It also got him noticed in Washington, where he became Ronald Reagan’s White House political director in 1985 and later an adviser to George H.W. Bush’s presidential campaign. In 1991 he hung out his own shingle, founding Mr. Barbour, Griffith & Rogers, now one of D.C.’s powerhouse lobbying firms; then he served as Republican National Committee chairman from 1993–97. He chaired the party when it won a congressional majority for the first time in 40 years and he shared in the credit.