NRA hires fourth lobby firm

Ball Janik registered last week as a lobbyist for the National Rifle Association. The firm’s Erica Rhoad, once a staffer to former congressmen Bob Schaffer and Richard Pombo, is working for the group.

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That makes four outside lobby shops representing the organization, which is itself a registered lobbyist.

The NRA reported spending $875,000 on direct lobbying activities in 2007. It paid outside firms approximately $280,000. (Amounts are reported to the nearest $20,000.)

The three other firms representing the NRA, with the amounts reported for 2007:

· Scheunemann & Associates - $20,000
· Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal LLP - $80,000
· Ogilvy Government Relations - $180,000

Randy Scheunemann, founder of Scheunemann & Associates, is chief foreign policy aide to the McCain campaign. He was also founder of the Committee for the Liberation of Iraq. Wayne Berman, managing director of Ogilvy, is an avid McCain supporter.

The NRA also exercises political muscle through its PAC, the NRA Political Victory Fund, which has collected more than $7.7 million this election cycle.

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