Despite new rules designed to reduce the influence of big money in politics, the cover charge to play in Washington, D.C., only increased in 2004.

In the wake of the BCRA, which you will recall was intended to limit campaign spending, Lisa Lerer of The American Lawyer researched campaign spending by lobbying law firms in and around Washington D.C. The upshot: spending by the primary lobbying groups shot up by more than 8 million, roughly a 35% increase.