By Kevin McCauley
PLM Group, which represented Egypt since 2007, dropped the $1.1M annual fee client last week following Egypt’s move to ban staffers of U.S. government-backed pro-democracy groups from exiting the country.
Those six Americans include Sam LaHood, director of the Republican Institute and son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. Four Europeans were also blocked from exiting Egypt.
On December 10, Egypt raided the offices of the Republican Institute, National Democratic Institute and Freedom House as part of a probe launched by the Minister of International Cooperation of NGOs receiving foreign funding.
PLM, which provided “talking points” to Egypt in the aftermath of that raid, is a venture by former Speaker of the House-designate Bob Livingston’s Livingston Group, ex-Connecticut Congressman Toby Moffett’s Moffett Group and White House insider Tony Podesta’s Podesta Group.
The U.S. provides $1.3B in annual aid to Egypt. PLM’s government relations and strategy lobbying services contract called for “maintaining the amount of U.S. military and economic aid to Egypt and enhancing the quality of that aid by improving terms and conditions.”
A group of Egyptian generals is in D.C. this week to “try to mend one of the most serious rifts in years with Washington,” according to today’s Wall Street Journal.
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