LIV, PGA drop a bombshell on Washington

From: POLITICO Influence - Tuesday Jun 06,2023 10:31 pm

Jun 06, 2023

Presented by

With help from Daniel Lippman

LIV AND PGA’S BOMBSHELL: Saudi-financed LIV Golf announced this morning that it would merge with the PGA Tour and the tour’s European counterpart in a deal that reverberated across the golf world and official Washington alike after years of acrimony — and days after one Washington PR firm registered as a foreign agent for its work for the Saudi upstart league.

— As part of the deal, LIV, PGA and DP World Tour will combine to form a new for-profit entity that has yet to be named, into which Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, will pour potentially billions of dollars, PIF Governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who will chair the combined entity, told CNBC. Contentious litigation between the golf bodies will come to an end as part of the deal as well.

— As POLITICO’s Kierra Frazier, Josh Sisco and Hailey Fuchs report, the deal is sure to spark fresh antitrust concerns at the Justice Department, while critics who accused Saudi Arabia of using LIV to rehab the kingdom’s tarnished reputation on human rights (critics that until recently included the PGA Tour itself) directed some of that criticism back at the PGA Tour.

— Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) called the merger a “brazen, shameless cash grab” and vowed to “dive into every piece of Saudi Arabia’s deal with the PGA.”

— Even before the deal was announced, 9/11 Families United demanded that DOJ investigate what the group alleged were “numerous disturbing violations of FARA” following the retroactive registration last month of the consulting firm Gitcho Goodwin for months of PR work on LIV’s behalf. “Even as these two consultants have filed retroactively,” the group’s national Chair Terry Strada wrote in a letter obtained by POLITICO, “it appears a number of U.S. consultants paid by the Saudi government have not.”

— Strada pointed to POLITICO’s reporting on the contingent of firms — including those with ties to the GOP political world — that have supported LIV’s launch and efforts to rebuff criticism. As PI wrote last week, several FARA experts predicted that Gitcho Goodwin’s FARA registration (which has since been terminated) was unlikely to be the last for those working for LIV.

— Whether that’s true of the soon-to-be-combined golf entity remains to be seen, with so few details available about the structure of the new company. “I would think that both the PGA and LIV would account for foreign influence-related considerations (including FARA) in the transaction and prospective structure since those have been so front-and-center during LIV’s existence,” said Matthew Sanderson, an attorney at Caplin & Drysdale who advises clients on the law.

— Josh Rosenstein, an attorney with Sandler Reiff Lamb Rosenstein & Birkenstock who specializes in FARA, argued that “the devil will be in the details here,” pointing to the statute’s exemptions for foreign or state owned or funded companies for certain work. PIF and other sovereign wealth funds like it have invested in plenty of major companies, whose representatives don’t register under FARA. “The merger does raise the real possibility that the new entity itself would be required to register under FARA, particularly if it remains funded or subsidized” by the PIF, he said in an email.

— But even though Gitcho Goodwin’s rationale for registering under FARA — which in part cited court filings from LIV’s litigation with the PGA Tour — might appear to leave little wiggle room for the combined league, he added, there’s still a path for the new company’s advisers to avoid having to register.

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

A message from bp:

The US is home to bp’s largest workforce in the world, supporting more than 240,000 American jobs — including our employees, vendors, contractors and more. See how we’re investing in America.

CHAMBER ADDS FTC AIDE: The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has hired a former aide to recently departed Republican FTC Commissioner Christine Wilson amid the business lobby’s feud with the agency and its aggressive antitrust agenda under Chair Lina Khan. Nina Frant is joining the Chamber as vice president for consumer policy.

— She most recently served as an attorney-adviser to Wilson, who quit the FTC in protest of Khan’s leadership earlier this year, and previously was a consumer protection counsel at Wells Fargo and an attorney in the Office of Supervision Policy at the CFPB (another Chamber sparring partner).

— In a statement, Chamber antitrust executive Sean Heather said that Frant “understands that policies can be both pro-consumer and pro-business, as markets ensure the interests of both are well-aligned. Her experience will be invaluable to our members as we seek to hold regulatory overreach in check.”

