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Presented by bp: 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 MAKING INROADS: The Children’s Hospital Association has tapped former Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.) as a strategic adviser as it works to navigate the newly divided Congress. Herrera Beutler, who served in Congress for 12 years, left office earlier this month following her defeat in a primary stemming in part from her vote to impeach former President Donald Trump following the Jan. 6 insurrection. — Herrera Beutler served on the House Appropriations Committee and its subcommittee that covers HHS, your host reports with Megan R. Wilson. In an interview, Herrera Beutler noted that pediatric health care is personal to her especially after the hospitalization of her daughter Abigail, now almost 10. — “When you leave Congress, especially under circumstances other than your own choosing, if you're like me, you're looking for a cause,” she said. “This is a sweet spot for me both on the policy side, but just personally — I've been impacted.” — “I've always been interested in health care, but when I had my firstborn, what children's hospitals do was — I mean, you think you understand it … until you walk through it,” she added. — Herrera Beutler’s role with the association will focus on helping strategize its outreach to newer members of Congress on the importance of children’s hospitals, she said, but she won’t be full-time staff with the trade group or engage in work that would require her to register to lobby. — The Children’s Hospital Association, which represents more than 200 children’s hospitals, spent about $3.2 million on lobbying last year, working on issues related to youth behavioral health, increasing the pediatric providers workforce and extending eligibility for coverage in Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program. The group, alongside other providers, successfully lobbied to waive pay-as-you-go, or PAYGO, cuts, which would have slashed Medicare reimbursement rates, in the year-end omnibus package. — One of the group’s main priorities in the upcoming Congress will be seeking solutions to address provider shortages, Herrera Beutler said. Mental health will also continue to be a major focus, she added, but one of the biggest hurdles will be getting children’s issues to break through with lawmakers. — “Nobody's ever against caring for children, no one will ever say ‘I don't believe in that,’ or ‘I don't support that,’” she said. “But that doesn't mean with all the competing things on the plate of policymakers that they're going to immediately think, ‘This is what I should move.’” — That’s where she said she aims to be useful: “Equipping the folks in this organization with like, this is what this is what's helpful for … decision makers and policy makers to know, and helping illustrate this point.” Happy Wednesday and welcome to PI. Once you’ve done one more sweep for classified documents in your home, send lobbying tips (or anything juicy you find in the aforementioned search): coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.
| | A message from bp: bp is one of America’s leading energy investors — with over $130 billion invested here since 2005. We’re working to deliver the energy America needs today, while developing lower carbon alternatives. See how we are advocating for good policy to help us go further, faster. | | | 13 YEARS SINCE CITIZENS UNITED: “‘Dark money’ groups have poured billions of dollars into influencing federal elections since the Supreme Court’s Citizens United v. FEC decision on Jan. 21, 2010, as elections become increasingly expensive and less transparent,” per OpenSecrets’ Anna Massoglia. — “Outside spending by groups with varying levels of disclosure has proliferated since the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision rolled back restrictions on corporate political speech. Building on momentum around Citizens United, the Supreme Court’s SpeechNow.org v. FEC ruling months later effectively paved the way for super PACs — ushering in an era of groups accepting massive donations and spending practically unlimited sums so long as they don’t coordinate with candidates or political parties.” — “Outside spending to influence federal elections has since topped $9 billion, a new OpenSecrets analysis found. More than $2.6 billion of that comes from unknown sources, with secretly-funded nonprofits accounting for over $1 billion of the outside spending reported to the Federal Election Commission since the 2010 cycle.” — “Dark money groups and shell companies steered an additional $1.6 billion into contributions to federal political committees like super PACs since the 2010 cycle.” But while “at least $3 out of every $10 in outside spending reported to the FEC since Citizens United can be traced to dark money groups,” such groups “are increasingly routing funds through contributions to super PACs or into activities that do not trigger disclosure rather than reporting spending to the FEC.” EDGE RETURNS: Electing a Democratic Generation, a fundraising network of millennial lobbyists working to elect young Democrats, is relaunching after shutting down because of the Covid pandemic. The group, also known as EDGE, launched in 2017 and raised more than $100,000 that cycle, including for several Democratic frontliners who helped the party win back the House. — Katie Phillips, who co-leads the organization and is a lobbyist at Federal Hall Policy Advisors, argued that the influx of freshman members in their 20s and 30s, as well as the record number of Latinos that are serving in the new Congress, make the group’s mission “more important and relevant than ever.” — The group is marking the occasion with a reception tonight that will serve as an introduction for new members. “We’ve seen strong interest around this relaunch and are excited to have the chance to build upon our successes as we continue working to support the election of young, diverse leaders in the upcoming election cycle and beyond,” said Jason Ortega, a co-leader for the group and a vice president of public affairs at the National Wooden Pallet & Container Association.
