Sununu’s brother registers to lobby

From: POLITICO Influence - Monday Apr 10,2023 09:19 pm

Apr 10, 2023

With help from Daniel Lippman

SUNUNU’S BROTHER REGISTERS TO LOBBY: The brother of New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu has registered to lobby at the federal level for the first time in more than a decade, as Sununu takes steps to potentially jump into the Republican presidential primary.

— Michael Sununu will lobby through his consulting firm Sununu Enterprises for the undersea fiber optic cable company SubCom — the only major American cable layer, according to Reuters, which reported last month that SubCom found itself at the center of the latest arena for geopolitical standoffs between the U.S. and China over internet and telecom technologies.

— SubCom recently secured a $600 million contract to lay 12,000 miles of fiber optic cable to transport data from Singapore to France via the Red Sea — a major coup over a consortium of Chinese companies that reportedly came after the United States mounted an aggressive lobbying campaign grounded in security concerns. SubCom also retains Holland & Knight.

MORE NEW BUSINESS: Online lender MoneyLion has brought on its first federal lobbyist as the fintech company faces a CFPB lawsuit over its membership loan model. Matt Kellogg, who joined Rich Feuer Anderson earlier this year after serving as the company’s vice president of government affairs, will lobby on legislation and regulation of consumer financial products and services, according to a newly filed disclosure.

— The CFPB accused MoneyLion in a lawsuit last year of violating the Military Lending Act — which caps interest rates for loans to service members — by using its membership requirements to obtain loans and by making it difficult to cancel those subscriptions.

— Philip Morris International — which sells cigarettes abroad and is not to be confused with Altria’s Philip Morris USA subsidiary — has hired a trio of former Hill and executive branch health policy staffers as it seeks to enter the U.S. commercial market for cigarette alternatives.

— PMI Global Services retained Paul Edattel, Daniel Todd and Nicholas Uehlecke of Todd Strategy Group back in January to lobby on tobacco harm reduction, FDA oversight and the creation of a harm reduction caucus, according to a newly filed disclosure. Edattel and Todd are both former health counsels on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Finance Committee, respectively, while Uehlecke previously worked at HHS and on the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee.

— And former Rep. Mike Ferguson, now the head of AT&T’s federal congressional lobbying team, has brought on several of his old colleagues at BakerHostetler. Chris Jones, Ferguson’s former congressional chief of staff; Adam Higgins, another former Ferguson Hill aide; and Kevin Edgar, a former attorney on the House Financial Services Committee, will work on the account for BakerHostetler, according to a disclosure.

— They’ll lobby on a number of issues — including wireless spectrum policy, broadband and infrastructure deployment, cybersecurity and privacy, and internet and communications issues.

Happy Monday and welcome to PI. Send tips: coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.

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HEDGE FUND CRACKDOWN FACES PUSHBACK FROM A PECULIAR CORNER: “Everyone knew that Wall Street would fight SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s bid to crack down on private equity powerhouses and hedge funds,” our Sam Sutton writes. “Few predicted the backlash from the investors Gensler is trying to protect.”

— “Growing dissension among public retirement systems and institutional investors that have lobbied Washington for years to drop the hammer on the $20 trillion private fund industry has undercut Gensler’s bid to enact sweeping reforms.”

— “The new rule proposal, which could be finalized in the coming weeks, would require greater disclosure from firms of the lucrative fees and expenses they charge to the fund, force managers to disclose the sweetheart deals they cut with large investors, and potentially expose top executives to litigation.”

— But some investors, even as they agree on the need for updated regulations, aren’t in lockstep on the best approach. “Even the Institutional Limited Partners Association, a Washington-based investor group that has championed Gensler’s proposal, is urging the agency to pare back proposed changes that could limit how its members — known as LPs — invest in high-performing private equity and hedge fund strategies.”

— Meanwhile, the discord “stands in contrast to that of the private funds industry itself, which has deployed resources in an aggressive outreach campaign on the Hill and at the agency in a bid to rein in the SEC’s proposed rules, which were first offered last year.”

LOT SIXTEEN LAUNCHES A TRADE PRACTICE: Former Hill trade expert Nasim Fussell has left Holland & Knight, where she was a partner, to launch a trade practice at Lot Sixteen. Fussell joined Holland & Knight in 2020 after serving as the chief international trade counsel for Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee. Before that she worked as an in-house lobbyist at Pitney Bowes and General Motors and as trade counsel for the Ways and Means Committee.

— “We’re finding our clients are increasingly in need of expert advice on tax and trade policy issues, especially as the clean energy transition really accelerates,” Lot Sixteen Vice President Natalie Cucchiara told PI of the decision to formally stand up a trade practice.

TWITTER’S POLITICAL AD REVIVAL HITS MORE BUMPS: “Elon Musk took over Twitter last fall with a pledge of transparency for the social media giant — but so far political advertising on the platform has been anything but forthcoming,” POLITICO’s Jessica Piper found.

— “Twitter has failed to disclose some political ads running on its site since early March, according to a review of its activity by POLITICO. At least three promoted fundraising tweets were not included in Twitter’s own data, seemingly contradicting the company’s policies and raising doubts about the integrity of the platform’s data and how many other political ads could go unreported.”

— “The lack of disclosure casts doubt on all of the political advertising data released by the platform and makes it hard to assess which groups are using Twitter to fundraise or sway voters ahead of 2024. It also highlights the hodgepodge of voluntary transparency efforts that experts say falls short when it comes to informing voters about who is trying to influence them online.”

