With help from Daniel Lippman DOWN BY THE BAYOU: The handful of firms around Washington with deep ties to Louisiana saw their stock skyrocket this week with Mike Johnson’s ascension to House speaker, even as the backbencher’s sudden rise sent much of K Street clamoring to make inroads with him. — Despite his short career in Washington and a small network of former staff now working in the broader influence community, Johnson does have some close allies on K Street. Multiple lobbyists pointed PI to Dan Ziegler, a former executive director of the conservative Republican Study Committee that Johnson chaired from 2019 to 2021. Ziegler is now a principal at Williams and Jensen, where he lobbies for clients like Visa, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer and Owens & Minor. — “I think we’re well-equipped to understand who Mike Johnson is, able to advise our clients probably better than most,” Ziegler said in an interview. — But there’s another tier of lobbyists with roots in Johnson’s home state that is now looking to cash in on its relationship with the new speaker. That includes former Louisiana Rep. Bob Livingston and his firm Livingston Group; Chris Johnsen, who runs the D.C. office for Jones Walker, one of the largest law firms in Louisiana; the Picard Group, one of Louisiana’s top lobbying firms with a number of federal clients from Johnson’s district; Jeff Brooks of Adams and Reese; former Louisiana Sen. David Vitter, who’s now at Mercury Public Affairs; and Camp Kaufman at Cornerstone Government Affairs. — “There’s so many quality members in that state for such a small delegation,” one GOP lobbyist with ties to the state told PI, pointing to other powerful Louisianans like House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Senate HELP ranking member Bill Cassidy. — “For our clients, what we’ve been hearing is, ‘Hey, is this good for us? When can we meet with him?’” said the lobbyist, who was granted anonymity in order to speak candidly. “Yes, it’s good for us.” — In addition to providing better returns for federal clients — Johnson isn’t expected to depart much from many of his deeply held convictions, though lobbyists who know him highlighted his willingness to hear anyone out — the new leadership slate offers the opportunity for Louisiana firms to bring their state clients to the federal level and to expand their portfolio of work. — Louisiana lobbyists are also rushing to leverage their ties for the honor of hosting one of Johnson’s first fundraisers as speakers. “We’ve got clients calling us nonstop ready to cut checks — clients across the country from Arizona to New Jersey,” the GOP lobbyist said. — Having fellow Louisianan Scalise as Johnson’s No. 2 only compounds Louisiana firms’ good fortunes (which at one point seemed to be dashed after Scalise ended his own speaker bid). Lobbyists widely expect Johnson to lean heavily on Scalise as he staffs up and hits the ground running to avoid a government shutdown, with K Streeters noting to PI that Johnson will also have a better relationship in general with Scalise than former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. — “Under any and all circumstances, the leadership transition is a massive undertaking, but especially under circumstances like this, frankly having seen it firsthand,” said Casey Higgins, a former Paul Ryan aide who’s now at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. “There’s gonna be a lot of support that can come from Team Scalise to make sure that Johnson has the time to pick the right people and get up and running.” — That dynamic means that firms like S-3 Group, where former Scalise aides Matt Bravo and Marty Reiser now work, and Fierce Government Relations, which employs former Scalise staffer Eric Zulkosky, will likely capture some of that residual glow. — Johnson’s spot on the House Judiciary’s antitrust subcommittee also makes him somewhat of a known entity to tech companies — as our Pro Tech colleagues reported this week, he voted against tech antitrust bills, but he’s been vocal about accusing social media platforms of censoring conservative viewpoints. Among his K Street donors, Apple lobbyist Jeff Dobrozsi is one of just a handful who have given at least $2,000 over the years. — The military presence in Johnson’s district, along with his role on the Armed Services Committee, also means that there’s an existing relationship with the defense industry, which has been a top donor to his campaigns, as well as the firms that represent defense clients, lobbyists told PI. TGIF and welcome to PI — it’s been waiting for you. Send K Street tips, gossip and unsubstantiated rumors for us to chase down: coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter: @caitlinoprysko. RETAILERS RAMP UP ANTI-THEFT CAMPAIGN: “Representatives from more than 30 retailers joined a major industry lobbying group on Capitol Hill on Thursday, as they ramped up pressure to pass a law that backers say will curb retail theft,” CNBC’s Courtney Reagan reports. — “The National Retail Federation escalated its campaign to rally support for the bill, known as the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, which would make it easier to prosecute theft as a federal felony and set up a system for governments to share resources on crime. The retail lobby group dubbed its event ‘Fight Retail Crime Day.’” — “Before holding individual meetings with retail officials, the bill’s co-sponsors joined NRF CEO Matthew Shay in a press conference outside the Capitol — where they framed the legislation as critical to retailers’ bottom lines and their employees’ safety.” — “Organized retail crime is different from shoplifting. The NRF defines it as ‘the large-scale theft of retail merchandise with the intent to resell the items for financial gain,’” and trade groups and retailers alike “have spoken more than ever in recent months about how retail crime affects their profits, their employees and their customers. Target even cited the trend as it announced it would close nine stores.” — “Despite those comments, a survey released by the NRF last month found retailers’ losses from theft are largely in line with historical trends, but most respondents reported violence associated with the acts is getting worse. Much of companies’ lost inventory can also come from internal theft or management issues, as William Blair analysts wrote in a research note Thursday. Even so, the industry has pushed for federal and state laws that aim to crack down on crime. Retailers continued their campaign for policy changes in Washington on Thursday.” — As part of the fly-in, more than 70 retail asset protection executives representing over 30 brands met with over dozens of Hill offices yesterday that have yet to sponsor the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, a spokesperson told PI. ALSO FLYING IN: The National Alliance for Caregiving held its first advocacy summit and fly-in this week. The coalition brought 150 caregiver advocates to town for more than 70 meetings with offices on both sides of the aisle to discuss the group’s national strategy to support family caregivers and issues like paid family leave. The group’s in-person member-level meetings included Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Reps. Blake Moore (R-Utah), Ed Case (D-Hawaii) and Marc Molinaro (R-N.Y.). — Ukraine supporters also flooded the Hill this week, drawing more than 500 participants for the American Coalition for Ukraine’s Ukraine Action Summit. They had more than 150 meetings with House and Senate members to urge continued support for Ukraine in its war with Russia. IN A NEW LIGHT: “For years, the annual meeting of the Republican Jewish Coalition has been a routine stop on the presidential primary trail,” The New York Times’ Lisa Lerer and Rebecca Davis O’Brien report, but that’s all set to change this year. — “With an escalating conflict in Israel that threatens to spread across the region and a rise in tensions and antisemitism in the United States, the meeting will be like none of the others in the organization’s decades-long history.” — “When Republican officials, lawmakers and candidates gather in Las Vegas this weekend, they will come together at a moment of unique peril for Israel and, many attendees believe, for American Jewry.” — “Security has been tightened and seats added to accommodate a wave of new attendees who decided to come after the Oct. 7 attacks. An empty Shabbat table will sit in the middle of the room, honoring the more than 200 people being held hostage in Gaza. Along with the American national anthem, attendees will sing Hatikvah, the Israeli national anthem, and offer special prayers for those who are missing and wounded.” — “And while the overall tone will be subdued, members of the organization said they expected nothing short of full-throated, unequivocal support for Israel and the protection of Jews in America from the 2024 Republican field.” NEVER TOO EARLY: In advance of next summer’s presidential conventions, the top Washington lobbying and communications firm Invariant has already done site visits to Cleveland and Chicago to set up spaces for the firm founded by Heather Podesta, per Daniel. Invariant has secured spaces in both cities for events with elected officials, lobbyists, political operatives and journalists.
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