Despire Dole's Republican upbringing, Verner Liifert is a Washington law firm with a Democratic inclinations. It is aligned with the tobacco industry, and acts as their main political lobbyists when the Democrats are in power (Barbour Griffith & Rogers is the main Republican lobbyshop) It houses a range of ex-politicians from the more liberal side of politics, including Ann Richards (ex Governor of Texas), George Mitchell (Senate Majority Leader) and Lloyd Benson (Treasury Secretary).

Dole's sign-on bonus alone was reportedly close to $300,000, and on top of this he gets a large retainer. He denies actually working for tobacco, but he lends his name to those who do. In the past, his anti-regulatory zeal has extended to many areas of government surveillance over food (especially meat), drugs, and general health — in support of big business and big agriculture — and he still has influence on cuh matters in the Congress.

His wife, Elizabeth Dole, is now even more politically involved than Bob. She was the Secretary of Transport in the Reagan Administration and became President George HW Bush's Labor Secretary. She is also active in consumer affairs. In 1987, while serving as secretary of transportation, she refused to ban smoking on airplanes, ignoring recommendations from Surgeon General C Everett Koop and the National Academy of Sciences.

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• Verner Liipfert Bernhard McPherson & Hand
• Elizabeth Dole