DEPT. OF ODD BEDFELLOWS: Environmental activists and the trade group representing chemical cleaners are putting their differences aside to push for boosting funding for the EPA. The Environmental Working Group and the Household & Commercial Products Association have launched Partnership for the Future of EPA to push for additional resources for the agency in an uncommon call by the regulated community to strengthen its regulators.

— HCPA represents manufacturers of cleaning, disinfecting and home maintenance products, including 3M, Clorox, Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Microban, SC Johnson, Reckitt Benckiser, ScottsMiracle-Gro, Procter & Gamble, FMC Corporation, Chemours, Bath & Body Works, Dupont and Eastman Chemical.

— The trade group’s partnership with EWG will focus on educating lawmakers about EPA’s work, as well as its organizational needs, in order to bolster support for the oft-politicized and chronically underfunded agency. “It’s impossible for the EPA to do its work without the appropriate funding and resources to address business critical functions, staff training, and working through process improvements,” HCPA President and CEO Steve Caldeira said in a statement.

Jobs Report

— Jennica Sims is joining Alliance for Automotive Innovation as director of federal affairs. Most recently, she was associate director of the Office of Federal and Regional Affairs for D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.

— Raúl García will be vice president of policy and legislation at Earthjustice. He previously was legislative director for their Healthy Communities initiative.

— Kelly Mullens Brown is joining APCO Worldwide as a senior director for corporate brand strategy. Brown was previously global lead for content strategy and planning at Apple.

— Building Back Together is announcing new staff moves: Ari Appel is now chief programming officer, Mairead Cahill is now political director, and Olivia Eggers is now press secretary.

— Declan McLoughlin is joining the Irish Embassy as research and administration officer for agriculture and justice. He previously was coordinator of government affairs at the Global Cold Chain Alliance.

— Amanda Elliott has launched Anchor City Strategies, a digital consulting firm. She was previously digital director at the Republican Governors Association.

— Prem Trivedi has joined New America’s Open Technology Institute as policy director, Morning Tech reports. He most recently was a senior fellow at the Tech, Law & Security Program at American University. David Morar is now a senior policy analyst at OTI, where he was most recently a policy fellow.

— Elsy Boglioli will be an independent director at FTI Consulting. She previously founded and has been the chief executive officer of the health tech consultancy Bio-Up.

— Michael Eisenstatt is now a partner at SP Media Group. He previously was national digital director for campaigns at the DCCC.

— Maggie Morgan is now a senior associate of retirement and tax policy at the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association. She previously was senior manager of congressional correspondence and outreach at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

New Joint Fundraisers

None.

New PACs

ANTI-CRYPTO ARMY (PAC)

CA SENATE REPUBLICAN NOMINEE FUND 2024 (PAC)

Impeach Clarence Thomas PAC (Super PAC)

Noo Politikal Moovment (PAC)

Stay Engaged (Hybrid PAC)

New Lobbying REGISTRATIONS

Baker & Hostetler LLP: AT&T Services, Inc.
Boundary Stone Partners: Bluegreen Alliance
Capstone National Partners: Air Conditioning Contractors Of America
Capstone National Partners: Linq Thingz
Fgs Global (US) LLC (Fka Fgh Holdings LLC): National Oilseed Processors Association
Franklin Square Group, LLC: Twilio Inc.
Government Relations Group, LLC: Dane Corp
Government Relations Group, LLC: Universal Ballistic Systems Ammunition, LLC
Invariant LLC: Fedex Corporation
Kaboom!: Kaboom!
Klein/Johnson Group: Raven
K&L Gates, LLP: Glenfarne Energy Transition
Maverick Strategies, LLC: Mccarthy Advanced Consulting, LLC (On Behalf Of Njasap)
Maverick Strategies, LLC: Mccarthy Advanced Consulting, LLC (On Behalf Of Southwest Airlines Pilots Assn.)
Monument Advocacy: Amentum
Penn Hill Group: Boys & Girls Club Of America
Resolution Public Affairs, LLC: Blackrock Funds Services Group, LLC
Sununu Enterprises LLC: Subcom
Todd Strategy Group: Pmi Global Services Inc.

New Lobbying Terminations

Capstone National Partners: Digital Federal Credit Union
Capstone National Partners: Fitch Group, Inc
Capstone National Partners: University Of Wisconsin Milwaukee
Crosswinds Solutions: Sazerac Company Inc.
Dentons US LLP: Chadd, Inc.
Holland & Knight LLP: Apollo Medflight On Behalf Of Oglala Lakota Air Rescue, LLC
Holland & Knight LLP: City Innovate Inc.
Holland & Knight LLP: Ketchikan Indian Community
Holland & Knight LLP: Seneca Nation Of Indians
Holland & Knight LLP: Tribn LLC (On Behalf Of Inupiat Community Of The Arctic Slope)
Honigman LLP: Kippens Investments LLC
King & Spalding LLP: Mr. Tzvetan Vassilev And Mrs. Antoaneta Vassileva
K&L Gates, LLP: Museum Of Flight
K&L Gates, LLP: Primet Precision Materials Inc
K&L Gates, LLP: Suntory Holdings Limited F/K/A Suntory Business Expert Limited
Mason Street Consulting, LLC: Akili Interactive
Mason Street Consulting, LLC: The Mentor Network
Morrison Public Affairs Group: Support Alliance Of US Immigrants
Mr. David Gencarelli: Medical Claims Compliance Corporation
Rich Feuer Anderson: London Stock Exchange Group Plc
The D Major Group: Sports & Fitness Industry Association

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