Supercommittee Includes Lobbyists but Not Public

Much of the work being done by the supercommittee on budget deficit reduction is taking place behind closed doors. While that has raised the ire of the media and government watchdog groups, you won’t hear lobbyists complaining. That’s because they are being kept informed of what’s happening in the hush-hush supercommittee deliberations, Politico reports.

For example, senior aides to Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., who is on the panel, met with several Republican lobbyists Thursday, and one of the topics that came up was the possibility of a the committee coming up with a big compromise on the major budget issues. Two days earlier the committee ignored reporters who waited outside a private, six-hour meeting. The incident involving Kyl’s aides wasn’t an isolated case, according to Politico. Both Democrats and Republicans are keeping lobbyists informed.