Exclusive: Lebanese Billionaire Lawmaker's Pipe Company Hires Former Vance Middle East Adviser to Lobby Washington

A U.S. pipe manufacturer owned by the holding company of Lebanese billionaire and lawmaker Fouad Makhzoumi has hired Continental Strategy, a lobbying firm founded by a Trump-era ambassador, with a former Middle East adviser to Vice President JD Vance listed as its lobbyist, according to a lobbying registration reviewed by The Digital Free Press.

The registration, filed under the Lobbying Disclosure Act and signed Nov. 4, 2026, names Future Pipe Industries LLC of Houston as the client. It lists one lobbyist, spelled "Wessam Hassanein" on the form, whose prior government post is given as "Special Advisor to the Vice President." The registration took effect Oct. 1.

What the Filing Says

The form describes the client's business as "fiberglass pipe manufacturing" and its lobbying issues as "issues related to U.S. composite pipe manufacturing and energy infrastructure." It checks six issue areas: trade, manufacturing, clean air and water, energy, fuel, and the federal budget. It does not name any bill, agency or official the firm plans to contact.

In the section on foreign entities, the filing lists Future Group Holdings SA SPF, at 231 Val des Bons-Malades in Luxembourg, as owning 100% of the client. In the form's column for the foreign entity's "amount of contribution for lobbying activities," it enters $100,000.

The registration does not disclose Continental Strategy's fee. Lobbying firms report their income from each client in quarterly reports; the first report covering this engagement, for October through December, is due in January 2027.

Continental Strategy filed at least seven new lobbying registrations on Nov. 4 and 5, including this one, according to the Senate's lobbying disclosure database.

Fouad Makhzoumi and Future Pipe

Makhzoumi's official website says Future Pipe Industries Group "is now wholly owned by Future Group Holdings" and that he has been executive chairman of Future Group Holdings since 1982. Future Pipe Industries, a maker of composite pipe systems for water and energy, is headquartered in Dubai.

The same website says Makhzoumi was elected as an independent member of Lebanon's parliament from Beirut's second district in 2018 and again in 2022, and lists him as chairman of the Lebanese-Emirati Parliamentary Friendship Committee and a member of the parliament's finance and budget committee.

The Lobbyist

Continental Strategy's website says Hassanein is a vice president at the firm who "most recently served as Special Advisor to the Vice President for the Middle East, where he led policy development for high-level diplomatic engagements and advised on regional security strategy." The firm says he previously served as chief of staff to the State Department's Policy Planning Staff and was the department's "lead expert on U.S.-UAE Gulf relations."

Turkey's Anadolu Agency reported in March that Hassanein, Vance's special adviser for the Middle East, was leaving the White House for Continental Strategy. Anadolu described the firm as founded by Carlos Trujillo, an ambassador during President Trump's first term.

The filing is a public disclosure and does not allege any wrongdoing. The Digital Free Press found no news report on this engagement beyond routine listings of new registrations.

Sources: Lobbying Disclosure Act registration (LD-1), Continental Strategy, LLC for Future Pipe Industries LLC, signed Nov. 4, 2026, effective Oct. 1, 2026 (https://lda.gov/filings/public/filing/2337dcbc-f81c-4240-9bd4-ae391d1e18c0/print/); Fouad Makhzoumi official website, "Businessman" (https://fouadmakhzoumi.com/en/about/businessman) and "Deputy" (https://fouadmakhzoumi.com/en/about/deputy) pages; Continental Strategy, Wesam Hassanein biography (https://www.continentalstrategy.com/wesam-hassanein); Anadolu Agency, March 23, 2026 (https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/us-vice-presidents-mideast-advisor-leaves-white-house-/3876437); Future Pipe Industries (https://futurepipe.com/). Cover photo: Fouad Makhzoumi in Beirut, September 2024, by Ibrahim Amro / European Union, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0).