Credit Union Lobby Polishes The BigApple

NEW YORK - (09/04/05) -- From midtown to lower Manhattan, andall points in between, the credit union lobby--CUNA, NAFCU, thestate leagues, and dozens of credit union executives—wereseen darting from reception to reception during the RepublicanNational Convention this week, imprinting the credit union brandamong the GOP faithful. The CUNA team, alone, led by President DanMica and top lobbyists John McKechnie and Gary Kohn, attended morethan 100 events. “More than anything, this is really anopportunity to renew relationships and expand relationships andshow our support for the members of Congress who have supported usin the past,” Mica told The Credit Union Journal during oneevent. “This was a great way to meet with people, many of thesame ones we see in Washington, on a more relaxed basis,”said Bill Donovan, chief lobbyist for NAFCU, of the 30 or so eventssponsored by or attended by NAFCU representatives. For CUNA, whichhas been sending a team to the national party conventions foryears, this year marked to a new level of involvement. CUNA and itsaffiliates, including the leagues, and U.S. Central CU, probablyspent as much as $250,000 on Convention activities, and a similaramount on the Democratic Convention, according to Richard Gose,political director for CUNA. “It was money well spent,”he said.