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Presented by REAL SOLUTIONS®, a community safety program of the firearm industry.: Delivered daily, Influence gives you a comprehensive rundown and analysis of all lobby hires and news on K Street. | | | | | |  | | By Caitlin Oprysko | Presented by REAL SOLUTIONS®, a community safety program of the firearm industry. | With Daniel Lippman and Theodoric Meyer COALITION ASKS JUDICIARY CHAIRS TO ELIMINATE CRACK COCAINE SENTENCING DISPARITY: A broad coalition of more than two dozen think tanks and advocacy groups across the ideological spectrum has asked the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate Judiciary committees, as well as members’ staff and House and Senate leadership, to pass the EQUAL Act, which would eliminate and make retroactive the sentencing disparity between powder and crack cocaine, a discrepancy that data has shown for decades disproportionately impacts Black Americans. — The initial 100-to-1 sentencing disparity, which the coalition writes “may have been well-intentioned in 1986” when it was included in a bill crafted by now-President Joe Biden, was reduced in 2010 to 18-to-1 but wasn’t made retroactive until 2018’s First Step Act. — Still, in fiscal year 2020, more than three-quarters of those “sentenced for crack cocaine offenses were Black, despite available data from around the same time showing that White Americans accounted for 70.2 percent of those who used crack cocaine in 2018,” the groups write. Biden pledged during the campaign to eliminate the disparity and make it retroactive. — The letter’s signatories include ALEC Action, the ACLU, Americans for Prosperity, Americans for Tax Reform, FreedomWorks, the Center for American Progress, R Street Institute, Tzedek Association, Due Process Institute, Families Against Mandatory Minimums, Innocence Project, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and more. — The EQUAL Act’s Senate companion has yet to pick up any GOP co-sponsors as the House version has, but it will only be a matter of time, said Kevin Ring, president of Families Against Mandatory Minimums. The broad appeal has support on K Street, too, Ring said, with several lobbyists agreeing to advocate for the bill on behalf of his organization pro bono: Dan Walsh at Farragut Partners, Nicole Mortier at H&M Strategies and Edward Ayoob at Barnes & Thornburg. — Walsh, for his part, told PI that he’d been looking to get involved on criminal justice issues in some form and that this issue “seemed like a good cause and a good time,” given the racial justice push that has grown since last summer. | | | | A message from REAL SOLUTIONS®, a community safety program of the firearm industry: The firearm industry is creating safer communities through partnerships with law enforcement, elected officials, and community leaders. Our REAL SOLUTIONS® programs have distributed more than 40 million free gun locks to promote secure storage, strengthened the FBI background check system to keep guns out of the wrong hands, and provided thousands of suicide prevention toolkits in partnership with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. These are true gun safety programs. Make a difference at NSSFRealSolutions.org. | | | FIRST IN PI — MANCHIN AIDE HEADS TO K STREET: T.J. Lucas has left the Hill to join Crossroads Strategies as a lobbyist. He’ll be a vice president at the firm, focusing on appropriations and authorizations work. He was previously a legislative assistant to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), in whose office he worked for six years, and is a native West Virginian to boot. — Another staffer for a moderate Senate Democrat is joining Capitol Counsel as a lobbyist. Genny Beltrone has advised Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) on telecommunications, technology, science and small business policy for eight years, and is a Max Baucus alum. — And Logan Hollers, who oversees Sen. Jeff Merkley ’s (D-Ore.) environment, agriculture, and transportation and infrastructure portfolio, is joining Invariant. He, too, will register to lobby and expects to be the firm’s point person on ESG issues, helping clients “navigate the evolving landscape” of those issues and which “both sides of the Hill and Washington policymakers are really prioritizing” as the White House embarks on its marathon infrastructure push. | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO "THE RECAST" TO JOIN AN IMPORTANT CONVERSATION: Power is changing, in Washington and across the country. More people are demanding a seat at the table, insisting that all politics is personal and not all policy is equitable. Our twice-weekly newsletter "The Recast” breaks down how race and identity are shaping politics and policy in America and we are recasting how we report on it. Get fresh insights, scoops and dispatches on this crucial intersection from across the country and hear from important new voices that challenge business as usual. Don't miss out, SUBSCRIBE . Thank you to our sponsor, Intel. | | | | | Good afternoon and welcome to PI. Send your best lobbying tips: coprysko@politico.com. And follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko. BROADCASTERS ADD CLARKE CHIEF: Charlyn Stanberry has joined the National Association of Broadcasters as vice president of government relations, where she will report to executive vice president of government relations Shawn Donilon. She was most recently chief of staff for Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.), who sits on the House Energy & Commerce Committee’s communications and technology panel. FRENCH DECAMPS FOR COZEN: Towner French is leaving Capitol Counsel, where he has been a partner for more than six years, to help Cozen O'Connor Public Strategies grow its federal lobbying practice. “They have an incredible foundation” for federal lobbying in addition to state and municipal lobbying, “and my goal is to add to that foundation,” French said in an interview. He’ll be bringing several of his current clients — which include the NFL, PhRMA, Intuit, the Cruise Lines International Association and ExxonMobil, to name a few — but told PI he isn’t able to disclose which ones just yet. BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE GOES ON THE AIRWAVES TO FIGHT CORPORATE TAX HIKE: The Business Roundtable, whose members include some of the country’s top corporate executives, “is starting a multimillion-dollar campaign aimed at stopping tax increases proposed as part of President Joe Biden’s $2.25 trillion infrastructure plan,” Bloomberg’s Nancy Cook reports. The push will include digital and radio ads in Washington that “extol the benefits of the U.S.’s current tax regime and contend that the Biden administration shouldn’t attempt to raise corporate tax rates during an economic downturn.” — “According to a copy of the 30-second script obtained by Bloomberg News, the ad will say: ‘We’re not out of the woods on Covid-19, but we’re getting there. And as we emerge, we need an economy that grows and creates opportunity. That requires a reliable, consistent and competitive tax code for America’s businesses.’” — “Marc Short, who was chief of staff to former Vice President Mike Pence , is running another group, called the Coalition to Protect American Workers, with a $25 million budget. Half of that will go toward ads fighting the tax hikes in key states and congressional districts ahead of the 2022 mid-term elections.” APPLE TO TESTIFY ON APP STORE FIGHTS AFTER ALL: “Apple on Sunday said that it will send a representative to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee later this month — an abrupt turnabout following pressure from Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah),” POLITICO’s Emily Birnbaum reports. — “The company said it will send Kyle Andeer, Apple’s chief compliance officer, to testify before the competition subcommittee on April 21, according to a copy of the letter obtained by POLITICO . … Apple previously told committee staff that it would not send anyone to the upcoming hearing on app stores and mobile app competition in April. The change of heart suggests the company is loath to antagonize key senators on the antitrust implications of its app store fees — an issue that is increasingly under scrutiny.” — The tech giant “has sent representatives to testify about its app store fights around the country, but this will be the first time it is testifying on the topic before the Senate amid a flurry of state-level legislation that seeks to help out smaller app developers who say they’re being crushed by app store fees.” HOW CORPORATE LEADERS ARE WORKING TO COUNTER GOP VOTING BILLS: “More than 100 chief executives and corporate leaders gathered online Saturday to discuss taking new action to combat the controversial state voting bills being considered across the country, including the one recently signed into law in Georgia,” according to The Washington Post’s Todd Frankel. — The group included “leaders from dozens of companies such as Delta, American, United, Starbucks, Target, LinkedIn, Levi Strauss and Boston Consulting Group,” as well as Arthur Blank, who co-founded Home Depot and owns Atlanta’s pro football and soccer teams. The executives discussed how to signal their opposition to a rash of state GOP legislators across the country pushing new voting restrictions — “including by halting donations to politicians who support the bills and even delaying investments in states that pass the restrictive measures,” according to people on the hour-plus Zoom call. — “While no final steps were agreed upon, the meeting represents an aggressive dialing up of corporate America’s stand against controversial voting measures nationwide, a sign that their opposition to the laws didn’t end with the fight against the Georgia legislation passed in March,” which prompted a flurry of corporate warnings and some boycotts. | | | | A message from REAL SOLUTIONS®, a community safety program of the firearm industry:   | | | | | | — Former Rep. John Fleming (R-La.) is joining McKeon Group as a principal, where he will register to lobby as needed. He is a Trump administration alum, most recently serving as assistant to the president for planning and implementation. — Jerry Golden will be