AN… EPIC COURT BATTLE BEGINS: “Apple is about to face off in court against the biggest threat to its $2 trillion tech empire — not the governments of the U.S. or Europe, but a video game company based in the town of Cary, N.C.,” POLITICO antitrust guru Leah Nylen reports. — “Epic Games , the maker of the popular video game Fortnite, has captured the attention of regulators in Washington and Brussels with an antitrust lawsuit that could upend how the iPhone-maker does business.” The trial that kicks off today in Oakland, Calif., centers around “Apple’s control over its App Store — the only way app developers can reach the world’s 1.5 billion iPhone or iPad users” and to which Epic accuses the company of illegally tying access with the use of its payment system, which takes a percentage of sales. — What’s at stake? “A loss would be a major blow for Apple, which relies on its App Store for roughly $500 billion a year in sales — and a rising share of its profits.” THE LONG ARM OF THE NRA: The New York Times’ Glenn Thrush, Danny Hakim and Mike McIntire have a long look at how the NRA has helped kneecap the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which will be tasked with last month’s executive orders on guns. — “In the 48 years since its mission shifted primarily to firearms enforcement,” the agency “has been weakened by relentless assaults from the N.R.A. that have, in the view of many, made the A.T.F. appear to be an agency engineered to fail.” — “At the N.R.A.’s instigation, Congress has limited the bureau’s budget. It has imposed crippling restrictions on the collection and use of gun-ownership data, including a ban on requiring basic inventories of weapons from gun dealers. It has limited unannounced inspections of gun dealers. Fifteen years ago, the N.R.A. successfully lobbied to make the director’s appointment subject to Senate confirmation — and has subsequently helped block all but one nominee from taking office.” FINTECH LOBBYING GROUP ADDS 4 MEMBERS: The Financial Technology Association, a new trade group formed this spring by fintech companies like Betterment, Plaid and Wise, has added four new members to its ranks as the industry increasingly looks for a foothold in Washington: the buy now, pay later companies Klarna and Sezzle, employment and income verification platform Truework, and payment platform Nium. FLYING IN (VIRTUALLY): The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions is kicking off two days of virtual advocacy on the Hill, when its cardiologist members will meet with lawmakers like Sens. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) and Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) and Ron Kind (D-Wis.). The group will lobby for bills aimed at lowering the rate of amputations, delaying the Medicare sequester’s hospital cuts and at reforming prior authorization practices for Medicare Advantage beneficiaries. — The National Association of Chemical Distributors will begin a two week virtual fly-in on Tuesday, where it will advocate for infrastructure investments to boost delivery of chemicals, as well as renewal various trade policies. FACEBOOK RULING ON TRUMP REMOVAL COMING THIS WEEK: “Facebook’s oversight board will announce its ruling on whether former President Donald Trump ’s account should be reinstated or remain suspended on Wednesday morning,” POLITICO’s Cristiano Lima reports. — “The board will face backlash in Washington whichever way it rules. Republicans have excoriated Facebook for kicking Trump off its platforms, while Democrats for years have called on it and other social media companies to boot him off for spreading misinformation and dangerously incendiary rhetoric.” DEMS’ ESG PUSH TRICKLES DOWN TO K STREET: “Environmental, social, and governance lobbying has more than doubled in the past year,” Bloomberg Law’s Andrew Ramonas reports, “as newly-in-charge Democrats push for companies to be more transparent and accountable on issues such as climate change, diversity efforts, and political activities.” — “More than 40 companies, trade associations and advocacy groups have lobbied federal officials on ESG matters so far in 2021, compared to only about 20 in the first quarter of 2020, according to a Bloomberg Law review of public reports. BlackRock Inc., PepsiCo Inc., and ConocoPhillips Co. were among the companies that disclosed ESG lobbying efforts for the first time as President Joe Biden took office.” WYSS UP WITH THAT: “He is not as well known as wealthy liberal patrons like George Soros or Tom Steyer. His political activism is channeled through a daisy chain of opaque organizations that mask the ultimate recipients of his money. But the Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss has quietly become one of the most important donors to left-leaning advocacy groups and an increasingly influential force among Democrats,” The New York Times’ Ken Vogel writes. — “Newly obtained tax filings show that two of Mr. Wyss’s organizations, a foundation and a nonprofit fund, donated $208 million from 2016 through early last year to three other nonprofit funds that doled out money to a wide array of groups that backed progressive causes” and boosted Democrats. “Mr. Wyss’s representatives say his organizations’ money is not being spent on political campaigning. But documents and interviews show that the entities have come to play a prominent role in financing the political infrastructure that supports Democrats and their issues.” | 
