About Us

At Bedrock Advocacy we provide real-time, live advocacy action to influence public and lawmaker opinion. We have decades of experience managing winning campaigns at every level. Community. State. National. Global.

Legislative and regulatory challenges can disrupt business agendas and destroy corporate reputations, but also create opportunities to open new markets and gain competitive advantage.

Our team is comprised of industry leaders in research, communications, advertising, digital engagement, and grassroots organization. We are experienced campaigners, working in politics, government, corporate, and consulting firms.

Our national network of grassroots pros is drawn from across the ideological, political, and demographic spectrum. We match our local teams to the issues and the constituencies we need to reach to maximize the impact of every action taken and every dollar spent.

Bedrock Advocacy Leadership

Bernie Merritt started his career in political operations where he gained the foresight of constituency involvement and issue advocacy to affect public change. He worked on Capitol Hill and then moved on to assist and direct several political campaigns and committees, eventually working on a presidential campaign at the senior level. After working on a presidential campaign and spending time at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Bernie understood the benefit of using political operations to assist in corporate and association legislative battles both at the national and state levels.

Bernie joined up with fellow campaign veteran Jim Weber to create the Weber Merritt company and he became one of the original pioneers of grassroots and grass-tops public affairs campaigns, utilizing a national field organization to connect and engage political constituents on public policy issues.

Bernie has designed and led advocacy campaigns for corporate clients, industry associations, and special interest groups on regulatory and legislative matters at all levels of government—federal, state, and local. He’s managed hundreds of winning grassroots advocacy campaigns over the past two decades for a wide range of industries, including energy, environment, manufacturing, health care, education, and technology.

In the past, he has served as a City Council member and held leadership positions in town government. He is married to his long-time wife Nancy and has 2 grown daughters.

Jim has worked in key positions at all levels of government.  He was chief of staff to the minority leader in the Minnesota House of Representatives, Political Director in the Governor’s office, press secretary to a Member of the US House of Representatives, and a Chief of Staff on the Senate side.  But, before all that, he was a newspaper editor and publisher, putting out a weekly newspaper in southwest Minnesota, and a printer.

His career in political communications and consulting goes back to his days as a field operative with the Minnesota GOP where he worked with legislative races all across the state.  From there, he went on to manage Congressional races and eventually move to Washington DC and a stint on Capitol Hill as a press secretary.  From the Hill, he went to the National Republican Congressional Committee as Regional Field Director, then to Kemp for President as Regional Political Director, and then on to set up his own political consulting practice.  In that capacity, he helped elect and reelect the first-ever Republican Governor of Mississippi along with other Governors and Members of Congress.

In 1994, he teamed up with fellow Kemp for President alum Bernie Merritt to start Weber Merritt Grassroots Communications.  WM operated successfully for over 20 years and was involved in many of the biggest campaigns launched by business interests nationally.  Relying on their campaign organizing backgrounds, Jim and Bernie based their company’s founding principle on the belief that “local” interests if channeled properly, can forcefully affect public policy. Over the years, they added other practice areas to make it a full-service public affairs firm.  In addition, Jim was one of the founding partners of Qorvis Communications, a successful Washington based public relations firm.  Today, Jim is a partner of Bedrock Advocacy Communications, a full service “best in class” public affairs firm.

Throughout a diverse career in public affairs, corporate communications, and advertising, Phil has earned a national reputation as a counselor and strategist on reputation and issue management, brand strategy, crisis communications, and political advocacy.

Phil has deep, hands-on expertise in devising and leading integrated campaigns around the world. He has represented companies from multiple categories, including financial services, technology, consumer packaged goods, automotive, telecommunications, energy and the environment, health care, and airlines.

His clients have included Mercedes-Benz, Becton Dickinson, Allstate, DuPont, UPS, Northrop Grumman, Unilever, Kia Motors, and Pfizer; many trade associations, including the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the Information Technology Industry Council; multiple NGOs; and several federal government agencies.

Phil consults with clients facing reputational challenges including labor-management disputes, product recalls, on-site incidents, law enforcement actions, environmental incidents, and civil disobedience.  He works with law firms on civil and criminal litigation matters, government investigations, bankruptcies, and restructuring, and has designed crisis communications contingency protocols and models for companies and NGOs.

