Several Bush officials work in areas related to former jobs

WASHINGTON -- More than one in four members of President George W. Bush's Cabinet have landed jobs with consulting or lobbying firms in which they can help clients navigate the departments they once oversaw, a USA TODAY analysis shows.

Michael Chertoff, who served as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) until January, launched a consulting business two months ago to provide "risk-management advice" to private companies and governments. His predecessor, Tom Ridge, also is a security and crisis-management consultant.

Former attorney general John Ashcroft has registered as a lobbyist and runs a firm whose clients include software giant Oracle, which was the subject of a Justice Department anti-trust case during Ashcroft's tenure.

In all, 10 of the 34 former Cabinet secretaries who served during Bush's eight years in office have registered as lobbyists or joined consulting or lobbying firms, the analysis shows. Others sit on the boards or work for industries they regulated. For instance, Gale Norton, who once oversaw 500 million acres of public land as Interior secretary, now is a lawyer in a Shell Oil division for oil exploration.

It's not unusual for former executive branch officials to find employment related to their government work. A 2003 study of 100 top Clinton administration officials by the Center for Public Integrity found that two years after leaving office, more than half represented or worked for entities they had regulated. Nearly one in five had worked as lobbyists — who can directly lobby members of Congress and the administration.

Two-year lobbying ban

Danielle Brian, executive director of the Project on Government Oversight, said the movement of top officials to consulting and lobbying jobs shows "they are cashing in on their public service."

"No one is saying they shouldn't go into the private sector," she said, "but they shouldn't take advantage of the relationships they created while in government."

Federal law imposes limits on the contacts that former top executive branch officials can have with their former colleagues, including a two-year ban on lobbying on any issue that they worked on during their final year in government. But there are no restrictions on them serving as consultants and advising clients on the inner workings of their former departments and agencies, including how to secure government contracts.