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Delivered daily, Influence gives you a comprehensive rundown and analysis of all lobby hires and news on K Street. | | | | | |  | | By Caitlin Oprysko | With Daniel Lippman TOP BANK OF AMERICA LOBBYIST DEPARTS FOR BPI: Ed Hill, one of Bank of America’s top lobbyists, is leaving the bank after more than 20 years to lead the Bank Policy Institute’s government affairs team. Hill was attracted by the trade group’s policy and research-based approach, he told PI, adding that being able to “take their research and analysis and bring it to audiences on the Hill was just too good an opportunity to pass up.” Hill joined Bank of America in 2000, and led several of the bank’s policy initiatives, including relating to Dodd-Frank banking regulations. WILLIAMS & CONNOLLY PARTS WAYS WITH MYANMAR BANK: The Washington law firm Williams & Connolly has ended its lobbying relationship with KBZ Bank, one of Myanmar’s largest private banks, in the wake of a military takeover in the country several weeks ago. KBZ first hired a team of attorneys led by David Aufhauser in August 2019 to represent the bank in Washington after a report from the United Nations Human Rights Council implicated its parent company in the Burmese military’s deadly crackdown on Rohingya Muslims. It was the firm’s first FARA registration in two decades, PI reported at the time. Prior to this month, KBZ was the only Burmese entity registered under FARA, according to a PI analysis of disclosure filings. — According to new documents filed with the Justice Department last week, the firm parted ways with KBZ as of Jan. 31, just a day before Myanmar’s military leaders deposed its de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi and several other members of its democratically elected government, citing alleged voter fraud in a November election. — President Joe Biden unveiled new sanctions on Myanmar last week as a result of the coup and Myanmar’s junta began engaging in a more severe crackdown on civil liberties over the weekend. DOJ filings show the firm was paid more than $507,000 for its services since August 2019. Neither Williams & Connolly nor KBZ Bank, which has posted notices of closures on its website since the coup, responded to requests for comment. Happy Fat Tuesday and welcome to PI. Laissez les bon temps (and les lobbying tips) rouler: coprysko@politico.com. And follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko. | | | | Designed specifically for regulatory affairs professionals - AgencyIQ FDA Forecast 2021: In its inaugural year, AgencyIQ's FDA Forecast predicts the FDA regulatory changes that will take place in 2021 and what they will mean for the life sciences industry. Read more about the report and download the summary here. | | | | | SHAUB’S NEW JOB: Walter Shaub, the outspoken former federal ethics chief, will spearhead a new ethics and accountability initiative at the Project On Government Oversight, the nonprofit watchdog group announced today. Shaub led the Office of Government Ethics during former President Barack Obama’s second term before becoming one of the Trump administration’s top critics on Twitter. He’ll advise POGO “on effective proposals for improving government accountability” and push for reforms “like robust executive branch ethics laws, stricter limits on the use of emergency powers and the Office of Legal Counsel, and stronger congressional oversight powers,” according to the group. ZUMWALT DECAMPS FOR FTI: Bryan Zumwalt is leaving the Consumer Brands Association, where he was the top lobbyist for the trade group formerly known as the Grocery Manufacturers Association, to become senior managing director and head of government affairs for FTI Consulting. Zumwalt was named CBA’s executive vice president of public affairs as part of a 2020 rebrand that followed the departure of several prominent members. He was previously the chief lobbyist for the American Chemistry Council, and started his career on the Hill. — Brian Kennedy, FTI’s head of strategic communications for the Americas, praised Zumwalt’s “business acumen, proven leadership skills and record of successfully navigating legislative and regulatory challenges” in a statement released by the firm, adding that the addition of Zumwalt “will further strengthen our ability to support clients as they manage risks and opportunities inside and outside the Beltway.” RESTAURANT LOBBY PRESSES HILL LEADERS TO DROP MINIMUM WAGE HIKE FROM RELIEF BILL: The National Restaurant Association is continuing to appeal to lawmakers to nix a proposed minimum wage increase from the coronavirus relief package working its way through Congress. The trade group sent a letter to congressional leadership today highlighting the results of a survey it conducted among restaurant operators who overwhelmingly said that increasing the minimum wage and eliminating the tip credit would negatively impact their financial recovery and would likely result in menu price hikes or labor reductions. — “What is clear is that raising prices for consumers will not be enough for restaurants to absorb higher labor costs,” Sean Kennedy, the association’s top lobbyist, wrote to lawmakers. He added that “the survey results make it crystal clear that the restaurant industry and our workforce will suffer from a fast-tracked wage increase and elimination of the tip credit” and argued that lawmakers’ plans, which still face some Democratic resistance in the Senate, would negate the impact of a stimulus bill. EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS LAUNCH INFRASTRUCTURE APPEAL AROUND BIDEN TRIP: The Association of Equipment Manufacturers is using Biden’s first presidential travel today to its headquarters hometown to pepper the commander in chief with calls to prioritize infrastructure investment. Ahead of Biden’s visit to Milwaukee for a CNN town hall, the trade group has teed up a full-page ad in the hometown Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel with four broad asks to bolster the American equipment manufacturing industry, including “free and fair” trade, a modernized infrastructure and workforce and “a competitive tax and regulatory system.” AEM also created a 30-second ad as part of the high-five-figure buy that will air on the White House’s cable feed and has purchased billboards coming to and from the airport. THE LEFT SOURS ON FINTECH: POLITICO’S Victoria Guida delves into how the Robinhood and GameStop trading