— As part of that effort, the Chamber has already sued the FTC for documents about its rulemaking process and has accused the agency of exceeding its authority. The organization last week applauded the news that Republicans on the House Oversight Committee had opened an investigation into Khan’s tenure as chair.

FIRST IN PI — NARRATIVE BREAKS OUT HEALTH CARE PRACTICE: Public affairs firm Narrative Strategies has hired Rachel Gartner Clark as a managing director, where she will lead a new, formal health care practice for the firm. Gartner Clark was most recently a senior group director at Real Chemistry, and is a Weber Shandwick and Edelman alum.

— “Since our founding, Narrative has helped healthcare clients win some of the most challenging policy fights while building and enhancing their reputations,” Narrative founding partner Ken Spain said in a statement, adding that the restructure would “give us an even greater ability to deliver strategic guidance to a growing roster of industry clients.”

— The firm has also added Zazni Vlijter and Connor Brandi as strategic communications associates. Brandi was previously an associate at Hilltop Public Solutions, and Vlijter was previously an intern at the firm.

GET READY FOR GLOBAL TECH DAY: Join POLITICO Live as we launch our first Global Tech Day alongside London Tech Week on Thursday, June 15. Register now for continuing updates and to be a part of this momentous and program-packed day! From the blockchain, to AI, and autonomous vehicles, technology is changing how power is exercised around the world, so who will write the rules? REGISTER HERE.

NOT GOING DOWN WITHOUT A FIGHT: “Pharmaceutical giant Merck sued the federal government on Tuesday to block Medicare drug price negotiations, calling the program unconstitutional,” POLITICO’s Megan Wilson reports.

— “The complaint, filed against the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, argued that Medicare’s efforts to negotiate certain drug prices is ‘political Kabuki theater’ that is ‘tantamount to extortion.’ It further described the drug negotiation program, part of the Inflation Reduction Act, as a ‘dystopian parody of “negotiation”’ that violates the company’s First and Fifth Amendment rights.”

— “Merck, in its complaint, said the negotiations and the stipulated minimum discounts drugmakers are forced to provide lest they incur a massive tax, run afoul of the Fifth Amendment’s takings clause, which requires the government provide ‘just compensation’ for property taken for public use.”

WILL THEY GO FOR A HAT TRICK?: “The Securities and Exchange Commission sued Coinbase on Tuesday, a back-to-back punch by regulators trying to flex their power over the crypto industry” The Wall Street Journal’s Dave Michaels and Vicky Ge Huang report, following the regulator’s lawsuit on Monday against Binance and its founder.

— “The SEC alleged that Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the U.S., violated rules that require it to register as an exchange and be overseen by the federal agency. … The lawsuits are significant moves by the SEC and Chair Gary Gensler, who took office in 2021, to try to regulate the entire crypto industry.”

— “The SEC’s strategy has centered on using its enforcement division to subdue crypto companies and show why its regulations apply to crypto activities, with increasing focus on the biggest players rather than just the companies and currencies at the margins.”

— “The SEC’s lawsuit against Coinbase, filed in Manhattan federal court, bore some notable differences from its lawsuit the day before against Binance. The SEC didn’t name Coinbase Chief Executive Brian Armstrong as a defendant or accuse the company of mishandling customer funds. Binance and its U.S. affiliate Binance.US said Monday they would defend themselves, and that all user assets were secure.”

— The agency had been telegraphing today’s move against Coinbase for months, and the exchange “pushed back on Tuesday, accusing the SEC of taking an ‘enforcement-only approach’ with the crypto industry in the absence of clear rules.”

FLY-IN SZN: A slew of industry and advocacy groups are hitting the Hill this week for fly-ins, including the National Wood Pallets & Container Association, which is bringing executives to share its priorities for the farm bill like supply chain sustainability and workforce and trade constraints. The trade group is set to meet with more than two dozen offices with an emphasis on Agriculture Committee leaders and members in both chambers, including meetings with Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) and Rep. G.T. Thompson (R-Pa.).

— The Natural Products Association is bringing natural product manufacturers, distributors and retailers to the Hill tomorrow to discuss FDA oversight and enforcement, the dietary supply chain and expanding HSA/FSA coverage for supplements. The group is set to meet with offices from the Senate Finance and HELP and House Ways and Means committees, and Sens. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.).

