Patton Boggs may grow a lot with Breaux-Lott

John Breaux used to be John Breaux (D-LA). And Trent Lott used to be Trent Lott (R-MS). Both were prominent members not only of the US Senate, but also of the influential Senate Commerce Committee. They moved on to the lobbying business, and Breaux left lobbying supercompany Patton Boggs to form their own firm. Now the latter is talking about buying the boutique shop.

PB is said to have pulled in over $40M for its lobbying expertise last year. BL did around $11M. Although neither side is talking about negotiations, they are said to be close to a deal.

Lott was a co-sponsor of a rarely-used legislative device, a Resolution of Disapproval, which repudiated the Michael Powell 2003 attempt to loosen broadcast ownership regulations, an effort driven by Byron Dorgan (D-ND). Otherwise, he was not particularly known for any special interest in broadcast matters.

Breaux, on the other hand, was somewhat of an expert in them. As a centrist Democrat, he was often among the group of legislators who could understand the business realities faced by broadcasters despite any heat a given issue might be throwing off.

RBR-TVBR observation: The presence of Breaux in the Patton-Boggs stable should be of interest to broadcast corporations with business before Congress. He is familiar with the key senatorial committee, he’s familiar with the issues and his stock in trade was working both sides of the aisle back when he was a Senator.