Jun 20, 2012

Congressman Flake Boasts Of Lobbyist Past

Congressman Flake Boasts Of Being Lobbyist And Registered Foreign Agent

Career politician points to lobbying as private sector experience

NEWS RELEASE
June 20, 2012

PHOENIX --Today, Congressman Jeff Flake showed just how out of touch he is. Responding to a charge that he hasn't worked in the private sector, the six-term Congressman pointed to his time as a lobbyist and registered foreign agent to prove that he has real-world experience.

In a Facebook post, Congressman Flake wrote: "We moved to the country of Namibia for a one-year period, where I directed a small foundation monitoring that country’s independence process. After returning to the United States, I formed Interface Public Affairs, which provided public affairs representation to Namibian companies and translation services to U.S. entities."

According to National Journal, this is what Congressman Flake was actually doing during that time: "Between 1990 and 1991, Flake was a registered foreign agent for Rossing Uranium, a company which operates a mine in Namibia that is among the world’s largest suppliers of the nuclear fuel. He earned between $5,000 and $7,000 per month opening doors in the nation’s capital and promoting the firm, according to records obtained by National Journal."

The National Journal also noted that the company Flake was lobbying for is partially owned by the Iranian Foreign Investment Co., a "subsidiary of the Tehran regime."

Being a registered foreign agent and lobbying for a company owned by Iran — that's Congressman Jeff Flake's "experience."