The same Washington lobbyist who led the sub-prime mortgage industry's successful bid to shoot down government efforts to curtail risky lending is now helping pay-day lenders to water down the financial-regulatory reform bill currently before Congress.
Wright Andrews has developed a niche representing some of the least sympathetic and most predatory players in the financial industry. A veteran lawyer-lobbyist and one-time aide to Democratic senator Sam Nunn, Andrews has lobbied extensively of late for a trade association for pay-day lenders -- which offer short-term, high-interest loans to the working poor, often leaving their customers deeper in debt than before. During the last decade, Andrews ran three different trade groups for the sub-prime mortgage industry, whose home loans defaulted in massive numbers to trigger the financial crisis. In addition, Andrews's wife, Washington PR maven Lisa Andrews, was given a top post with a major sub-prime firm. And for good measure, Wright Andrews -- who in 2002 broke with many in the lobbying world by supporting campaign-finance reform -- also did a stint as president of a trade association that represents Washington lobbyists.
Andrews, a South Carolina native, told TPMmuckraker: "I do not comment on client representations." But according to federal disclosure filings examined by TPMmuckraker, his lobbying firm, Buttera & Andrews, has taken in almost half a million dollars over the last two years from the Community Financial Services Association (CFSA), a trade group of pay-day lenders. That was for Andrews's lobbying work on the financial regulatory reform bill, and other legislation affecting regulation of the pay-day lending industry. Andrews has lobbied for CFSA since 2002, the records show.REST AT http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/03/master_of_disaster_the_go-to_washington_lobbyist_f.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TPMmuckraker+%28TPMmuckraker%29
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