In an unprecedented decision, US corporate heavyweights doing business in India, under the aegis of the US-India Business Council, have hired Patton Boggs, one of the leading and most expensive lobbying firms in Washington, DC, to help push through the US-India civilian nuclear agreement in the US Congress.

According to the annual National Law Journal, Patton Boggs charges the highest firmwide median billing rate of $495 an hour.

In its new assignment, the firm will work with the two firms hired by the Government of India -- Barbour, Griffith & Rogers, headed by former US ambassador to India Robert Blackwill, and the Venable Law firm -- at an annual cost of over $1.3 million to the Indian taxpayer -- to launch a concerted campaign to convince US lawmakers.

Complete coverage: Indo-US nuclear tango

In announcing the hiring of Patton Boggs, the USIBC, which has nearly 100 Fortune 500 companies among its members that do business in India, said, "We strongly feel that the fate of the strategic partnership between the United States and India, as embodied in the Joint Statement signed by President Bush and Prime Minister Singh on July 18, is key to the overall US-India relationship and thereby our respective business interests. This is a debate in which the USIBC must be engaged.'

'Patton Boggs's objective will be to help ensure enactment of legislation needed to permit the US to pursue full-scale civilian nuclear cooperation with India, recognizing that India is a democracy that enjoys a flawless record on non-proliferation,' the Council noted.

USIBC also disclosed that `to complement USIBC's advocacy effort on Capitol Hill, the US Chamber of Commerce, comprising of three million American companies, has agreed to host the Coalition for Partnership with India -- serving as the convenor and umbrella organisation to help coordinate the efforts of like-minded parties who strongly support a positive outcome of this legislation.'

It noted that Lt General Daniel Christman, senior vice president, of the International Division of the US Chamber of Commerce, would chair the Coalition for Partnership with India and the administration of the Coalition would be supported by Vickery International and The Lichfield Group.

A full-scale rollout of the Coalition is expected when Congress returns in January.

`This initiative will advance historic legislation that benefits the United States and India -- and the interest of our member companies -- while fortifying the nuclear non-proliferation goals and objectives,' the USIBC argued.

USIBC President Ron Somers told rediff-India Abroad the unanimous decision to hire Patton Boggs had been signed off by USIBC Chairman Charles `Chip' Kaye, who is also the co-president of Warburg Pincus LLC, the `godfather' of the USIBC, Frank Wisner, former US ambassador to India and vice-chairman (external relations) of the American International Group, and the rest of the executive committee of the organisation's board of directors.

He said pushing through the nuclear deal in Congress would be USIBC's "top priority" in 2006.

Explaining the rationale behind the hiring -- a first in the USIBC's 36-year history -- to lobby Congress to push a proposal that has yet to be submitted to the lawmakers by the Bush Administration, Somers said, "We want to be able to consolidate US industry's voice upon Capitol Hill so that our legislators are aware of the interest that US companies have in ensuring the passage of this important legislation."

"It's the most important thing that we could be working on for democracy for the 21st century," he said. "This is the alignment of two democracies for the 21st century."

Taking exception to the contention that it might be overkill for the USIBC to also engage a lobbying firm, since the government of India has already engaged two for the same purpose, Somers said. "Of course, the government of India has every interest to be pushing from their side and the US industry wants to be pushing from our side -- more voices pushing and everybody pulling on the same rope. To me, the more voices being heard on Capitol Hill will only help get the message across how important it is that we have civilian nuclear cooperation between our two democracies."

He asserted that the approval of this civilian nuclear agreement is not just important for the sake of the deal by itself, but that it has all encompassing implications that could be the lynchpin as well as the cornerstone of future transformation of the entire gamut of the US-India strategic partnership that includes defense cooperation, military sales, and increased bilateral trade and economic ties.

Somers acknowledged that even "if we do not succeed at achieving the passage of this legislation, commerce between India and the US will continue to grow at 20-30 percent a year. But if we succeed at the passage of this legislation, the opportunities are unimaginable -- the way these two economies will become intertwined and our relationship will grow."

He warned that failure to enact this deal would be a "tremendous let-down, a deep, deep disappointment. It would be a disappointment to US industry as well as to obviously the Indian side. Frankly, trade will always go on because businesses will find ways to make business, but if it succeeds it will change history."

Somers explained that the Coalition for Partnership with India, would bring in all of the different groups and lobbying firms "under the same umbrella on a regular basis to discuss strategies so that there can be some coordination -- so that there will be a concerted effort in all of us in issuing the correct messages and ensuring that we are not repeating one another's tracks and that we are covering all bases."

He said while Patton Boggs has been retained by the USIBC for a considerable amount of money, the organization was "saving the biggest bucks for the last for pushing it over the finish line."

Somers said senior partner of the firm Tommy Boggs would direct the campaign, assisted by another partner, Tom O'Donnell, and claimed that both have experience on India.

But he noted that "part of the understanding is that we will bring to bear the membership constituents of the USIBC, which collectively have over a 1,000 years of experience of doing business in India."

"So we will be leveraging our membership to be working closely with Patton Boggs, to ensure that we are able to get our message up to the right folks on Capitol Hill."