobbying." It is part of their job with clients. This is better read as "38 members of his fundraising team are members of large law firms."

Eric, you REALLY think Clinton is going to hit him with this? Really? I mean, c'mon. Really Eric?

Oh, no...the sky is falling.

How much further will Obama pull ahead in the polls after he counterattacks this lame non-issue?

What a pathetic article.

Seriously...he's a hypocrite because law partners (but not federal lobbyists) from Skadden Arps, Morrison & Foerster, Foley & Lardner, Mayer Brown, DLA Piper, etc. are major fundraisers for him?

Does anyone at USA Today understand how a law firm works? That Skadden, for example, has more than 2000 attorneys practicing in 23 offices worldwide. The fact that a handful of them are federal lobbyists doesn't invalidate contributions from others of them.

Or my own law firm...400 attorneys. We've got about a dozen federal lobbyists. So is my $250 Obama contribution now "tainted" per the USA Today story.

What a pathetic newspaper.

Fundraisers for Obama are "members of large law firms that engage in lobbying"....Wow, that really is a scoop. Well done, WaPo and Bravo Eric for pushing this critical story to the forefront at great risk!

Yawn. We already had this conversation back in October, when Edwards and Obama were quibbling about this during a debate. Geez, USAToday is always proving how utterly irrelevant they are. I heard that next week, they'll be doing an in depth look at Mike Huckabee's Christmas ad and sitting down with GOP frontrunner Rudy Giuliani.

Eric,

I'm sure you've received enough comments to this effect, but you really need to do more background research (and present it to the readers) before you arrive at the same conclusion that USA Today has: namely, that membership in a law firm with extensive lobbying operations (which would be at least a bare majority of AMLAW 100 law firms) is tantamount to lobbying. Saying so reflects a very sloppy understanding of how "Government Relations" practices in law firms work. My firm has, like most New York firms, a very extensive D.C. office. Does that mean that by taking money from a partner in the New York office, Barack Obama is in effect taking money from lobbyist? Does it even mean that by taking money from a partner in the D.C. office, Obama is in effect taking money from lobbyists? No.

So all that's left is "Six fundraisers with direct managerial authority over lobbyists". Do you even know what this means? I don't. It could be anything from a managing or supervisory partner at a law firm to an individual in an organization that happens to be a 501(c)(4). Even then, it provides a very thin basis for saying that these folks are federal lobbyists and that the distinction is meaningless.

We need to pass a law that prevents lawyers, their spouses, their children, and their acquaintances from making political contributions. These so-called "private citizens" exert far too much influence over the political process. This is very troubling...

What complete b.s. I looked at the list of so-called "lobbyist law firms" and it's basically just a list of big law firms with wide-ranging practice areas (including the firm where Michelle Obama worked and Barack Obama interned, ooo, big surprise that he has support from there).

Lawyers have personal convictions, too, as hard as it may seem to believe, and some of them are Democrats!

It's no more accurate to say that Obama takes lobbyist money because of these lawyers' support than it is to say that he's in the pocket of Big [Unnamed] Industry because my dh and some of his colleagues just happen to be Obama supporters quite apart from any professional considerations, or that Obama is in thrall to the textile industry because Knitters for Obama raised almost $9000 for his campaign.

If he's a straight shooter, Obama shouldn't be saying he doesn't accept money from them nor is he any different than the politician he criticizes.

He misled in an ad in PA as well. He said he doesn't take money from oil. That is disingenuous because it's illegal to do so. If anyone did, he'll be arrested.

This is another one of those whole lot of nothing articles. Same folks will try to twist the facts to suit their ends; their is no "gotcha" here; got question? Go to the FEC website and look for yourself; separate individuals from their employers. ENUFF..........

I am a partner in a major law firm that probably does lobbying out of our D.C. office, though I don't know on behalf of whom.

It's the same thing as accusing Obama of "taking money from oil companies" because individual employees of energy companies have donated to him. I personally represent energy companies -- hell, every lawyer in Houston represents an energy company somewhere along the way. However, my political inclinations and actions are not driven or dictated by those clients.

My donations to Barack Obama are strictly on my own behalf and out of my own conscience and commitment. I refuse to be disqualified from following that conscience and commitment simply because someone in my firm might be a lobbyist or because we represent clients who have lobbyists.

None of my partners are involved and I certainly don't discuss my donations with them. I suspect this is true of the very, very great majority of Obama contributors.

Question: Did Rose Law Firm every lobby? If so then by USAToday's logic Hillary Clinton is a lobbyist.

Much, much worse to have accepted money from lawyers who work for firms that do some lobbying than to have actual lobbyists RUNNING YOUR CAMPAIGN.

Glad I got that straight.

here is one of the ways you can find out who your law firm lobbys for and how much they've been paid to do it...

http://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=chooseFields

Yawn.

More trumped up crap.

This morning I bumped into a lobbyist on the street. I knew he was a lobbyist cause he was wearing a Yale Law Skool hat. Also cause he was white. Since I touched a lobbyist, I am asking Obama to return my contributions.

Also, Eric, nice to know The Page is a primary source for you. I read it every day too. Now I also feel qualified to shill for HRC.