Who's Footing Allawi's Lobbying Bill?

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The Barbour, Griffith and Rogers (BGR) lobbying firm "is talking to the Justice Department about how to amend its foreign-agent filings after department lawyers questioned whether the firm had adequately disclosed who was paying" for the $50,000 per month contract with former Iraqi prime minister Ayad Allawi. IraqSlogger first reported on the contract, and has since posted parts of it online. The contract is with Allawi and is signed by him, but is being paid by "two Iraqi supporters," according to Newsweek. Allawi refused to name his supporters, saying if he did, "They may be killed by the Iranians, they may be killed by the sectarian people." To comply with U.S. law, BGR may name Allawi's party, the Iraqi National Accord, as their client, instead of Allawi himself. The contract with BGR, an influential firm with White House contacts, has raised suspicions of "an attempt by Allawi and his backers to undermine and ultimately topple the Iraqi government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in the corridors of Washington, rather than through the political process in Baghdad."