| | | | JOIN POLITICO ON 2/9 TO HEAR FROM AMERICA’S GOVERNORS: In a divided Congress, more legislative and policy enforcement will shift to the states, meaning governors will take a leading role in setting the agenda for the nation. Join POLITICO on Thursday, Feb. 9 at World Wide Technology's D.C. Innovation Center for The Fifty: America's Governors, where we will examine where innovations are taking shape and new regulatory red lines, the future of reproductive health, and how climate change is being addressed across a series of one-on-one interviews. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | HAVE MERCY: When President Joe Biden appoints a replacement for White House antitrust hawk Tim Wu, who recently left his post as special assistant to the president for technology and competition policy, tech groups are hoping to see a friendlier face, they wrote to the president’s top aides today. — The groups, which represent Silicon Valley’s most notable names, pointed to cascading layoffs slamming the tech industry and a “precarious economic environment,” asking Biden to lay off the antitrust aggressiveness and appoint a replacement for Wu who is “committed to helping American technology firms, both small and large, thrive and succeed.” — “Candidates should recognize American tech companies for what they are: key US economic and national security assets,” the heads of the Consumer Technology Association, TechNet, NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association wrote to White House chief of staff Ron Klain and National Economic Council Director Brian Deese. “Rather than attempting to weaken leading US tech firms, we encourage the NEC to focus on the issues that will help our economy rebound.” MEANWHILE, IN CALIFORNIA: “California’s landmark fast food labor law will go before voters after industry foes qualified a 2024 referendum,” POLITICO’s Jeremy White reports. “The secretary of state’s office announced on Tuesday that foes of AB 257 had submitted enough signatures to trigger a popular vote on the fiercely contested law, suspending its implementation and setting up a major brawl between organized labor and the restaurant industry.” — The law, which creates a new fast food industry council able to set workplace standards and push wages as high as $22 an hour, was a major win for organized labor, but local and national industry groups including heavyweights like the National Restaurant Association, International Franchise Association and U.S. Chamber of Commerce immediately pivoted to pushing for a ballot referendum that now blocks the law from taking effect until voters weigh in. — “A coalition has so far raised more than $12 million to pass a referendum — much of it from Starbucks, In-N-Out, Chipotle, and Yum! Brands, whose holdings include Taco Bell and KFC.” The ballot fight will likely be costly “as restaurant groups pour in tens to hundreds of millions of dollars, while powerful unions like SEIU have vowed to beat back the ballot challenge.” CORRECTION: Tuesday’s Influence misstated Jake Rascoff’s former role. He previously was assistant legislative director and legislative assistant for energy and climate for Sen. Brian Schatz(D-Hawaii). PI regrets the error.
