When government officials in the Dominican Republic desperately sought COVID-19 drugs in July 2020 — as the U.S., under the Trump administration, was stockpiling the world’s supply of remdesivir — they turned to a lobbying firm with deep connections. Donald Trump that they were paying over $100,000 a month.
“We urgently need these and (pharmaceutical company) Gilead is seeking WH approval for Gilead to provide them through diplomatic channels to the DR Presidential Palace,” a Dominican Republic consular official wrote to veteran lobbyist Brian Ballard.
Within hours, the solution to the Dominican Republic problem was underway, with Ballard connecting the official directly with Anand Shah, then deputy commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, according to an email to the Justice Department. Foreign Agents Registration Act.
“We have had the privilege of representing the Dominican Republic for several years and have been very pleased with the government’s pro-American policies. I look forward to advising you on the best way to help on this critical issue,” Ballard wrote.
The exchange illustrates an example of the type of service foreign and domestic clients turned to Ballard Partners for during the first Trump administration. After nearly two decades of business serving mainly Florida clients, the company has emerged as a major force in Trump’s Washington, landing blue-chip clients such as Amazon, American Airlines and Uber and earning more than $24 million in federal lobbying at home in 2020, four years just After opening the first office in DC.
While much of the company’s growth stalled after Trump left office, Trump’s return to the White House appears to be well positioned, prompting concerns from some consumer advocacy groups and ethics experts.
‘We have friends’
This election cycle, Ballard raised a total of $1.8 million in campaign contributions to a Trump fundraising vehicle from other donors — and Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles, and his own. candidate for attorney generalPam Bondi, both of whom worked at various times as registered lobbyists for the firm. Wiles worked at the lobbying firm for eight years — he left the firm in 2019 — and Bondi has been a partner since 2019. After leaving Ballard Partners, Wiles ran Trump’s Florida campaign in 2020, worked at Mercury Public Affairs, and later became Trump’s staff. campaign manager for this election cycle.
“They are certainly two of the most important positions in the federal government,” said Virginia Canter, senior ethics counsel for the Washington-based progressive watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics. “And the fact that they both come from the same lobbying firm sends a powerful message: ‘If you have interests to protect … we have friends.'”
While administrations in both parties have traditionally filled government positions with former lobbyists, Trump’s decision to tap two loyalists whose most recent work experience was lobbying has raised concerns about the revolving door of politics and questions about Trump’s vow to “drain the swamp.”
“The pitch during the election was that the swamp is too swampy and that the working class is being ignored, and that corporations are shipping their jobs overseas,” said Jon Golinger, an advocate for the progressive consumer group Citizens. “We’ll see if those issues are prioritized, or if it’s just business as usual with the new leaders.”
“Susie Wiles and Pam Bondi are highly respected individuals who have been very loyal to President Trump and the American people who have just been re-elected,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to ABC News. “Pam, Susie and all of President Trump’s nominees will abide by all ethical obligations in their respective roles.”
As Trump moved closer to the White House over the past year, Ballard Partners also signed on big-name clients with key holdings touched by federal politics, including Japanese steel giant Nippon Steel, whose merger Trump and President Joe Biden oppose. , and TikTok, which can be banned unless its owner sells the app to a non-Chinese entity.
Ballard Partners has also been registered as the Japanese Embassy’s foreign agent since last year, earning more than $300,000 for its work so far, according to government filings. According to Justice Department disclosures, Ballard has facilitated meetings and phone calls with reporters and lawmakers on behalf of the Japanese embassy.
President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with the House GOP conference, Nov. 13, 2024, in Washington.
Allison Robbert/Pool via AP
In October, the Embassy of the Republic of Sudan — which is embroiled in a civil war between two factions of its military government that has displaced more than 8 million people and killed 15,000 — signed a $50,000-a-month contract with Ballard. Partners to assist in communications “with U.S. government officials and decision makers,” according to federal disclosures.
