Washington – Slowly but surely, the government is getting Googled.
Two years ago, the Google staff in Washington was one person – Alan Davidson, an expert in technology law. Now the staff numbers a dozen, including lobbyists with close ties to both parties, and several other lawyers and lobbyists on retainer.
“I’ve never seen a tech company ramp up faster then they have in the last year or two – they’re using all the tools in the lobbying tool kit,” said Ralph Hellmann, a top lobbyist for a tech trade association.
Google’s Washington office keeps growing to do old- fashioned lobbying along with projects that live up to the Google brand, such as pushing for greater access to government records.
Google lawyers and lobbyists try to protect the company’s ever-expanding products and acquisitions from antitrust challenges. They defend the company’s business dealings in China and other countries that censor the Internet.
And they recently succeeded in their complaint with the Justice Department that Microsoft’s Vista operating system was anti-competitive. After first dismissing the complaint, Microsoft agreed to make changes in Vista to make it easier to use non-Microsoft search programs.
This fall, Google will move from Pennsylvania Avenue to more spacious quarters near the traditional K Street corridor of lobbying shops. Its brand is also becoming more visible.
On Capitol Hill, top Google operatives give “Google 101” cram courses to staffers on Web- based tools to help constituents and make their bosses look good. Senators returning from Iraq now use Google Earth and Google Maps to give multimedia presentations on their trips.
As presidential candidates make the high-visibility pilgrimage to the “Googleplex” in Mountain View, Calif., contributions from Google employees quietly help boost the campaigns of congressional candidates. Early donations are important to give “momentum” to candidates who support an open Internet, company lobbyist Jamie Brown explained.
Google’s Washington team has also jumped into the hot- button debates on immigration, net neutrality and presidential politics, launching a new public-policy blog designed to raise Google’s profile and get more input from users.
The overall goal for Google “is to bridge the gap between the innovative things Google is doing and the policy-makers who are trying to keep up with all the new technology,” said Adam Kovacevich, Google spokesman in Washington.
“We’re trying to approach government in a ‘Googley’ way – some things we’re doing are traditional and some aren’t,” he said.
This is not easy to do, said one Internet analyst, Micah Sifry, who closely follows online politics.
He sees a culture clash, with a constantly evolving company that has become a global symbol of innovation laboring in a political world that is hidebound and inefficient.
Much of Google’s work in Washington is explaining what the company does, how government can use its tools, and reminding policy-makers that many small businesses rely on the search and advertising giant.
Some of Google’s most recent hires will deal with specific issues and disputes.
Makan Delrahim, a former top antitrust attorney in the Bush administration, is on retainer to defend Google’s proposed $3.1 billion acquisition of the digital ad firm DoubleClick, which will be reviewed by the Federal Trade Commission.
One new hire, Johanna Shelton, worked as a senior counsel for Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich. and chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. That’s the committee that handles almost every business issue that could affect Google.
Shelton has worked on copyright legislation, a huge issue with Google and its subsidiary YouTube in disputes with publishers and entertainment companies.
