Stopped laughing

U.S. Pressure Weakens G-8 Climate Plan (WP)
"Bush administration officials working behind the scenes have succeeded in weakening key sections of a proposal for joint action by the eight major industrialized nations to curb climate change."

Lobbying from Within (NYT editorial)
"Whereas the word lobbyist once connoted those who hung around in lobbies to buttonhole powerful politicians when they emerged from the inner sanctums, these modern-day lobbyists occupy the inner sanctums themselves."