Two consumer groups have lined up to oppose President Obama’s pending appointment
of Google’s Andrew McLaughlin as deputy chief technology officer in the
White House. In a letter to Obama, John Simpson, consumer advocate at Consumer Watchdog (formerly the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights), and Jeffery Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy,
said McLaughlin’s position as Google’s director of global public policy
violates the intent of the president’s ethics rules to stop the
revolving door between lobbyists and the executive branch. From the letter:
We do not object to Mr. McLaughlin’s appointment because he
is associated with Google per se. The problem is that he has been a
lobbyist for the biggest digital marketing company in the world, and we
believe no special-interest connected person should assume a position
of vital importance to the country’s future. It would be just as
inappropriate for a lobbyist from Microsoft, Yahoo! or any similar
technology company to be appointed deputy chief technology officer.It would be just as inappropriate for a lobbyist from Microsoft,
Yahoo! or any similar technology company to be appointed deputy chief
technology officer.
The Center for Digital Democracy’s Chester said in a press release:
No lobbyist or special interest political operative from
one of the leading Internet companies should be placed in such a key
position where they can influence technology policy. Appointing someone
from a Google (or Microsoft, AT&T, etc.) lobbying shop to this
position sends the wrong message – that the well-connected can still
make a quick trip to the White House through a special interest
revolving door. The goal of the Obama administration to use new
technology to improve how the government works requires someone whose
background ensures they can make independent decisions that will
benefit all Americans.