— The National Grocers Association, meanwhile, is holding its second competition-focused fly-in today and tomorrow. Independent grocers and wholesalers will push lawmakers to strengthen the Robinson-Patman Act and support for SNAP in the farm bill and hold a grocery bagging competition with lawmakers.

— Hospice and palliative care advocates are also in town with the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and the Hospice Action Network to educate members and staff on the value of hospice care, and advocate for payment increases and workforce shortages. They’ve got meetings scheduled with more than 100 offices.

DON’T MISS POLITICO’S HEALTH CARE SUMMIT: The Covid-19 pandemic helped spur innovation in health care, from the wide adoption of telemedicine, health apps and online pharmacies to mRNA vaccines. But what will the next health care innovations look like? Join POLITICO on Wednesday June 7 for our Health Care Summit to explore how tech and innovation are transforming care and the challenges ahead for access and delivery in the United States. REGISTER NOW.

Jobs Report

— Former HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan has been named CEO and president of the housing nonprofit Enterprise Community Partners.

— Andrea McGee has joined the National Federation of Independent Business as a federal government relations manager after more than a decade working for Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), most recently as administrative director.

— Robert Falb is joining the Association of Organ Procurement Organizations as director of government affairs. He previously served as the director of U.S. regulatory affairs at the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine.

— The Household & Commercial Products Association has promoted Mike Gruber from senior vice president to executive vice president of government relations and public policy, and Christopher Finarelli and Michelle Kopa from directors to senior director of state government relations and public policy for the west and east regions, respectively.

— Chris Andresen has been named a partner at Dutko Government Relations. He’s been with the firm for 17 years, most recently as a senior vice president.

— Amy Davis is Leidos’ new senior vice president and chief security officer. She was most recently deputy chief for the National Security Agency’s office of security and counterintelligence.

— Retired Army Lt. Gen. Neil Thurgood has joined Anduril Industries as senior vice president and will lead the company’s expansion in Huntsville, Ala. He was most recently the inaugural director of the Army Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technology Office.

— Ted Love, the former CEO of Global Blood Therapeutics, was elected chair of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization’s board of directors. Love, who will serve a two-year term, succeeds Nkarta CEO Paul Hastings.

— Benjy Messner is now of counsel at Precision Strategies to help lead their data and analytics practice. He will also continue work with his own firm, New River Strategies.

— Jason Botel is joining Age of Learning as vice president of national partnerships. He was most recently vice president of corporate development at Catapult Learning and is an Education Department alum.

A message from bp:

New Joint Fundraisers

None.

New PACs

Association for Commuter Transportation PAC (ACT PAC) (PAC)
Blue AZ PAC (Super PAC)
Don Tommy Pham (PAC)
Fight Like Hell PAC (Hybrid PAC)
The Riverside PAC (Super PAC)
Vannevar Labs, Inc. PAC (PAC)
Voyager PAC (PAC)

New Lobbying REGISTRATIONS

Ballard Partners: Julian Rudolph
Ballard Partners: Sr Technologies, Inc.
Ballard Partners: Techlaunch Academy
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP: Sierra Space
Cfm Strategic Communications (Conkling Fiskum & Mccormick): Seh America
Empire Consulting Group: Fox Corporation
Holland & Knight LLP: Quantum Industry Coalition
Intealth: Intealth
Mclarty Inbound LLC: An Acquisition, LLC
Ogilvy Government Relations: Iapd - The Performance Plastics Association
Subject Matter: Fox Corporation
The Normandy Group, LLC: City Of Boerne, Texas
The Raben Group: Reform Alliance
Todd Strategy Group: Fox Corporation
Tonio Burgos & Associates, Inc.: Puerto Rico Fiscal Agency And Financial Advisory Authority
Venable LLP: Vertanical Gmbh
Vitello Consulting: Stonington Global On Bhalf Of Pyle USa

New Lobbying Terminations

None.

A message from bp:

Our workforce keeps oil & gas flowing where and when it’s needed, trades energy, develops wind & solar farms, installs EV chargers and more. bp is working to deliver the energy America needs today while developing lower carbon alternatives. See how we’re investing in America.