The Hightower Report

The Downturn Hits High-Dollar Sports

Times are hard. How hard? So hard that Tiger Woods just lost a $7.5 million sponsorship contract he had with Buick for 2009.

Of course, the gabillionaire golfer will be all right, but it's a sign of the times that even those in the high-dollar world of professional sports are feeling the financial squeeze as corporate sponsors withdraw support. For example, the ultimate event of extravagant sports commercialism – the Super Bowl – is only weeks away, yet several of the pricey 30-second television spots for this spectacle are still unclaimed by advertisers.

Especially hard-hit these days is one sport whose competitors literally wear corporatization on their sleeves: NASCAR. Drivers and their cars are covered in assorted corporate logos, becoming roaring billboards for everything from GM to M&M's. Indeed, corporate dollars typically account for 80% of a NASCAR team's budget, with various companies putting up about $10 million each to sponsor a team.

Auto companies have been big NASCAR backers, and scoring a victory on the circuit can actually boost the sales of the brand that got the checkered flag. "What wins on Sunday," the saying goes, "sells on Monday!" But these days, with Detroit automakers in line for taxpayer bailouts, names such as Ford and Dodge are bailing out of some of their NASCAR sponsorships. In a bizarre twist of financial gamesmanship, some racing teams are now turning to Wall Street speculators to get the capital they need to stay in the race.

Meanwhile, coming full circle, Citibank is paying $20 million a year to the owners of the New York Mets to emblazon its corporate logo on the team's new stadium. Yes, this is the same bank now getting a $45 billion bailout from us taxpayers.

So, seeing how we're paying for it, shouldn't Citi Field really be named Taxpayers' Field?

Lobbyists Change Their Stripes

One word defines the 2008 political year: Change!

People are demanding real change, and Barack Obama rode their demand right into the White House. So, no doubt you'll be delighted to learn that even Washington lobbying firms are responding to the change mandate. How? The Washington corps of corporate influence peddlers is switching from Republican lobbyists to Democratic lobbyists.

Let's all shout, "Big whoopie!" shall we?

Pity the poor Republican lobbyists. They had corner offices on K Street, million-dollar salaries, and a lifetime supply of tassel-toed loafers – but suddenly, bam, they're out the door, replaced by Democrats who couldn't even get in the door a couple of years ago.

For example, Richard Hunt's Republican head is still spinning. He was riding high as chief lobbyist for Wall Street investment firms. Then, only one week after the election, Hunt was booted. His chair now belongs to Michael Pease, a Democrat who had been a top aide to Rep. Barney Frank, who just happens to chair the House Committee that handles legislation affecting Wall Street firms.

And there you have the true motivation behind the "change" on K Street: access. The 13,000 corporate lobbyists that infest Washington like to claim that they do honorable work by presenting expert information to lawmakers. Get real. They're paid the big bucks by their clients because of who they know. It's all about cashing in on their old-boy insider ties. "Access trumps expertise," concedes one of the insiders.

So, with Democrats ascendant, "change" demands a changeover in the lobbying cast. The head of one Democratic firm says corporate interests are calling him to say, "We are clueless [about how to get access to the new government], so help us."

The more some things change, the more they stay the same.