Grover Norquist attempts to trademark 'K Street Project'

April 14, 2006

Grover Norquist, a conservative activist, is working to trademark the term 'K Street Project'. Norquist feels that Democrats, along with Republican Jay Boehner, have hijacked the term and made it symbolize corruption and scandal, which he says is entirely unrelated to his project, a branch of Americans for Tax Reform.

Norquist states that his project is just a job listing for lobbyists in Washington, as well as a list of political ties or campaign contributions that they may have. Originally founded in 1989, the goal of the K Street Project was to correct the imbalance that Norquist saw in lobbyist's political views in Washington.

Norquist later stated: “Some people say Kleenex when they mean tissue. We will jealously guard the real phrasing the way Kleenex and Coca-Cola do. We will sue anyone who says it wrong and make lots of money.”

A spokesperson for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said, "Republicans can call it anything they want. It doesn’t change the fact that every single Republican is responsible for enabling and benefiting from a K Street Project that puts their cronies ahead of the American people."