| | | | A message from bp:   | | | | | | SPOTTED at a reception hosted by Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld at their Capitol Hill office to kick off the new Congress and welcome new hire Reggie Babin, per a PI tipster: A roundtable featuring panelists from all four corners of congressional leadership (Akin Gump’s Hunter Bates, Brendan Dunn, Casey Higgins, Virgil Miller and Babin) Robert Hickman and Didier Barjon of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s office; Jamie Fleet of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ office, Yardena Wolf of Rep. Eric Swalwell’s (D-Calif.) office, Haley Scott of Rep. Dan Goldman’s (D-N.Y.) office, Carlos Paz of Rep. Jimmy Gomez’s (D-Calif.) office, Catherine Treadwell of Rep. Cory Mills’ (R-Fla.) office, Matt Fery of Rep. Brian Higgins’ (D-N.Y.) office, Elizabeth Farrar of the Senate Rules Committee, Brian Garcia of Rep. Sylvia Garcia’s (D-Texas) office, Maalik Simmons of Sen. Dick Durbin’s (D-Ill.) office, Patrick Clifton of LG, Michael Dean of NCTA - The Internet & Television Association, Stefanie Holland of Qualcomm, Josh Lynch of Verizon, Shaniqua McClendon of Crooked Media, Greg Polk of Stanley Black & Decker, Hun Quach of Levi’s, Karen Valanzano of Chubb and Akin Gump’s Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Lamar Smith and Mark Herring. — Jason Chung has joined Patomak Global Partners as a senior adviser focused on strategy and risk matters at the nexus of national security and financial markets. He previously served as U.S. ambassador to the Asian Development Bank and is a Treasury alum. — Boundary Stone Partners has hired Fatima Ahmad as a vice president for clean energy and James Prussing as a vice president. Ahmad most recently served as senior counsel with the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis and Prussing most recently was a senior adviser in the Treasury's office of climate and environment. — Hector Valle has joined Vianovo as a partner in the firm’s Austin office. He previously managed government relations and communications at the Texas General Land Office. — NJI Media has promoted Lara Kline to president; Melissa Carle, Claudio Meira and Ryan Raybould to vice presidents and Chelsey Crim to project director. The firm also hired Daniel Kemether and Hadley Ristvedt as senior account directors, Ben Beresford as program manager, Bebhinne Jennings as graphic designer and Isaac Buckley as product designer. — Tyler Foote is now vice president at Arena. He was previously vice president at Creative Direct, regional political director at the NRCC, and was deputy chief of staff for Rep. David Rouzer (R-N.C.). — Sonia Aggarwal is returning to helm Energy Innovation as CEO. Aggarwal was a founding director at the firm before taking a role in the Biden White House as special assistant to the president for climate policy, innovation, and deployment. She will replace CEO Hal Harvey, who will remain in the role of founder. — National Public Affairs has hired Tom Dickens as vice president of creative production, Mike Hahn as vice president of digital strategy, Tim Murtaugh as vice president of communications and is promoting Nick Trainer to vice president of political strategy. The firm was founded by former Trump advisers Bill Stepien, Justin Clark and Sean Dollman. — Jason Crawford is returning to Crowell & Moring as a partner. He previously was a trial attorney at DOJ’s Civil Division, Fraud Section. — Amaia Stecker is now senior director of development at Millennial Action Project. She was most recently a senior director of the Walk to End Alzheimer's campaign at the Alzheimer’s Association National Capital Area Chapter.
| | | | DOWNLOAD THE POLITICO MOBILE APP: Stay up to speed with the newly updated POLITICO mobile app, featuring timely political news, insights and analysis from the best journalists in the business. The sleek and navigable design offers a convenient way to access POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Don’t miss out on the app you can rely on for the news you need, reimagined. DOWNLOAD FOR iOS– DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID. | | | | | | | | Blue Senate 2024 (Sens. Jacky Rosen, Sherrod Brown)
Jeffries Clark Victory Fund (Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark)
| | | Dana Bradley For President (Super PAC)
MI Corn Growers Association (MI Corn PAC) (PAC)
Mitten PAC (Leadership PAC: Elissa Slotkin)
Save America First PAC (PAC)
Seniors For Mike Lee (Super PAC)
Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. Political Action Committee (aka Ultragenyx PAC) (PAC)
| | New Lobbying Registrations | | Fgs Global (US) LLC (Fka Fgh Holdings LLC): Advent International Corporation
Invariant LLC: Trade Data Services Inc D/B/A Importgenius
Lucas | Compton: Graham Regional Medical Center
Mccaulley&Company: Lorain County Prosecutor
Mcguirewoods Consulting (A Subsidiary Of Mcguirewoods LLP): Edenred, USa
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: City Of Claremont, Nh
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: Knoxville Habitat For Humanity
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: Valley Children'S Healthcare
| | New Lobbying Terminations | | Emmer Consulting, Inc. (Formerly Known As Emmer Consulting, P.C.): Poly, Inc.
Horizon Government Affairs: The Commonwealth Fund
Michael Solon-Capitol Legistics: Exxon Mobil
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