HUZZAHS FROM THE HILL: The Hill has released its list of Washington’s top lobbyists, and 85 out of the more than 400 listed — from Jane Adams of Johnson & Johnson to Bryan Zumwalt of the Consumer Brands Association — are Council members. They’re right up there with such big names as Haley Barbour, Ken Duberstein, Blanche Lincoln, Richard Trumka and Henry Waxman. Nineteen are Council board members.

WELL, WELL, WELL. It looks like Democrats who want lobbyists barred from politics will make some exceptions. They just won’t talk about the lobbying their own people did.

TOO MUCH SUNSHINE? Have we pushed too hard for transparency? When legislators cannot meet in private, trusting that their conversations with colleagues won’t be reported, compromise becomes difficult, if not impossible. When every move is scrutinized to score points, the process of governing breaks down. That’s the argument that critics of transparency make, but new research suggests that it is true at least at the state level. “Legislative deliberation — as we are able to measure [in a number of categories] — appears to function about the same under open or closed proceedings.”

JUST STOP: Too many leaders make the same mistakes in Zoom meetings that they do face to face. They “feel compelled to turn every situation into another opportunity to validate why they’re in charge,” Art Petty writes on Smart Brief. They “answer every question, put forth ideas others are hesitant to disagree with and make snap decisions without providing context.” Make it a New Year’s resolution “to quit being the smartest person in every (Zoom) room.” For better meetings, give others space “to think, solve and, yes, even flail a bit.”

SOPRANOS’ SECRETS: We can learn a lot about running organizations from mobsters. “Mafia bosses do not decide which heists to do,” say the authors of Relentless: The Forensics of Mobsters’ Business Practices, on Dan Rockwell’s Leadership Freak blog. Instead, they “push down almost all the day-to-day decisions to the people on the streets.” Mob bosses also understand the wisdom of “long-term recruiting mechanisms. It’s difficult to get in. You might have to do crime for eight or 10 years before you’re finally admitted to the Mafia,” but it is “a badge of honor to belong.” Plus, there’s an “incredibly strong culture” once you arrive. This, too: “The primary role of the Mafia boss is keeping peace in the family,” which might be easier to accomplish if you can just whack troublemakers. (The Toby Flendersons of the world frown on that.)

WEED: Decriminalization of marijuana — a fringe, even slightly disreputable issue not so long ago — has gone mainstream. In 2019, what Newsweek calls “Big Marijuana” and “Big Pot” spent $11 million on federal lobbying, $3.3 million of it in the last quarter, and some of it on “top K Street lobbying firms.” Almost $5 million has been spent by the Cannabis Trade Federation, the National Cannabis Roundtable and Canopy Growth alone, with notable results: The investment paid off last month when the House voted to decriminalize nonmedical marijuana, and a number of states where it is not legal are considering similar legislation. Note to Newsweek: It’s called weed now, not pot, grass, mary jane, reefer or wacky tobacky.

WORTH READING: Will Ivanka Trump follow her father into the White House? Will Chelsea Clinton succeed hers? Probably not, says David S. Brown, author of The Last American Aristocrat: The Brilliant Life and Improbable Education of Henry Adams. The grandson of John Quincy Adams and great-grandson of John Adams, Henry Adams was an eminent historian and social critic who represented America’s last opportunity to produce a genuine political dynasty. He was in line to become president himself, Adams believed, if what he considered a vulgar and corrupt form of democracy had not denied him his big chance. Adams was also a kind of prophet, warning us — more than a century ago — that our worship of technology that we cannot control would rob us of the spiritual dimension of our lives. Kirkus Reviews calls The Last American Aristocrat a “fresh, top-notch biography of … a distinctive, ever elusive figure in American history.”

LOOKING AHEAD: We’ll be back to normal soon. The economy will take some time to rebound, and some people “might not want to be vaccinated, but the majority will. And I think it’ll start definitely by [fall of 2021]. Definitely.” So says Nikki, “Psychic to the Stars,” quoted by CBS News in New York. Don’t laugh: YouGov reports that 1 in 5 Americans has consulted fortunetellers, and research firm Sensor Tower says nearly $40 million was spent on the 10 top psychic apps in 2019, up from $24 million the previous year. The figures for 2020 aren’t yet available, but we’ll consult our Ouija board and get back to you. We’ll let you know, too, who wins the presidency in 2024.