Corporate Angst on Capitol Hill

For most of the past six years, being a business lobbyist in Washington has been a cushy assignment. In the laissez-faire atmosphere created by the Reagan Administration, Congress seemed unusually reluctant to put new legislative shackles on America's corporations. But now that the Democrats have regained control of the Senate and the White House's power has been weakened by Iranscam, business finds itself on the defensive. Corporate lobbyists are fighting a bevy of labor-supported bills that might be beneficial to workers but would impose new costs and burdens on corporations. Says Dirk Van Dongen, president of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors...