I already knew Democrats were well-connected to Wall Street and, specifically, Goldman Sachs. But I didn’t know former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt (D-MO) is actually a lobbyist for the latter.

From a Politico piece entitled “Democrats haunted by corporate ties”:

President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats are promising a climactic clash with Wall Street, but there’s a complication in their battle plan: The Democratic Party is closer to corporate America — and to Wall Street in particular — than many Democrats would care to admit.

Former White House counsel Greg Craig has just signed on as an institutional Sherpa for Goldman Sachs, the iconic financial firm facing fraud charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Former House Democratic leader Dick Gephardt lobbies for Goldman Sachs, Visa and the coal industry. Former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle — Obama’s first choice to head Health and Human Services — is an adviser for a lobbying firm that represents Charles Schwab, Comcast, Lockheed Martin, Verizon and a host of other corporate interests.

The article goes on to mention that White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and Attorney General Eric Holder both pulled down hefty salaries lobbying for major corporations, including one “described as the Democratic Enron”. But let’s concentrate on Gephardt momentarily.

Apparently he has quite the lobbying resume. His gigs include the increasingly-Islamist Turkish government, Boeing, Enterprise Rent-a-Car, Visa, Peabody Energy, and — yes — Goldman Sachs. In fact, he’s reported to have pulled in $2 million through his lobbying group Gephardt Government Affairs…in just two years.

Not too shabby for a guy reportedly considered for the vice presidential slot on the Democratic ticket  just two years ago, huh?

Now, this isn’t to say Republicans steer clear of Wall Street, though the largest recipient of Goldman Sachs cash in 2008 was Barack Obama and not John McCain. (Goldman Sachs is donating 69% of its political dollars to Democrats this year, as opposed to a whopping 75% to Democrats in 2008.) But Republicans aren’t simultaneously attacking big business and demanding additional regulation. They’re open about their connections to the market.

They’re not being hypocrites, in other words:

Sensing partisan advantage, Obama — a onetime Wall Street favorite who raised nearly $1 million from Goldman Sachs employees for his 2008 campaign — has been blasting away at Republicans, most notably Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who opposes the current Senate version of an overhaul of financial services regulation.

“Now, the Senate Republican leader, he paid a visit to Wall Street a week or two ago. He took along the chairman of their campaign committee. He met with some of the movers and shakers up there,” Obama said at a Monday night fundraiser for Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.). “I don’t know exactly what was discussed. All I can tell you is when he came back, he promptly announced he would oppose the financial regulatory reform.”

Obama’s suggesting that it was the meeting with Wall Street executives that convinced McConnell (R-KY) to oppose the financial regulation reform proposals. Really? McConnell is a conservative Republican in a year when opposing big government policies is politically beneficial. And Obama thinks it took a meeting with Wall Street to convince the Senate Minority Leader to oppose the latest big government proposal?

Going back to 2008, Obama’s biggest donor list included employees of Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, Google, Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, Time Warner, UBS, IBM, Morgan Stanley, and General Electric. Does he really want to point fingers when it comes to political ties with Wall Street? I’m sure Republicans are more than willing to have that back-and-forth.

By the way, you know who was holding a private cocktail reception with Wall Street donors on the same night Obama blasted McConnell? White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. He was trying to convince investors to continue backing Democrats with their big checkbooks. And Obama has the nerve to go after McConnell for meeting with executives.