Qatar brings on Republican lawmakers for new GOP push
Holland and Knight’s new contract says that Republicans on Capitol Hill will be the focus of the lobbying.
Qatar is bringing on two Republican ex-lawmakers for the express purpose of lobbying their former GOP colleagues amid persistent right-wing criticism of Doha as a friend of Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood.
The $35,000-per-month contract with Holland and Knight, obtained exclusively by Al-Monitor, is set to begin on March 1 and has no expiration date. It specifically names former Rep. Tom Davis, a Republican who represented Virginia, as being “responsible for the delivery of services with this contract.” Davis and Tom Reynolds, a Republican who represented New York, have both registered to work on the account.
“The focus of our representation will be Republican members of the US House and Senate but will include other areas as assigned,” reads the contract.
A Holland and Knight spokesman told Al-Monitor, “We’ll be focusing on educating members of Congress on Qatar’s strategic importance to the US diplomatically, economically and militarily.” This is Qatar’s first new lobbying hire of 2020. Holland and Knight will work as a subcontractor for Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, which has a $230,000-per-month contract with Qatar.
