Francis Brooke is a veteran American Republican political operative and lobbyist with a career spanning Capitol Hill staff roles, international advocacy, and high-stakes public relations. Early in his career, he worked as a legislative aide to Representative Cass Ballenger (R-NC) and later served as communications director for Senator Trent Lott (R-MS) during Lott's tenure as Senate Majority Leader in the late 1990s and early 2000s. From the mid-1990s through the Iraq War, Brooke served as Ahmad Chalabi's chief Washington representative and the Iraqi National Congress (INC)'s primary DC lobbyist. In 2002, he founded The Brooke Group, a lobbying firm focusing on government affairs for foreign entities, including controversial clients such as the government of Equatorial Guinea under President Teodoro Obiang Nguema. For this regime, Brooke orchestrated media campaigns to improve its image in Washington despite its poor human rights record, drawing widespread criticism from journalists and activists in the mid-2000s. Brooke has been accused of using aggressive tactics to influence U.S. policy and media narratives, particularly in the lead-up to the Iraq War. He has maintained a low public profile since, occasionally appearing in conservative media outlets.