American hires former Graves chief

From: POLITICO Influence - Thursday Jun 29,2023 10:07 pm
Presented by All* Above All: Delivered daily, Influence gives you a comprehensive rundown and analysis of all lobby hires and news on K Street.
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By Caitlin Oprysko

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With Daniel Lippman 

AMERICAN HIRES GRAVES’ FORMER CHIEF: American Airlines has hired the former chief of staff to House Transportation & Infrastructure Chair Sam Graves (R-Mo.) as it seeks to defeat a push from rival carrier Delta to add additional slots at Reagan National Airport for direct flights beyond the airport’s mandated perimeter.

— American retained Cassidy & Associates Paul Sass beginning Wednesday to lobby on issues related to commercial airline industry policy and infrastructure, according to a disclosure filed today. Sass, who worked under Graves for close to two decades before heading to K Street last year, is the only lobbyist listed on the account.

— The hire comes in the middle of a heated push over whether to add new exemptions to DCA’s perimeter rule as part of the FAA reauthorization process currently under way in Congress. The policy battle has scrambled ideological lines, pitting Western lawmakers, business groups and Delta against members from the DMV, regional airports and business organizations and carriers like United Airlines, which runs a hub out of Dulles International Airport, Alaska Airlines and American.

— Airlines on both sides of the dispute have now added well-connected lobbyists this month. As PI reported a few weeks ago, Delta has retained a longtime adviser to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, the top Republican on the Senate Commerce Committee and co-sponsor of an amendment that would add a handful of new slots at DCA for long haul flights.

— That panel has yet to mark up its FAA bill, but House T&I advanced its proposal earlier this month without addressing the issue.

MORE NEW BUSINESS: Federal Hall Policy Advisors has added four new clients in recent weeks. The financial services firm signed the Credit Union National Association last month to lobby on issues related to credit union lending, as well as the rooming-house startup PadSplit, but Fed Hall’s other new clients mark a branching out from the finance sector.

— The U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum, an NGO that recently hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Secretary of State Antony Blinken at one of its events, hired Fed Hall earlier this month to lobby on issues related to free trade, taxation and national security between the U.S. and India, and one of the precincts in Texas’ Harris County hired the firm in May to push for funding for county agencies.

— The trade group representing pharmacy benefit managers in Washington, meanwhile, hired its fourth outside lobbying firm, 1607 Strategies. Former Small Business Administration and RNC aide Emily Threadgill and former House GOP aide Travis Johnson will bolster the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association’s defense on the Hill, where pharmaceutical middlemen have become the latest targets of lawmakers looking to lower drug prices and a scapegoat for drugmakers themselves.

Happy Thursday and welcome to PI. We know there’s something you want to get off your chest before the July Fourth break, so let’s hear it: coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.

 

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MORE LAYOFFS DOWNTOWN: Subject Matter has laid off more than a dozen staffers following its merger with strategic comms firm Kivvit earlier this year in the latest series of job cuts downtown. Subject Matter co-founder Steve Elmendorf told PI the layoffs eliminated several redundant positions at the new Subject Matter+Kivvit, and amounted to reduction of less than 6 percent of the firms’ total workforce.

— The firm also let a handful of staffers go earlier this spring, which Elmendorf said in an interview were meant to “right size” parts of the firm in preparation for and following the merger.

— A source familiar with the job cuts told PI that among those affected were senior vice president Audrey Chang, who led the firm’s strategic comms shop, and members of her team. The layoffs come despite an infusion of cash last year from the Los Angeles investment firm Coral Tree Partners, part of a flood of private equity investment on K Street, and Elmendorf noted that the firm expects to continue to grow, outside the Beltway in particular.

— PR giant Edelman, meanwhile, is undergoing a new round of job cuts — eliminating 240 staffers, or about 4 percent of its workforce, amid persistent economic headwinds, O’Dwyer’s Kevin McCauley reports. The latest layoffs follow the elimination of 130 jobs late last year, as PI reported, along with other cost-cutting measures like freezing hiring and limiting employee travel.

WATCH THIS SPACE: If corporate boardrooms weren’t already agonizing over conservative backlash to so-called DEI initiatives aimed at diversifying the workplace, today’s Supreme Court ruling striking down affirmative action in college admissions is sure to set off a new round of hand-wringing over emphasizing diversity in corporate hiring practices, our Nick Niedzwiadek reports.

