Travaglini confirms he will establish a lobbying firm with his lawyer

Just hours after his resignation yesterday, former Senate president Robert E. Travaglini confirmed that he is pursuing a career as head of a public strategy firm that will represent clients before local and state government agencies.

Travaglini, breaking his silence on his plans, said he wanted to join with his lawyer, Thomas R. Kiley, to establish a business in which he could use the skills he developed as Senate president.

"'I am inclined to be partnering with Tom Kiley in a situation that would allow me to be my own boss and allows me to build a business and allows me to continue to use the talents of negotiations on behalf of clients who need help with government entities," Travaglini said after handing over the Senate reins to Therese Murray, a Plymouth Democrat.

But Travaglini, who received a barrage of accolades from his colleagues and friends for what many consider a successful tenure as Senate president, ran into flak from the state's leading good-government watchdog group, Common Cause of Massachusetts.

Pamela Wilmot, the group's executive director, acknowledged that Travaglini's plan passes legal muster, but said it only increases public cynicism when legislative leaders decide to cash in on their political connections.

"The revolving door is something that has concerned us for a long time," Wilmot said. "It happens at all levels of government, here in the state and [at] the federal level."

She cited the many former legislative leaders and officials from past administrations who were wandering the hallways and attending Murray's reception in a room off the Senate chambers.

"You look around this building, and it is full of them," Wilmot said. "It is one of the things that makes the public cynical about government and the profession of lobbying.

"It is unfortunately a reality of political life these days that these people can make big bucks through their connections, and that is very attractive when you have been living on a government salary."