“If you’re a business or a government or some other organization, you’re hiring Ballard Partners because you think they’ve opened the door for you,” said Nick Schwellenbach, a senior research fellow at the Project on Government Oversight. “They are deeply connected to the incoming Trump administration at the highest levels, and they stand to benefit significantly.”
“Personal Relations with President Trump”
Ballard Partners quickly established itself in Washington during the first Trump administration after focusing on lobbying Florida officials, including on behalf of Trump businesses. Brian Ballard met Trump years after Trump bought the Mar-a-Lago estate that is now his home, when Ballard wrote Trump a letter praising his 1987 best-selling book, “The Art of the Deal.”
“When the president was elected, a lot of the corporations that we represent in Florida and people from all over the county started calling and saying, ‘We don’t know people in the administration,’ and ‘we’d like to meet some.’ administration people,” Ballard said Tallahassee Democrat in 2017
Ballard Partners declined ABC News’ request for comment for this story.
Ballard Partners opened its first D.C. office in 2017, quickly signing clients and bringing in $9.8 million in in-house federal lobbying revenue that first year, according to disclosures. By 2018, they doubled their revenue to $18.2 million before peaking in 2020 with $24.5 million from internal federal lobbying.
The firm lobbied $1.8 million on behalf of private prison operator Geo Group amid Trump’s crackdown on immigration, and earned $1.64 million from French wine and spirits maker Pernod Ricard, $860,000 from General Motors, $780,000 from Boeing in, $420,000 in Uber, $360. Major League Baseball, and $150,000 from DraftKings, according to financial disclosures.
“Mr. Ballard, the finance chairman of the Republican National Committee and a Trump super-donor, built his company around his personal relationships with President Trump,” House Oversight Committee Democrats wrote in their 2024 “White House” report. For Sale: How Princes, Prime Ministers and Prime Ministers Paid President Trump.”
According to the report, Trump’s businesses received millions of dollars from foreign entities located in 20 different countries during Trump’s presidency. After the report was released, Trump’s son Eric Trump, who helped run the Trump Organization while Trump was president, told ABC News that House Democrats’ “narrative is crazy,” referring to Trump’s voluntary donation to the Treasury Department. offset business profits from foreign entities.
Ballard Partners also made millions working as an agent for foreign countries, striking deals to represent Turkey and Turkish bank Halkbank for $125,000 a month while the US Department of Justice investigated the bank for violating Iran sanctions. The lobbying firm earned $2 million before Halkbank dropped the bank as a client after the Justice Department sued the bank for evading US sanctions on Iran in 2019. Halkbank has pleaded guilty to the charges.
In other foreign lobbies, Ballard Partners represented the Kosovo government in negotiations with neighboring Serbia; He supported the lifting of US sanctions against Zimbabwe; He sought to improve US-Guatemala bilateral relations; and represented an exiled Democratic Republic of Congo opposition leader.
As a registered foreign agent, Bondi represented Qatar for work related to anti-trafficking efforts from 2019 to 2020, while Wiles represented one of Nigeria’s major political parties for two months in 2019.
‘Here to Stay’
After netting $24.5 million in domestic federal lobbying in 2020, Ballard Partners gradually lost business as control of power in Washington shifted from Trump to Biden, earning roughly $18 million in 2021 and 2022 from Biden and Biden-linked lobbying. as a company his administration flourished.
“We had a fantastic run, we’re here to stay, but it won’t be the same,” Brian Ballard said. the hill in 2021
But with Trump returning to Washington in a few weeks, Ballard appears poised to benefit from a second wind, including former lobbyists Wiles and Bondi taking top administration posts, according to experts who spoke to ABC News.
“There are a lot of opportunities here for their former companies and their former clients, although there are ethics restrictions,” Canter said of federal regulations that prohibit government employees from working on matters related to their former employer or former clients. in the year
The concern, Canter said, is that the public may not be better served by the arrangement.
“Corporate interests will have priority over the public interest,” he said.