Currently based in Bedrock’s New York office, Phil spent more than two decades of his career in Washington, and has managed political and policy communications programs for corporate, trade association, and NGO clients on legislative, regulatory, and international trade issues.  He has been a registered lobbyist, political consultant, and government official.

Phil has been an agency leader and executive for more than 30 years. He was previously COO for Zeno Group, a Daniel J. Edelman company, based in New York. Prior to Zeno Phil was EVP at Euro RSCG, a global communications company; managing partner at Earle Palmer Brown, a national advertising agency; and senior vice president of Hill and Knowlton.

Phil started his career in politics and served as a political appointee in the Department of Defense as a speechwriter, and as deputy assistant secretary for public affairs for the Department of Education.

Phil received a Bachelor of Science degree from the School of Journalism at the University of Iowa. He has been a guest lecturer at the American University School of Public Affairs and a member of the Counselors Academy of the Public Relations Society of America. He has received numerous professional awards for his campaigns, including the Silver Anvil from PRSA and the Gold Sabre from the Holmes Report.

Lee has been leading organizations globally in brand and marketing strategies including corporate, non-profits, associations, NGOs, and government agencies. With a strategy-first mindset, he helps brands integrate their business goals into their brand story so they effectively engage with their audience.

Lee is a rising leader as a social media advocacy expert. He understands the social media landscape and multi-generational user behavior and helps organizations reach their demographics with influential campaigns. Lee currently leads social advocacy and digital campaigns for Bedrock clients.

Lee has worked with clients across different industries including Bristol Myer Squibbs, John Deere, Hitachi, FEMA, HON, The Department of the Interior, Stratford University, Food Marketing Institute, USA Rice Federation, and Rock the Vote.

He served on The American Council for Technology (ACT) and Industry Advisory Council (IAC) Website Advisory Committee and led digital strategy workshops for conferences and organizations.

Prior to moving to Washington DC, Lee spent several years as a counselor at Youth-Reach Houston, a foster group home for at-risk teenage boys. Through his mentorship, many of the boys have become college-educated, family men who give back to their community.

Lee holds a B.A. in Fine Arts from Greenville University. He resides in Virginia Beach with his family.

Christopher A. Smith specializes in taking complex public policy issues and finding ways to communicate them in clear and simple terms to the public, the media, and policymakers. He has spent over a decade leading advising clients on financial services and markets, asset management, tax, trade, and business strategy for C suite executives from the Fortune 500, sovereigns, trade associations, and NGOs.

Chris brings the unique perspective of having participated in government policymaking at the highest levels in both the Executive and Legislative branches, as well as internationally.  Chris was previously Chief of Staff to U.S. Treasury Secretary John W. Snow, and Counselor to the Treasury Secretary.  He oversaw the Department’s operations, and worked on major tax and entitlement reform legislation, financial markets policy, housing finance reform, terrorism finance, as well as international economic diplomacy efforts, which included Brazil, Russia, India, and China. Chris received the Alexander Hamilton Award, the highest honor of the Treasury Department.

Prior to Treasury, Chris served on Capitol Hill on the staff of the House Committee on Ways and Means, including as Chief of Staff for Chairman Bill Archer.  He coordinated the day-to-day operations of the committee’s professional staff in developing major tax reform legislation and in the areas of international trade, welfare reform, Social Security, and health care. He was a key participant in legislation implementing major trade agreements, including the Uruguay Round and North American Free Trade Agreements.

Chris received a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree from The George Washington University.  He also received that program’s Distinguished Alumni Award, and is currently a member of the Advisory Board for the Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration. He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration. Chris received a BA degree in economics from Dickinson College.

Christopher is a seasoned and adept government affairs professional and registered federal lobbyist. Over three decades of government service, Christopher has overseen multiple congressional activities and served various Members of Congress. During his tenure, Christopher has served in committee leadership and senior-level positions in both committee and personal offices. Christopher transitioned from federal service to the private sector and is an advisor at Bedrock Advocacy Communications. He has advised multiple Fortune 500 companies, such as Barclays, Microsoft, and the United Arab Emirates [UAE].