What Did He Tell Tbilisi?
John McCain’s top foreign policy adviser, Randy Scheunemann, has for years been an essential conduit for the relationship between the United States and Georgia, the former Soviet republic that has been pounded by the Russian military for the past week. He was Georgia’s top lobbyist in Washington until earlier this year. He has taken leave from his lobbying firm, Orion Strategies, but he is still listed as president of in the firm, which has received nearly $900,000 from the Embassy of Georgia since 2004. Scheunemann is tight with the Bush administration and many neoconservatives in Washington’s foreign policy establishment. A former aide to Sen. Trent Lott (R-MS), Scheunemann also has easy access to lawmakers like McCain, whose office Scheunemann has lobbied directly in recent years. For the Georgia government back in Tbilisi, having Scheunemann on the payroll in Washington has been empowering. “Randy Scheunemann is at a vital nexus…and it made Tbilisi feel as if it was wedged into t
