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TechnologyDaily Mobile
Going, Going, Gone From EBay
by Bara Vaida
After four years, eBay's top lobbyist and associate general counsel for world public policy is leaving to start his own consulting business called Technology Policy Associates.
Brad Handler, who has been based in eBay's headquarters in San Jose, Calif., started at the company when there were only 35 employees and helped build its public policy team, including opening a Washington office. "When I started, there were just 35 brave souls trying to sell the world on the idea of online trading. Participating in the evolution and growth of Pierre's original idea has been an honor," Handler said in an e-mail to colleagues, referring to eBay founder Pierre Omidyar.
Handler said his consulting business will focus on companies facing political, policy or regulatory risks, and eBay is his first client. In addition, he plans to teach a course at a local university. Meanwhile, Tod Cohen, who is eBay's Washington counsel, will replace Handler.
Senate Confirms NIST, PTO Chiefs
The Senate on Friday confirmed Arden Bement, most recently a distinguished professor of nuclear engineering and head of the school of nuclear engineering at Purdue University, as director of the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
Bement joined Purdue in 1992 after a 39-year career in industry, government and academia. He has served as vice president of science and technology for TRW, deputy undersecretary of defense for research and engineering at the Office of Materials Science in the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, and professor of nuclear materials at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, among other positions.
Phil Bond, the undersecretary for the Technology Administration, which oversees NIST, said last week that he wants to increase the agency's profile. "The addition of Arden Bement completes a stellar tech team for the Bush administration," Commerce Secretary Donald Evans said in a statement.
The Senate also confirmed former Rep. James Rogan, R-Calif., as director of the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO). Rogan, a high-profile House prosecutor in the Senate's 1999 impeachment trial of then-President Clinton, won confirmation without dissent. Along with gaining national attention for his role in the impeachment trial, Rogan became the Democrats' top target for defeat in the 2000 campaign. He lost the election to Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.
The Senate also confirmed Randall Kroszner to be a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA). The three-member council studies economic trends and advises the president as he draws up his policies. Kroszner has been a professor at Chicago's graduate school of business since 1990, and he was a junior staff economist at the CEA from 1987-1989.
New To The Bush Administration
Meanwhile, President Bush nominated Naomi Churchill Earp to be a member of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Earp is currently the executive diversity adviser for NIST. From 1994 to 2000, she was director of the Office of Equal Opportunity for the National Institutes of Health.
Another new face in the administration is Jennifer Millerwise, Vice President Richard Cheney's deputy assistant for communications and press secretary. Before joining the administration, Millerwise was regional press coordinator and spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee's Victory 2000 and press secretary to Rep. Porter Goss, R-Fla.
In other Bush administration news, the White House is tentatively planning to announce the members of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) on Dec. 12. President Bush is expected to attend an event unveiling the group, which is to be co-chaired, by venture capitalist Floyd Kvamme and John Marburger, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Silicon Valley Still Enthusiastic For Politics
Republicans in Silicon Valley last week launched the New Century Leadership Circle at the home of Ellen Hancock, former chairman and CEO of Exodus Communications, the San Jose Mercury News reported.
The group is meant to compete with the fundraising prowess of the New Democrat Network, the political arm of moderate Democrats, which has built relationships with many Silicon Valley executives. More than 150 people, including Listen.com CEO Rob Reid and Red Herring Communications Vice Chairman Chris Alden, attended the reception. Venture capitalist and Bush tech adviser Kvamme is an adviser to the group, the paper reported.
Also in the valley, TechNet, the bipartisan lobbying group, is hosting a Dec. 11 panel discussion on the role of e-government. Republican Colorado Gov. Bill Owens, Sonia Arrison, director of the Center for Technology Studies at the Pacific Research Institute, and Mark Boyer, director of Cisco Systems' Internet Business Solutions Group, are expected to participate.
Before the event, TechNet is arranging a fundraiser for Owens, to be co-hosted by Cisco CEO John Chambers and National Semiconductor CEO Brian Halla. On Dec. 10, TechNet also is helping arrange a fundraiser for Democrat Steve Westly, a former eBay senior vice president of sales and business development. He is competing to become California's controller. And TechNet Texas is scheduled to host a fundraiser for Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.
A fundraising event scheduled for Senate Majority Leader Thomas Daschle, D-S.D., and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee on Dec. 11 was rescheduled because the Senate is expected to be in session then.
Corporate Movers
The Petrizzo Group, a government relations firm, has named Scott Lane as a new lobbyist. Before joining the firm, Lane was head of government affairs at the American International Automobile Dealers Association, and before that he was the director of the office of legislative affairs at the National Automobile Dealers Association. Petrizzo represents the Electronic Industries Alliance and Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen's Vulcan Inc., among other clients.
In other corporate moves, BellSouth has reorganized its domestic operations, which will be led by Vice Chairman Gary Forsee. Forsee currently is the chairman of BellSouth and president of BellSouth International. In addition to his new role, Forsee will continue to serve on the board of Cingular Wireless, where he is also chairman.
Meanwhile, both current BellSouth Vice Chairman Jere Drummond and Charlie Coe, the president of network services, have announced that they are retiring at the end of the year. Ralph de la Vega, president of broadband and Internet services, will become president of BellSouth Latin America operations. And Richard Burns, currently the network vice president for Georgia operations, will replace de la Vega.
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