Working throughout the weekend before the Feb. 23 event, AARP lobbyists e-mailed with senior Labor staff members, trading spreadsheets that ranked guests in two tiers of priority. The first level included Richard Trumka, head of the AFL-CIO, Cornell Brooks, CEO of the NAACP and Lee Saunders, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
Congressional aides were also considered.
“My preference with any seats that open up is to make sure we can add Hill staff,” wrote AARP’s Martin Firvida, adding that her “top priority” would be somebody from Democratic Senate Leader Harry Reid’s office, followed by an aide to Senator Charles Schumer of New York.
Obama’s appearance at AARP resembled a campaign rally. Appearing on a stage with Perez and Massachusetts Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, he fired up the crowd with references to financial advisers who “receive backdoor payments or hidden fees for steering people into bad retirement investments.”
26,000 Signatures
Once the plan was released, AARP stayed in close touch with the Labor Department.
In late April of 2015, for example, Martin Firvida reached out to senior Labor Department officials to discuss a petition drive in support of the rule. The group had generated 26,000 signatures backing the plan and wanted Labor’s advice on how to maximize the visual impact of 52 reams of paper being dropped off at the agency by volunteers in AARP t-shirts.
“We will take your direction on what type and size box in which you would like those,’’ Martin Firvida wrote.
In an e-mailed statement, Martin Firvida said AARP has made “countless petition drops” on a variety of different issues and closely coordinates with the government because many federal “facilities have understandably enhanced security.”
‘Grassroots Support’