The revolving door is endemic to Washington, where government officials regularly cash in on their expertise and connections. The sheer number of congresspeople who become lobbyists or senior advisors upon departing the Hill clearly illustrates this reality. While the promise of the private sector’s bounty is undoubtedly appealing, some members also seek avenues to profess and spread their values and political positions (these avenues are ultimately funded by private sector interests anyway). Many Trump acolytes, for example, have spent the Biden years at organizations like the Heritage Foundation, Conservative Partnership Institute (or one of its many subordinate organizations like the American Accountability Foundation), and the typical list of right wing affiliated think tanks.
Others have come up with more creative (read silly and antidemocratic) landing spots. Enter Oberheiden, a smaller DC-based firm founded by Dr. Nick Oberheiden, a licensed full-time, criminal defense attorney (and part time Republican donor), which specializes in compliance, white collar crime, and government related law (audit, internal investigation, etc).
Standard boilerplate language, right? But it obscures one of the law firm’s current focuses: helping Republicans dishonor Congressional subpoena requests. With its roster of high profile right-wing attorneys, which includes two former Congressmen Mike Pompeo and Trey Gowdy, Oberheiden has committed itself to the cause of obstruct the congressional oversight process. It’s a hypocritical, but unsurprising, turn for Gowdy in particular, whom you might recall led the lengthy Benghazi probe a decade ago.
It’s equally amusing that Pompeo has gone from Secretary of State to the face of a tacky call us website, but he and Gowdy’s employment here is a reminder of the hoops Trump and his goons will go through to subvert justice and good government.