saga “has unearthed a growing sentiment on the left: ‘Fintech’ is just a fancy word for everything they already hate about finance. As the Biden administration begins to take control of the government’s regulatory machine, that souring view suggests financial technology firms will have a lot harder time than they did in the Trump era casting themselves as the good guys who need special treatment so they can grow to compete with their giant, established competitors.” LINCOLN PROJECT REVELATIONS CONTINUE TO MOUNT: “Some of the leaders of the embattled Lincoln Project knew about sexual harassment allegations against co-founder John Weaver as early as March,” The 19th reports. The prominent anti-Trump group announced Monday evening that it had hired the law firm Paul Hastings to conduct an internal review and said it had released its current and former workers from nondisclosure agreements, steps that “came as fundraising issues mounted, potentially endangering plans by the Lincoln Project’s remaining leaders to expand into media and international political consulting.” — “Anedot, which processed the group’s donations, has stopped working with them and fundraising links have been dead since Friday, giving the Lincoln Project no way to bring in small-dollar donations. Senate Majority PAC, which raises money for Democratic Senate candidates and which gave the Lincoln Project nearly $2 million last year, “said on Friday it would no longer work with the group due to the controversy. … Then, the Jerusalem Post reported early Tuesday that Israeli prime ministerial hopeful Gideon Sa’ar, who is challenging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in next month’s election there, would also cut ties.” IF YOU MISSED IT OVER THE WEEKEND: The Wall Street Journal’s Deepa Seetharaman, Emily Glazer and Tim Higgins published a deep dive examining a clash of two of Silicon Valley’s most powerful tech titans, Apple’s Tim Cook and Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg. “The escalation of grievances erupted late last month in a rare public tit-for-tat between ” Cook and Zuckerberg “that laid bare the simmering animosity between their leaders, who exchanged jabs about privacy, app-tracking tools and, ultimately, their dueling visions about the future of the internet.” | | | | A MUST-READ ON CAPITOL HILL: Looking for the latest insight on the power dynamic in House GOP Leadership? Want to listen in on the whispers coming out of the Speaker's Lobby? Trying to understand what is really going on inside the cloakrooms? Olivia Beavers delivers the scoop in Huddle, our morning Capitol Hill must-read, with assists from POLITICO's deeply sourced Congress team that reveal the state of play in the House and Senate. Subscribe to Huddle today. | | | | | | | | — Cybil Roehrenbeck has joined Hogan Lovells as a partner. She was previously the head of Polsinelli’s telehealth practice, and formerly a lobbyist and attorney for the American Medical Association. — Cornerstone Government Affairs has hired Mike Cuzzi as a principal focusing on energy, climate and environmental issues on its federal government relations team. Prior to Cornerstone, Cuzzi founded the consulting firm SRL Strategies. — Kish Rajan will be a senior adviser at Banner Public Affairs. Rajan is a principal at Kish Rajan Public Affairs and is a Barbara Boxer and Jerry Brown alum. — The American Chemistry Council has named Kimberly Wise White vice president of regulatory and technical affairs. She was previously senior director of ACC’s Chemical Products and Technology Division. — Authentic Campaigns has hired Lauren Starrett as a senior adviser. She previously was director of client services for Middle Seat Digital, and is an alum of Revolution Messaging. — Shape Advocacy has hired Andrea Klores as creative director and promoted Casey Murray to vice president. — Benjamin Teicher has joined West Health as media relations manager. He was previously a media relations supervisor at Burson Cohn & Wolfe. — Will Roper is joining Pallas Advisors as a senior counselor, Playbook reports. He previously was assistant secretary of acquisition, technology and logistics in the Air Force. — Jesse Solis is now media affairs manager for the Tax Foundation, Huddle reports. Solis was previously deputy communications director for Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee. | | | American Dream Victory Fund (Reps. Young Kim (R-Calif.), Michelle Steel (R-Calif.), STEEL PAC, Forever YOUNG PAC, NRCC) | | | American Greatness PAC (Super PAC)
Draft Nikki Haley 2024 (PAC)
The Good Trouble PAC (Leadership PAC: Rep. Nikema Williams (D-Ga.))
Liberty Cookies (Super PAC)
Patriot Fund (PAC)
PavedPath (PAC)
Redacted Caucus of the Libertarian Party (PAC)
Stopping White Supremacy PAC (PAC) | | New Lobbying Registrations | | 535 Group, LLC: Pmi Global Services Inc.
Alpine Group Partners, LLC.: Campbell Consulting Obo Charleston County Government
American Defense International, Inc.: Genesis Dimensions
Chartwell Strategy Group LLC: Sk Innovation Co. Ltd
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: American Association Of Timeshare Owners Inc.
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: American Land Title Association
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Autos Drive America
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Diageo North America, Inc.
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Heat Biologics, Inc.
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Loop LLC
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Nuclear Innovation Alliance
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Raytheon Technologies Corporation
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Vmware, Inc.
Hamilton Goodman Partners LLC: Freedom For All Americans
Hanka Advisor LLC: Duluth Seaway Port Authority
Signal Group Consulting, LLC: Outdoor Recreation Roundtable Association
The Reparationist Collective: The Reparationist Collective
The Russell Group, Inc.: Food And Agriculture Climate Alliance | | New Lobbying Terminations | | American Continental Group: Genentech Inc
Bay Bridge Strategies, Inc.: Peck Madigan Jones (On Behalf Of Tenable, Inc.)
Daniel Weiss: Common Sense Media
District Economics Group: Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
Grayrobinson Pa: Lifelink Foundation
Horizon Government Affairs: Ehr Data
S2C Pacific, LLC: Air-Conditioning, Heating, & Refrigeration Institute | | | | Follow us | | | | |  |
