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After a gentle reminder that it's not the only bloated, power-hungry behemoth in the nation, Google decided that it's not above politics after all. (Hanging out with Gavin Newsom didn't count.) So the "we may be huge but we're quirky and indie" company sighed, rolled up its sleeves, and hired some Washington lobbyists (pictured).

The Information Technology Industry Council told the New York Times that lobbying "doesn't have to be a system that makes you embarrassed to talk to your mother about."

Coincidentally, that's the new tagline for Google Base.

Google Joins the Lobbying Herd [NYT]