Is the Obama administration’s system of crony capitalism and political payoffs breaking up?

PhRMA has canned their chief lobbyist, Billy Tauzin

Caterpillar, BP and Conoco have dropped out of the (finally flummoxed) Climate Lobby, U.S. Climate Action Partnership.

The Financial Times notices that lobbying was bigger than ever in 2009, spending a total of $3.47 Billion, despite President Obama’s “promise to rein in the pervasive influence of lobbyists in government”.

Wal-Mart is feeling some heat from shareholders for lobbying in favor of the Democrat Party’s healthcare plans (and supposedly stifling union organization)

Even the Huffington Post is catching on, with the best flush out of the insider trading between the Obama administration and PhRMA.

But don’t think that Obama’s donors are being forgotten, here’s 20 of the 47 top donors (over $500K) to the Obama campaign getting appointed positions.

RAISED MORE THAN $500,0000
Nicole Avant	Ambassador to the Bahamas
Matthew Barzun	Ambassador to Sweden
Don Beyer	Ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein
Jeff Bleich	Ambassador to Australia**
Richard Danzig	Member, Defense Policy Board
William Eacho	Ambassador to Austria
Julius Genachowski	Chairman of Federal Communications Commission
Donald Gips	Ambassador to South Africa
Howard Gutman	Ambassador to Belgium
Scott Harris	General Counsel, Department of Energy
William Kennard	Ambassador to the European Union**
Bruce Oreck	Ambassador to Finland
Spencer Overton	Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General
Thomas Perrelli	Associate Attorney General
Abigail Pollack	Member, Commission to Study the Potential Creation of a National Museum of the American Latino
Charles Rivkin	Ambassador to France and Monaco
John Roos	Ambassador of Japan
Francisco Sanchez	Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade
Alan Solomont	Ambassador to Spain and Andorra**
Cynthia Stroum	Ambassador to Luxembourg**

The media is starting to pay attention, but the Obama administration is still at it.