Antitrust one of many issues that kept Google lobbyists busy – Roll Call

Klobuchar, whose father was a newspaper columnist, sponsored a bill that advanced out of the Judiciary panel in September to enhance local news outlets’ ability to negotiate together with Google and Facebook for more advertising revenue. 

Lobbyist ties to Portman

Google lobbied on that bill and more than 40 others in the House and Senate, covering topics ranging from artificial intelligence to workplace diversity between October and December, according to its most recent report to Congress as required by the Lobbying Disclosure Act. The first topic cited, on the second page of the 19-page report, was “regulation of online advertising.” Other issues included “regulation and antitrust law, domestically and internationally” and “Openness and competition in online services and devices.”

Though he is not currently registered to lobby, Mark Isakowitz runs U.S. government affairs and public policy for the company. He joined Google in 2019, after serving as chief of staff to then-Sen. Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican who retired at the beginning of this year. Isakowitz was a longtime lobbyist before that, working years at the lobby shop formerly known as Fierce, Isakowitz and Blalock (now Fierce Government Relations). 

Karan Bhatia, a former deputy U.S. Trade Representative during the George W. Bush administration including when Portman served as U.S. trade representative, is Google’s global head of government affairs and public policy. 

In-house Google lobbyist Seth Webb, who worked for Republicans including Portman on Capitol Hill and is the contact on Google’s most recent lobbying filing, did not respond to a request seeking comment. Google’s press team also did not respond to an email inquiry.