senior vice president and head of global government affairs at the Internet Association and the final member of its new leadership team. He was most recently a principal at Vanguard. — Better Business Bureau National Programs has hired Mamie Kresses as vice president of its Children’s Advertising Review Unit. She is an FTC vet who previously led the agency’s Division of Advertising Practices. They have also added Kristin Lance as director of marketing, Playbook reports. She previously was director of marketing at the Chamber of Commerce and is a POLITICO alum. — Former CDC Director Robert Redfield is joining the manufacturing company Big Ass Fans as a strategic health and safety adviser, per CNN, to “provide solutions for poor indoor air quality and airborne pathogen transmission.” — Elizabeth Kelley is joining the Duberstein Group as a vice president, per Playbook. She most recently was vice president of philanthropic partnerships at the Urban Institute and is an Obama White House alum. — Paul Teller is now executive director of Pence’s new organization Advancing American Freedom . He was most recently deputy assistant to President Donald Trump and director of strategic initiatives for Pence. | | | | YOUR GUIDE TO THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION: As the Biden administration closes in on three months in office, what are the big takeaways? Will polls that show support for infrastructure initiatives and other agenda items translate into Republican votes or are they a mirage? What's the plan to deal with Sen. Joe Manchin? Add Transition Playbook to your daily reads for details you won't find anywhere else that reveal what's really happening inside the West Wing and across the executive branch. Track the people, policies and power centers of the Biden administration. Subscribe today. | | | | | | | | GUS BILIRAKIS VICTORY FUND (Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.), Giving Us Security Political Action Committee (GUS PAC), NRCC) | | | Building a Better Ohio (Super PAC)
Building Better Communities (Super PAC)
CANT CANCEL US PAC (Super PAC)
DC Federation of College Republicans (PAC)
Muslim USA PAC (Super PAC)
The People United PAC (Super PAC)
Republican Reset PAC (Super PAC)
SAVE MISSOURI VALUES (Super PAC)
We Invest in Lives and Dreams (WILD) PAC (Leadership PAC: Rep. Susan Wild (D-Pa.)) | | New Lobbying Registrations | | Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP: Brookdale Senior Living, Inc.
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Community Health Development Coalition, Inc.
Klein/Johnson Group: Tomahawk Robotics
K&L Gates, LLP: Filtration Group Corporation
Laura Eugster Doyle: Arent Fox On Behalf Of The Cooper Union For The Advancement Of Science And Art
Mercury Public Affairs, LLC: Mayer Brown LLP On Behalf Of The Mauser Company
Mercury Public Affairs, LLC: O'Melveny Meyers LLP Obo Ndes Holdings LLC And Carecentrix Inc.
North Star Strategies, LLC: Ky Fraternal Order Of Police
O'Brien, Gentry & Scott, LLC: Corporate Tax Advisors
Stanley Brand: Flint Law Firm, LLC | | New Lobbying Terminations | | Ascendant Strategic Partners: Bioiq
Ascendant Strategic Partners: The Nomad Group, LLC
Document Storage Systems, Inc.: Document Storage Systems, Inc.
Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP (Formerly Known As Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP): Davis Wire Corporation
Irrigation Association: Irrigation Association
K&L Gates, LLP: Clark Street Associates LLC On Behalf Of Psiquantum
K&L Gates, LLP: Sprague Energy Corp.
Mason Street Consulting, LLC: Bockorny Group, Inc. On Behalf Of Cognosante, LLC
Ryberg And Smith, L.L.C.: Lesotho Textile Exporters Association
Strategic Marketing Innovations: Ibeam Materials, Inc.
Tauzin Consultants, LLC: T-Mobile USa, Inc.
The Williams Group: The Managed Funds Association
Water Strategies, LLC: Kinsey Irrigation Company
Water Strategies, LLC: Sidney Water USers Irrigation District
Williams And Jensen, Pllc: American Association Of Crop Insurers (Aaci)
Williams And Jensen, Pllc: The Amalgamated Sugar Company LLC | | | | A message from REAL SOLUTIONS®, a community safety program of the firearm industry: Partnerships with over 15,000 law enforcement agencies. Distribution of more than 40 million free firearm safety kits. A 266% increase in disqualifying records submitted to the FBI background check system. These are just a few of the success metrics behind the firearm industry’s REAL SOLUTIONS® programs. For decades, the firearm industry has been creating safer communities through partnerships with law enforcement, elected officials, and community leaders. We’re proud to work with the Department of Veterans Affairs, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and members of Congress, regardless of political stripe to create safer communities. At the end of the day, we all want the same thing: to keep guns out of the wrong hands. The proven-effective REAL SOLUTIONS® programs promote true gun safety that everyone should be able to rally behind and support. Let’s work together at NSSFRealSolutions.org. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |  |
