Media Mentions
2008
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in the September 8 issue of the Washington Business Journal and the September 9 issue of the Baltimore Business Journal in articles regarding the effect the government takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will have on businesses in the Washington, D.C. area. Mr. Ryan noted that companies paid to lobby the government are likely to lose business. "I don't think the government receivers are going to have any interest in paying for lobbying. There are certain law firms, strategic advisers and [public relations] firms whose meal ticket just ended, in so far as they depend on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as clients," he said. Mr. Ryan added that there are also questions about how creditors will be paid. "The first duty of any lawyer is to get paid for the work they do. And I think people will be very interested in finding out if the government intends to do that."
Stephen M. Ryan, Corporate, Government Strategies
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in the August 1 issue of the Washington Business Journal in an article regarding a July 30 federal housing law that makes explicit the government's backing of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and creates the Federal Housing Finance Authority to regulate government-sponsored enterprises, or GSEs. Mr. Ryan noted that while the new law makes important changes, it leaves many questions unanswered. "It's untenable to have an incomplete answer to the question: What is the relationship between the GSEs and the government? I don't think this bill answers that. It was just a Band-Aid over the implicit guarantee," he said. Mr. Ryan also responded to the call by many for Fannie and Freddie to become either fully private or fully public institutions. "They will always be hybrids, just more clearly defined hybrids," he said.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in the April 28 edition of Security Fix, a Washington Post blog, in an article regarding the alleged hijacking of IP space by e-mail marketers closely associated with Scott Richter, an alleged spammer who has been sued by both Microsoft and MySpace. Scott Richter is the CEO of Media Breakaway, a company that Spamhaus claims hijacked IP space from San Francisco Bay Packet Radio. Spamhaus claims that the IP space should be revoked under the rules set out by the American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN). As ARIN's General Counsel, Mr. Ryan said, "The matter has come to ARIN's attention, it is under review, and at this point I can't say more except that we're looking at it very diligently."
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in a February 15 article published by Newsday regarding the potential federal investigation into whether Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee committed perjury, witness tampering and obstruction of justice at a recent congressional hearing. As a partner in McDermott’s Government Strategies Practice Group, Mr. Ryan discussed the likelihood that federal prosecutors would initiate investigations into incidents that allegedly occurred in their jurisdictions. "It was the equivalent of a nuclear explosion going off; [a prosecutor] can't look away," he said. Mr. Ryan noted that while Clemens' decision to testify was a mistake, it may be hard to criticize the baseball player's need to clear his name. "You're not Roger Clemens, and you have not won seven Cy Young Awards," he said.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen Ryan was quoted in a January 11 article published by PR Newswire regarding Free File Alliance's launch of its 2008 free tax preparation services for Americans. As the Alliance's lawyer, Mr. Ryan commented on the benefits of the Alliance's public-private partnership with the Internal Revenue Service which has allowed the Alliance to provide six years of free tax preparation services for Americans with low and moderate incomes. "This unique partnership between government and private sector companies provides very real and significant benefits to poor and disadvantaged taxpayers. It also keeps government out of tax preparation, protecting taxpayer privacy and promoting private sector innovation and competition," Mr. Ryan said.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
2007
Stephen M. Ryan was mentioned in a November 1 article published by The New York Times regarding Blackwater Wordwide's hiring of some of the top Washington, D.C. lawyers in order to mount an aggressive legal, political and public relations counterstrike. Mr. Ryan is one of Blackwater's lawyers due to his reputation as being one of the top white collar defense lawyers as well as his experience as a former general counsel of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies, Trial, White-Collar Criminal Defense
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in a September 26 article published by the Los Angeles Times regarding the State Department's decision to intercede in the Blackwater probe. Mr. Ryan commented on the letter sent to a senior Blackwater executive ordering the company "to make no disclosure of the documents or information" regarding its work in Iraq without permission. "In the fluid setting of a congressional hearing it may become difficult, if not impossible, for Blackwater personnel to meet the terms of the State Department finding," Mr. Ryan said.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Contracts and Public Procurement, Government Strategies
