Mercury Strikes Again

One of the murky situations in Washington is the cozy relationship that repressive governments around the world – governments that persecute Christians and other religious believers – have with the lobbyists on K Street. One of the murkiest of those relationships is that of lobbying firm Mercury Public Affairs, LLC with the militant Islamist Government of National Accord (GNA) in Libya.

You might remember Mercury from its connection to former Trump campaign advisor Paul Manafort. But you might not remember the GNA from its connection to the militants that attacked the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi.

After the tea and sympathy with the lobbyists, contracts get signed. Then begins the program to reach out to the State Department, Congress, and even The White House and to dissuade them from such paltry concerns as religious persecution and human rights. And to forget the leaders of the GNA’s connections to Benghazi. After all . . . at this point, what difference does it make?

On June 12 of this year murky Mercury updated its Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) paperwork. Its FARA now includes its work on behalf of the Government of National Accord (GNA) in Libya. The GNA is one of the factions claiming the right to national power in that North African country.

Some reporting indicates that Mercury received 2 Million USD for their services that reach back to April 26, 2019. At that time, when Mercury started representing the GNA, there was uncertainty regarding which Libyan political and military faction would gain the support of the Trump Administration. Would it be the GNA, or would it be the LNA (Libyan National Army) led by Field Marshall Khalifa Haftar?

One question that begs to be asked is how did the GNA become involved with a prominent Washington lobbying firm? The answer is that this is a benefit – and not a fringe one – when both of the GNA’s major backers on the world stage are important clients of that firm. In this case the military group’s backers are Turkey, which has deployed ground units and has introduced fighters from Syria, and Qatar, which has had many issues with its neighbors on the Arabian Peninsula over recent years. Mercury lobbies for both of those nations.

Besides Turkey and Qatar the firm has represented autocratic regimes such as Cameroon.

Since 2017 that country has been the scene of underreported but deadly conflict between the Francophone government and the Anglophone community in the southwest. Mercury was contracted not by the government of Paul Biya, but by a private company within Cameroon (but “funded, controlled, and supervised by the Cameroon government”).

Recent filings indicate that Mercury’s new clients include the Zimbabwe Government and the Separatist movement in the Biafra region of Nigeria. It seems like the murky lobbyists have some skilled people who use their talents for some unsavory people around the world and charge a very pretty penny for their efforts.

Access to Washington has been the dream of every opposition party or insurgent group for decades. It seems that if you have the right ally the access becomes yours very quickly, even if you persecute religious believers, burn churches, and/or attack U.S. diplomatic posts. DC lobbying firms emerge from the murkiness with reputations that are honorable or dishonorable depending on from whom they are willing to take money. Their FARA filings tell the story.