New Facts: Senate Aide Exposed As Lobbyist for Major Firms

Robert Skjonsberg, a senior adviser to Sen. Mike Rounds, has simultaneously been a registered lobbyist in South Dakota for more than a dozen outside clients. His state lobbying registration dates to 2023, after running Rounds’ 2014 campaign and serving as his chief of staff from 2015 to 2022 before moving into a senior adviser role.

Clients include Meta, Altria, the Freedom Foundation, the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, and the South Dakota Dairy Producers and Pork Producers. His government-affairs firm, 605 Strategies, lists him as co-owner and founding member, but the firm does not appear on his lobbying paperwork.

After Skjonsberg registered to represent Meta last year, Rounds introduced several measures on artificial intelligence, including a plan to create a commission to study AI’s impact on the workforce. Rounds, who helps oversee agriculture spending, also pushed bills affecting farm groups Skjonsberg lobbies for, such as opening new grazing land and limiting purchases of U.S. farmland and agribusiness by entities tied to foreign adversaries. Contracts with AEM and Meta ended in March when the South Dakota legislative session ended.

AI-synthesized from multiple reported sources