--- title: "American League of Lobbyists To Name New Leader" id: "14581" type: "post" slug: "american-league-of-lobbyists-to-name-new-leader" published_at: "2012-11-27T17:21:53+00:00" modified_at: "2026-11-09T19:19:52+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2012/11/27/american-league-of-lobbyists-to-name-new-leader/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2012/11/27/american-league-of-lobbyists-to-name-new-leader.md" excerpt: "Monte Ward, the group’s likely new president, is expected to take a tough stance against Obama administration rules on lobbying." taxonomy_category: - "Advocacy" taxonomy_post_tag: - "Advocacy" - "AssociationsNow" - "Business" - "Lobby" - "Regulations" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "Executive Team" taxonomy_persona: - "Executive Leadership" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » American League of Lobbyists To Name New Leader When the trade group that represents lobbyists chose its new leadership Tuesday, the new president they chose is ready to go toe-to-toe to protect the industry’s interests. > We need to defend our First Amendment rights to petition the government. I will continue to do that, because I think we should have those rights. The [American League of Lobbyists (opens in a new tab)](http://www.alldc.org/) (ALL), which held its annual meeting in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, approved a new slate of officers, including a new president, Monte Ward of Advanced Capitol Consulting, [who was unanimously approved (opens in a new tab)](http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2012/11/marlowe-to-step-down-as-head-of-american-league-of-lobbyists.html) . Ward replaces Marlowe & Co.’s Howard Marlowe, who has led the organization for two years. Ward’s plan, if elected? He plans to fight to push back the Obama administration’s regulations on the industry. [Speaking to The Hill, Ward explained his stances (opens in a new tab)](http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/269461-lobbying-groups-next-president-expected-to-fight-white-house-rules) . Highlights from the interview: **What his predecessor did right:** “One of things that Howard has done so well has been to defend our profession so well against the Obama administration,” Ward told *The Hill*. “We need to defend our First Amendment rights to petition the government. I will continue to do that, because I think we should have those rights.” **What the Obama administration is doing wrong:** According to Ward, the biggest problem is that the regulations created by the administration for lobbyists registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act—most notably, rules that [ban lobbyists from federal advisory boards (opens in a new tab)](http://associationsnow.com/2012/09/court-upholds-ban-on-lobbyists-on-federal-advisory-boards/) —have actually hurt transparency. “Some of the actions taken by the Obama administration have caused several people to deregister, which has a negative effect on the transparency process that all of us want,” Ward told the newspaper. **What Ward would do to fix things:** ALL has offered up a number of self-regulatory solutions for lobbyists in an effort to improve transparency, such as broadening the registration requirement to include anyone at an independent firm who contacts a government official. “You have people out there who are lobbying but don’t technically fit underneath the law or they are trying to sidestep it. … We need to lower that threshold,” Ward said. Think Ward can make an impact? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. [Ernie Smith](https://associationsnow.com/author/ernie-smith/) Ernie Smith is a former senior editor for Associations Now. 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