A prominent human rights organization in Washington has hired a pair of lobbying firms, a move aimed at putting Saudi Arabia and Egypt on lawmakers' agendas as frustration builds over the Biden administration’s handling of the two repressive governments. 

The Freedom Initiative, a Washington-based nonprofit that advocates for political prisoners in the Middle East, has retained lobbyists from BakerHostetler and Neale Creek, according to newly filed disclosures. 

• BakerHostetler will provide “US government advocacy for the release of political prisoners in the Arab world,” according to the filing.
• Neale Creek’s Andrew King will “educate policymakers on the importance of human rights, with a specific focus on political prisoners who have been wrongly detained,” the disclosure said.
• King’s lobbying for the Freedom Initiative is noteworthy, as the former deputy chief of staff to Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) previously represented Saudi Arabia and Egypt.  

Some background: Saudi Arabia and Egypt went on a K Street hiring spree after Biden's 2020 win forecasted a chillier reception for them in Washington. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry signed lobbying powerhouse Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck on a $65,000-a-month retainer, and both Cairo and Riyadh are now repped by Brownstein’s Ed Royce, the former Republican chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.  

“Part of our strategy is to say we have access to those same tools,” the Freedom Initiative’s executive director Andrea Prasow said of her organization’s lobbying push.