Mercury Public Affairs, a high-powered lobbying firm with deep ties to New Jersey politics, has drawn criticism for hiring operatives with checkered ethical records and maintaining close relationships with disgraced politicians.
The firm’s recent decision to bring Democratic fundraiser Samantha Maltzman onto its advisory board has renewed scrutiny of Mercury’s role in what critics call a corrosive culture of influence-peddling.
Maltzman, a longtime agent of Senators Cory Booker and Bob Menendez, was fired from Organizing for Action in 2014 after she accepted a $100,000 donation from Dr. Joseph Piacentile, a convicted felon seeking a presidential pardon, and tried to obscure its source by redirecting the check through a dark-money group.
Despite that controversy, she remained a fixture in Democratic circles, working for Sen. Cory Booker during his vanity campaign for president and later raising money for Sen. Bob Menendez’s legal defense fund following his 2023 corruption indictment.
Booker testified in Menendez’s defense during his first bribery and corruption trial. The Hudson County politician was convicted in the second case and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
The lobbyists are closely connected with the corrupt politicians.
Mercury’s New Jersey practice is led by Michael Soliman, a longtime Menendez ally who chaired the senator’s campaign while also lobbying for Qatar. During that period, Soliman arranged meetings between Qatari officials and Menendez, then the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Although Soliman pledged not to lobby Menendez directly, ethics experts said his dual role blurred the lines between his responsibility to the senator and his obligation to a foreign client.
Qatar, which has faced international criticism for labor abuses and ties to extremist groups, was paying Mercury $155,000 a month. Menendez has since been convicted of acting as a foreign agent for Qatar and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
Qatar also gifted the US government with a $400 million super luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet, widely viewed as a bribe for President Donald Trump’s use.
Another partner, Mo Butler, has maintained a reputation as a respected figure in New Jersey politics, serving as Booker’s former chief of staff and sitting on boards at Montclair State University and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.
But his affiliation with Mercury — which represents foreign governments and corporate clients seeking access to policymakers — has drawn questions about how the firm leverages his credibility to burnish its image. Butler now advises clients in industries such as real estate, healthcare, and infrastructure, many of which he once helped oversee in government.
Mercury Public Affairs, which not long ago was embroiled in a foreign lobbying scandal, has not only survived the crisis but, with Trump team ties and bipartisan ex-lawmaker, it has morphed into one of the fastest-growing practices in Washington.
Its lobbying receipts jumped 58% last year, the most among firms with at least $10 million in reported revenue, according to data compiled by Bloomberg Government.
With almost 40 new clients so far this year, the firm shows signs of more growth ahead as businesses clamor for connections to the administration and Congress during volatile policy fights.
The firm’s ties to Booker, Menendez, Soliman, Butler, and Maltzman illustrate what government watchdogs say is a troubling pattern: foreign clients and political machines exploiting lax lobbying rules to gain influence, while operatives with histories of questionable conduct remain in demand because of their fundraising skills and political connections.
Menendez’s network, which included Maltzman and Soliman, continued to operate even as the senator faced repeated corruption allegations. His son, Rep. Rob Menendez Jr., benefited from the same donor base and consultants, fueling criticism that New Jersey’s political system remains dominated by machine politics and well-connected insiders.
Ethics experts argue that the Mercury model underscores systemic failures in oversight.
The Foreign Agents Registration Act requires lobbyists for foreign governments to disclose their work, but does not prevent them from simultaneously working on political campaigns. Revolving-door restrictions are minimal, and fundraising prowess often outweighs concerns about integrity.
Mercury’s defenders argue that the firm plays by the rules and that its operatives are skilled strategists. But critics counter that the firm thrives in a culture where blurred lines between government service, lobbying and campaign work make it difficult for the public to distinguish who is serving voters and who is serving paying clients.
Reform advocates say the episode highlights the need for stricter lobbying laws, tougher penalties for ethical violations, and stronger transparency requirements for political fundraising.
Without meaningful change, they warn, firms like Mercury will continue to operate with impunity while public trust in government erodes.