I'd argue SpaceX is very likely getting into the lobbyist game, too. The major difference is that the United Launch Alliance consists of big defense players whose collective clout and spending on political donations and lobbying makes SpaceX look like a joke.
Also, the top military contractors have been convicted on numerous occasions of deliberately defrauding taxpayers without losing contracts over this behavior. This can only continue to happen if they're being protected by powerful people. The military procurement industry is a notoriously corrupt circle which rewards the largest and most inept, as the Joint Strike Fighter proves.
http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/fraudu...