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in a September 26 article published by the Washington Post regarding Rep. Henry A. Waxman's allegation that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is interfering with a House committee investigation into the Iraqi government and the activities of the Blackwater security firm. Mr. Ryan, an attorney for Blackwater, has been working on a separate hearing in which he directed the company "not to disclose any information" regarding its Iraq security contract without prior department authorization in writing. "This contractual direction from the DOS is unambiguous," Mr. Ryan said.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Contracts and Public Procurement, Government Strategies
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in an August 11 article published by The National Journal regarding the current surge of federal investigations into allegations of public corruption by members of Congress and other officials. Stephen commented on the media attention that has helped to build the momentum behind this trend. "I think the current crop of cases is a reflection that you have to follow the evidence when the evidence is on the front pages of the newspapers," Mr. Ryan said.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies, White-Collar Criminal Defense
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in a June 18 article published by Business Week regarding the decreasing supply of Internet Protocol addresses. Mr. Ryan, General Counsel for The American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN), commented about the organizations recent campaign trying to persuade legacy holders to deposit unused addresses into a public pool. "There is a moral imperative here. (Legacy holders) have a duty to think about the community's interest as well as their own," he said.
Stephen M. Ryan was quoted in a June 9 article published by The National Journal regarding attorneys representing corporations and political figures that are facing scrutiny from investigative entities. Mr. Ryan stressed the difference between preparing a witness for a hostile oversight proceeding and taking a client before a hill committee. "On the toughest oversight and investigation hearings, we may spend three days preparing for just three hours [of testimony]" Mr. Ryan explains.
Stephen Ryan was quoted on May 21 and May 28 in Information Week regarding the impending Internet address shortage. "Unless action is taken now, a quiet technical crisis will occur, not unlike Y2K in its complications, but without a fixed date or high level public attention."
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen Ryan was quoted in the April 30 Federal Times on the Justice Department lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for Eastern Arkansas against Accenture, Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen Ryan was quoted in the March 25 The New York Times on the Justin Berry pro bono case.
Stephen Ryan appeared on NPR's All Things Considered on March 23 to discuss the relationship between the IRS and commercial tax preparation software providers.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen Ryan was named as one of Government Technology Magazine's "Top 25 Doers, Dreamers and Drivers" in the March 2007 issue.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen Ryan was quoted in the Star Tribune on February 23 regarding the Rochester Coalition and Mayo Clinic's lawsuit requesting copies of the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad's financial records from the Department of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration under the Freedom of Information Act. Mr. Ryan was also quoted on this topic in Kiegers Notebook - Rochester Post Bulletin, Platts and Progressive Railroading.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen Ryan was quoted in the February 12 issue of Roll Call regarding The United Transportation Union's addition to a coalition opposing a proposed expansion project for the Dakota Minnesota & Eastern Railroad. "The organizations opposed now demonstrate an ideological range - from a key AFL-CIO railroad union whose worker's safety is at stake to groups like Citizen's Against Government Waste and the Frontiers of Freedom Foundation," he said. "Stay tuned for a very large uptick in Members from every area of the country who will be joining the coalition."
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen Ryan was quoted in the February 7 issue of The Boston Globe regarding the widow of a Navy pilot's suit against Raytheon.
Stephen M. Ryan, Government Strategies
Stephen Ryan was quoted in Government Computer News (GCN) on February 5 regarding the Defense Department receiving its Ipv6 addresses from the American Registry for Internet Numbers (ARIN). "When an existing customer has an IPv4 agreement, all they have to do is request v6 addresses and pay for the service. There is no need for a new agreement." He also notes "When people pay for this, they are paying for a service, DOD or anyone else will not own the numbers, but have the right to use them for as long as the contract remains in force and the department needs them."
