Trump-Tied Ballard Partners Becomes the Highest-Paid Lobbying Firm in D.C.
The firm, which employed Attorney General Pam Bondi and other Trump administration officials as lobbyists, saw its lobbying revenue skyrocket by 300% year-over-year.
Etienne Note: This article also appears in “Government”, Media and Academia Criminality Exposed, A digest of HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS of articles exposing and suggesting inter-generational organized crime's control of the "Government," Media and Academia by the Art of Liberty Foundation. You can view the other articles or subscribe on Telegram: https://t.me/Government_Scams
Ballard Partners, a lobbying firm deeply tied to President Trump and members of his cabinet, has surged to become the highest-paid lobbying shop in Washington D.C. The firm’s lobbying revenue skyrocketed by 300% in the second quarter compared with the previous year, making it the top-earning lobbying shop for the first time ever.
Founded by Trump campaign bundler Brian Ballard, the firm was paid $20 million for lobbying in Q2, dethroning the perennial leader Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck. The haul was an increase of over 40% from Q1 and brought its total this year to nearly $34 million. The company’s founder and top lobbyist was a leading fundraiser for Trump in 2024, bringing in a reported $50 million for the president’s comeback bid.
Ballard Partners is one of a trio of Trump-tied lobbying firms that smashed their records for lobbying revenue in the second quarter of this year, raking in cash from clients like defense contractor Palantir and private prison company GEO Group that hired them after Trump’s election in November. The firms also include Miller Strategies and Continental Strategy, whose founders were Trump campaign fundraisers and advisers.
Ballard Partners formerly employed as lobbyists White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, from 2011 into 2022, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, from 2019 until her confirmation in February. If Ballard were to maintain this pace of lobbying revenue in the second half of this year, it would challenge the record for annual earnings by a firm, OpenSecrets found.
Ahead of the inauguration this year, Ballard threw a party near the White House, showcasing his proximity to power. In March, his firm was temporarily iced out of the White House, shunned after he pressured Trump to post a Truth Social note that helped a Ballard cryptocurrency client, unbeknownst to the president; he made peace with the White House in May.
Ballard's top-paying client this year has been TotalEnergies, which registered it to lobby in February for a liquified natural gas (LNG) project in Mozambique, spending $550,000. Several more new clients have jumped to become among the firm's top 10 highest-paying clients. Law firms Kirkland & Ellis and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett—ostensibly targeted by the Trump administration over their policies on diversity, equity and inclusion—tapped Ballard in March and together have paid the firm $800,000, seeking advice on employment practices.
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