This is John Batch, a conversation with the investigative reporter for the New York Times,

Ken Vogel, his new book, The Devil's Advocates, about lobbying in Washington for unsavory regimes around the world.

In this instance, it tells the story of Robert Strick, a lobbyist who is being paid very handsomely by Somalia in 2018,

and actually travels to Mogadishu with some concern for his own safety.

It's a funny story that sets up funny stories about the wild place called Washington, D.C.,

and the lobbyists who work for unusual and unacceptable sovereign

states. More of this tonight. Here's Ken Vogel to tell the story so far of going to Mogadishu

as a lobbyist. Yeah, I think you said it up pretty well there, John.

The Somalis are nervous that the spigot of U.S. foreign aid and U.S. military aid is going

to be shut off under the Trump administration.

Of course, Trump came in with this America First agenda, you know, suggesting, I mean, suggesting he's outright stating that he was going to scale back foreign aid because...

This is first term. Still first term.

Yes, correct. The first term. This is actually still 2018. I think it's late 2018. And so the government of Somalia is quite nervous about this. And it's pivotal to their,

you know, continued existence and ability to fight off these terrorists, these Islamic terrorists,

who are threatening the, you know, the government of Somalia. They need U.S. support and

assistance and military assistance

and training. And so the possibility that they might lose that spurs them to look for someone

who could help them improve their relations with Washington under Trump. And they turn to Robert Strick and they sign his firm, Sonoran Policy Group,

to a contract that's worth $100,000 a month to do that.

That's a pretty good contract.

And so Strick prides himself on not being one of these lobbyists who just sits around in,

you know, an expensive Italian suit at Cafe Milano,

...