Posted: 5/18/2010
Hope Is Not a Strategy
What’s the first thing you think of when you hear the word “lobbyist”? If you are like many Americans, pejorative adjectives like “corrupt” or “unscrupulous” come to mind too easily. Americans don’t understand lobbying, and the only example of a lobbyist they have – the incarcerated Jack Abramoff – exacerbates the image. But what are we to do in the face of dangerous legislation that could disrupt the way we do business and impair the insurance industry’s ability to help people and businesses manage risk? Hoping a legislative problem will go away is not a strategy. Lobbying lawmakers to affect change on the other hand is a crucial component of protecting our industry and its vital economic/social purpose.