— While the court’s decision “does not outright implicate so-called diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, attorneys and some business groups say that it provides fresh ammunition to critics seeking to upend these workplace programs. Conservative Republicans, including state and federal lawmakers and, notably, GOP presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, have harshly criticized such policies.”

— “‘It will cause employers to take a closer look at how they are executing their diversity strategies,’ Tim Bartl, the CEO of the HR Policy Association, told POLITICO shortly after the decision was handed down. ‘And it really creates an impetus for employers to reaffirm their commitment to diversity, but to do so in a way that mitigates the potential of challenge down the line.’”

— “Corporations have already expressed some unease about being placed in the center of these competing pressures, and Thursday’s ruling will likely spur some to consider overhauling their diversity practices or back off on them to avoid potential legal headaches.”

KOCHS FILL THE COFFERS: The Koch network’s effort to nominate an alternative to Donald Trump in next year’s GOP presidential primary is already quite flush with cash as it gears up to play in its first Republican presidential primary ever, having squirreled away more than $70 million for next year’s elections, an official with the group tells The New York Times Maggie Haberman, Jonathan Swan and Shane Goldmacher.

— The vast majority of the funds came from within the network itself, per the Times: Koch Industries cut a $25 million check to Americans for Prosperity Action, while Charles Koch’s nonprofit Stand Together kicked in another $25 million, the PAC’s next FEC report will show.

— “With seven months until the primaries, the Koch coalition of conservatives is still searching for who its influential and wealthy donors believe can take down the former president, a reflection of a broader paralysis among anti-Trump Republican donors who have watched in shock as Mr. Trump’s poll numbers have held despite two indictments.”

— “Some top Republican donors, who routinely write seven- or eight-figure checks to support candidates, are keeping their checkbooks closed” until a clear contender to Trump emerges — inaction that “has benefited Mr. Trump, who is begrudgingly viewed by many top party donors as the inevitable nominee.

— “Yet officials in the Koch network profess optimism that 2024 will not be a repeat of 2016, when Mr. Trump began winning statewide races with roughly a third of the party’s Republican base behind him in a fractured, crowded field,” and the message appears to be working for donors like Art Pope, Craig Duchossois, Walmart heirs Jim and Rob Walton and Ron Cameron, all of whom donated to AFP Action.

COMING ATTRACTIONS: Lina Khan’s Federal Trade Commission has already filed three cases against Amazon.com Inc. Now she’s gearing up for the Big One,” Bloomberg’s Anna Edgerton and Leah Nylen report.

— “In the coming weeks, the agency plans to file a far-reaching antitrust suit focused on Amazon’s core online marketplace, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg and three people familiar with the case. The main allegation is expected to be that Amazon leverages its power to reward online merchants that use its logistics services and punish those who don’t.”

— “FTC investigators and Khan’s office have been honing the complaint for several months, two of the people said, and finalizing key details such as where to file suit. Khan and her colleagues are keen to file before personnel changes in August, according to the people, who cautioned that the timing could slip.”

— “Based on her public comments, Khan is unlikely to accept compromises from Amazon and could seek to restructure the company — a dramatic outcome that Amazon would surely appeal.”

MARIJUANA GROUP LAUNCHES A SUPER PAC: “A coalition of marijuana businesses and advocacy groups has launched a new super PAC that will work to ‘raise the profile of cannabis as a national issue in the 2024 election and beyond,’” per Marijuana Moment’s Kyle Jaeger, “and part of the strategy will involve finding industry partners to ask their customers to make ‘round-up’ donations at the point of sale when shopping at dispensaries.”

— The U.S. Cannabis Council on Wednesday announced the formation of Legalize America, a super PAC backed by the trade group and its member businesses — which include Curaleaf, Canopy Growth, Green Thumb Industries, Perkins Coie, Scotts Miracle-Gro and more — to rally support around candidates in favor of legalization.

— “We will use all available tools—including scorecards, endorsements and targeted independent expenditure campaigns—to advance cannabis reform, with the goal of creating a prosperous and equitable cannabis industry,” Curaleaf’s Matt Harrell, who chairs the PAC, said in a press release.

