National Affairs: To Win Friends . . .

To Win Friends.....

A lobbyist is paid to win friends—pick up luncheon checks, wangle World Series tickets, give cocktail parties—and thus to influence legislation. For such services, 256 organizations paid a record $8,000,000 last year, the Congressional Quarterly reported last week. Biggest spender for the second year in a row was the American Medical Association, which lavished $1,522,683 on "public education" and lobbying activities against the Administration's compulsory health insurance bill. Other big spenders:

¶ Committee for Constitutional Government (founded by Publisher Frank Gannett, it Gannett, it lobbies for lower-taxes, less Government spending) : $620,632. ¶ National Association of Electric Companies (the power lobby): $388,883. ¶ United World Federalists: $291,672. ¶ Townsend Plan lobby: $285,371 (for nine months).

¶ Citizens Committee on Displaced Persons: $222,809. ¶| Association of American Railroads: $194,159. ¶ National Small Business Men's Association (which the House Small Business Committee charged last week is really a front for big business): $192,070. ¶ National Milk Producers Federation (the butter lobby): $178,161. ¶ National Association of Real Estate Boards (against public housing and rent control): $138,600.

¶ Colorado River Association (a lobby for California water interests, which fought the Arizona reclamation project approved by the Senate last week) : $115,120. ¶ National Association of Margarine Manufacturers: $101,037.