I find it interesting that so many would condemn Trump for beginning to play the DC game while simultaneously laughing at him for lacking the DC game when it comes to delegate wrangling.
It is not necessary to hire D.C. lobbyists to have a ground game for delegates. This is what happens when you hire thugs to run your campaign. Trump can no longer spout off that he is not in bed with lobbyists.
It’s not so interesting. It’s just political machinations. Trump is not hiring whoever he’s hiring to lobby. He’s hiring political campaign staffers to represent him in the Byzantine GOP rules committee. Not to lobby the government.
By the OP’s new definition of a lobbyist, anybody who hires a lawyer for their campaign is hiring a lobbyist.