— “We believe the 2024 presidential election will be a pivotal moment in the fight to end cannabis prohibition,” the PAC’s secretary, Cronos Group’s Pete Meachum, said in a statement. “We are laying the groundwork now to use advertising, grassroots engagement, voter outreach and events to keep cannabis front and center throughout the campaign.”

CORRECTION: Wednesday's edition of Influence misstated the status of Cecilia Rouse’s appointment as president of the Brookings Institution. Her appointment has been approved by Brookings' board of trustees. PI regrets the error.

 

A message from All* Above All:

What is abortion justice? Abortion justice means care is available to all in our communities without hurdles, shame, or judgment—and that everyone can get abortion care when they need it, without going broke. It means freedom to control our bodies, lives, and futures. It supports economic security and ensures our dignity, humanity, and freedom. Legal abortion is critical, but it takes more to ensure care is available to everyone who needs it—and that’s why we need bold solutions for lasting change. Learn more.

 
Jobs Report

Elevate Government Affairs is launching a digital advocacy practice, which will include digital advocacy and grassroots activation capabilities and will be run by executive vice president Bret Manley.

Sara Garcia is now director of operations for Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.). She most recently was office manager for government relations at the Home Depot.

Thomas Grow is returning to Littler as a shareholder in the labor management relations practice group. He most recently was vice president of labor relations at Charter Communications.

Brooke Oberwetter is leaving TikTok as its head of policy communications. She has not yet announced her next steps.

Caroline Ciccone is now president at Accountable.US. She previously was deputy assistant secretary for public affairs in health care at HHS and is an OPM, SBA and DNC alum.

Ron Kovach is now communications director for Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-Texas). He was previously press secretary with the Federation for American Immigration Reform.

Anne Wakabayashi is now a vice president at BerlinRosen. She previously was a media strategist at Win Company.

Karla McKanders is joining the Thurgood Marshall Institute as director. She previously was a professor for critical race theory and immigration law at Vanderbilt University Law School.

Josh Caron is now vice president of government affairs at M Financial. He previously was vice president of federal affairs at Finseca.

Kelley Hudak is now director of federal relations at the American Petroleum Institute. She most recently was director of government affairs at Tyson Foods and is a Steve Scalise alum.

 

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New Joint Fundraisers

FINTECH FUND (Rep. Warren Davidson, Defend Freedom Political Action Committee, NRCC, Club For Growth PAC)

New PACs

Donnie, you lost Ivanka. Who's left? (Super PAC)
ILEF Super PAC (Super PAC)
IOWA AVIATOR PAC (Super PAC)

 

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New Lobbying REGISTRATIONS

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld: Cadence Design Systems, Inc.
Capitol Strategies US, LLC: Racingsnail, Inc. Dba Mivation
Federal Hall Policy Advisors, LLC: Credit Union National Association
Federal Hall Policy Advisors, LLC: Harris County Precinct 4
Federal Hall Policy Advisors, LLC: Padsplit
Federal Hall Policy Advisors, LLC: U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum
Forbes-Tate: Alivecor, Inc.
Forbes-Tate: Tractor Supply Co.
Forbes-Tate: Whitepages, Inc.
Grayrobinson Pa: Space Florida
Lighthouse Point Government Relations: Fairbanks Morse, LLC
Mercury Public Affairs, LLC: National Agricultural Genotyping Center
Moran Global Strategies, Inc.: National Capital Arts And Cultural Affairs Program
S-3 Group: Wta Tour, Inc.
Uptown Solutions LLC: Ius Impact LLC Coalition Against Unjust Sentencing (Fka Caus)

New Lobbying Terminations

Dentons US LLP: Devry University, Inc
Mercury Public Affairs, LLC: Zestfinance, Inc. D/B/A Zest Ai

 

A message from All* Above All:

Our fundamental rights are at stake. We won’t settle for compromises or crumbs from politicians and the courts—it’s time for abortion justice.

Restoring legal abortion is critical—but it takes more to ensure people can get the care they need. It's time for bold solutions that ensure that anyone can get abortion care when they need it, without going broke and without barriers because of who we are or where we are from.

We need abortion justice NOW. Learn more and join us.

 
 

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