The Deep State Wants a Hug

How to Lobby Like Crazy and Make Money by Law
Erscheinungsjahr 2025
ISBN: 978-3-9827799-0-4
Verlag: MB Publishing

Buch, Englisch, 235 Seiten

Cutting bureaucracy? Good luck with that. Rolling back bureaucracy is about as likely as repealing gravity.

This is not a conspiracy book. It’s an entertaining, easy-to-digest guide to how modern democracies grow, regulate, and spend – no matter who wins elections.

The Deep State Wants a Hug reveals how insiders, experts, and consultants have turned policymaking into a profitable business model. It’s smart, funny, and surprisingly relatable – perfect for anyone who’s ever worked with government, or simply wondered why bureaucracy never seems to shrink.

Inside you’ll find unique and proven lobbying toolkits for 20 industries that thrive on THE LAW – from NGOs and lawyers to professors, belief groups, Net-Zero heroes, and technology gurus. Each toolkit shows how public rules become private revenue streams – and how complexity itself becomes a business.

You’ll discover:

• Why most laws never disappear – they multiply
• How bureaucracies survive every reform and election
• How to spot the people who profit from complexity
• Why “temporary” programmes rarely stay temporary

Witty and thought-provoking, this book blends humour with real insight into how political power and money actually flow in modern society. It helps readers see why the public sector never stops expanding – and why, sometimes, the smartest move is simply to understand the game.

What readers say:

“A revelation of how the swamp really operates.” – Germany

“We’re not a democracy, but the institutions are the same – and the messaging isn’t any better. Thanks to this book, at least we can laugh about the Western world.” – China

“Reads like a masterclass in how lobbying actually happens – and why good intentions keep funding bad ideas.” – India

“Way more insightful than I expected – and hilarious in a slightly uncomfortable way.” – United States

“Brilliantly written – sharp, funny, and far too accurate.” – United Kingdom

“I used to think we were becoming more like the Free World. After reading this book, I realised the Free World has been becoming more like us – just with better political communication.” – Russia

Praise for The Deep State Wants a Hug

“I laughed, I lobbied, I invoiced.” – Government Grant Recipient

“This book made me realise I’ve been wasting my ethics.” – Former NGO Director

“I didn’t really know what lobbying was. After reading this book, I know it’s easier than passing maths." – Student

Zielgruppe

Menschen, die täglich mit Regulierung konfrontiert sind – Gründer, Mittelständler, Investoren, Ökonomen. Menschen, die Politik, Bürokratie und Wirtschaft verstehen wollen, aber genug Humor haben, um über deren Absurditäten zu lachen. Leser der ZEIT, NZZ, FAZ Feuilleton, The Economist, Spectator, UnHerd oder Compact Magazine (UK) – also Leute, die keine Parteifahne schwenken, sondern Systeme hinterfragen. Lobbyisten, Thinktanker, Berater, NGO-Mitarbeiter, Beamte, Referenten, politische Stäbe.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Bauer, Matthias

Über Autor(innen)

Bauer, Matthias
Mat Bauer, PhD, is an economist and Director at a leading independent European research institute on global economic, trade, and technology policy.

He grew up in Soviet-run East Germany, where the state held all the shares and laws paid dividends to an increasingly unproductive class – until 1989 went bust.

For decades, he has watched laws multiply faster than rabbits on subsidies. He writes about lobbying, regulation, and the fine art of turning public law into private income.

He lives between Brussels and Berlin, where he moderates panels, collects acronyms, and occasionally even helps shape the very laws and regulations he spends so much time embracing – or criticising.