Welch aide heads back to K Street

By Caitlin Oprysko

Presented by the National Association of Broadcasters

With Daniel Lippman

WELCH AIDE HEADS BACK TO K STREET: Meagan Foster is returning to the private sector to join Cozen O'Connor Public Strategies as a senior principal. Foster has spent the past six years on the Hill, most recently serving as deputy chief of staff and legislative director for now-Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.).

— Before that, Foster was a senior policy adviser to former Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and lobbied for a pair of telecom trade associations: USTelecom and NTCA–The Rural Broadband Association.

— Foster, whose former boss is a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Commerce Committee’s telecom and consumer protection/data privacy subcommittees, will focus on Democratic outreach and will work with Republican lobbyist Madison Smith to expand the firm’s base of tech clients, according to the firm, whose existing tech clients include TikTok and Amazon Web Services.

FLY-IN SZN: At least a half-dozen trade associations representing a variety of sectors — from broadcasters to geoscientists — are hitting the Hill this week for fly-ins. The National Association of Broadcasters is gathering over 500 broadcasters at Nationals Park tomorrow, where they’ll hear from House Speaker Mike Johnson, Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez.

— The association will follow that up with visits to the Hill on Wednesday to lobby for legislation requiring free AM radio in new cars, as well as for the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, the contentious bill to require online platforms to negotiate with and pay news publishers, and for the perennial congressional resolution opposing artists earning royalties or other compensation when their music is played on broadcast radio.

— Members of the Geological Society of America will be in town as well to discuss priorities like funding for science programs, and visa reforms to help address backlogs for processing non-immigrant visas. They’ve got meetings slated with 15 different offices on both sides of the Hill, including Sens. John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas).

— ACA Connects, which represents small and medium-sized broadband and video companies, will kick off a three-day summit tomorrow culminating in meetings on the Hill and with FCC officials to discuss the deployment of Broadband Equity Access and Deployment Program funding, as well as industry regulations and competition.

— Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator is also bringing a coalition of other clean energy incubators and entrepreneurs this week to D.C., where they will press for more funding for the Energy Department’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations and full funding for a new clean energy incubator program created through the CHIPS and Science Act.

— The coalition is set to meet with more than 50 members of Congress, including Sens. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.).

— Officials with the Security Industry Association are also in town this week with plans to push for federal grant guidance to boost school districts’ use of the group’s school security benchmarks, according to our friends over at Morning Education, as well as artificial intelligence and workforce incentives. Later in the week, a group of college students will meet with Hill offices and Education Department staff to discuss student mental health.

Happy Monday and welcome to PI. Hitting any good fundraisers soon? Closing in on a big approps win? Let us know: coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.

A message from the National Association of Broadcasters:

What do Sens. Ed Markey and Ted Cruz agree on? AM radio’s lifesaving role during emergencies. More than 250 Republicans and Democrats in Congress are standing up for AM radio listeners by supporting the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act. This bill will keep AM radio in cars – because when cell and internet services are down, radio could be your only lifeline. It’s time to pass this critical legislation now. Learn more at DependonAM.com.

ICYMI OVER THE WEEKEND: Prior to Sunday’s Republican presidential primary in D.C., former President Donald Trump’s campaign issued a blunt ultimatum to GOP lobbyists in the city, warning that K Streeters who sat out the primary would be doing so at their own risk, per our Alex Isenstadt.

— “If you don’t bother voting, don’t bother calling” the former president, one campaign official told Alex. Mercury Public Affairs’ Bryan Lanza, who served on Trump’s 2016 campaign and transition team, added that Trump’s campaign “is very cognizant of who makes up the GOP primary voters in D.C.” and that “the worst thing for them would be not showing up.”

IVF COMPANY REGISTERS TO LOBBY: “An IVF company facing lawsuits for destroying embryos has registered to lobby Washington for the first time, the latest example of a reproductive health company going on the offensive after the reversal of Roe v. Wade,” our Hailey Fuchs reports.

— The filing from CooperSurgical “comes after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled last month that frozen embryos were legally considered children, prompting new calls for federal protections for fertility treatments” and setting off a political scramble after some clinics in the state paused in vitro fertilization treatments.

— “CooperSurgical hired the Washington firm Thorn Run Partners, which registered to lobby on ‘Fertility’ and ‘Maternal Health’ effective Friday. … The case in Alabama centered around the destruction of embryos, which the court ruled was criminal under the state’s Wrongful Death of a Minor Act. CooperSurgical faces lawsuits in multiple states on a similar issue, with families seeking unspecified damages over claims that the company caused the loss of their embryos.”

— The company “enlisted three veteran Hill aides to lobby on its behalf, including Jessie Brairton, a former staffer to former Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) who formerly lobbied for the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly. The other two lobbyists are Andrew Rosenberg, a former aide to Sen. Ed Kennedy (D-Mass.) who co-founded the firm, and Jacky Usyk, a longtime Democratic Senate aide.” Adeena Fried, a spokesperson for CooperSurgical, told Hailey the company hired lobbyists to ensure IVF remains accessible nationwide.

GETTING COLD FEET: “Donors to No Labels are starting to fear that the third-party group missed its window for launching a much-hyped presidential bid and are questioning whether to make future financial commitments to the organization,” Daniel and Shia Kapos report.

— “Those fears have intensified after two high-profile No Labels candidate targets — former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, and West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat — passed on the chance to run for president, and as the party’s planned April presidential nominating convention approaches without a clear ticket in place.”

— “‘No Labels just missed one heck of an opportunity to potentially be viable, and now I don’t know that they can be viable,’ said Jim Teague, the CEO of a Texas oil and gas company and a No Labels donor. ‘I don’t know who they can possibly get to run that would generate excitement that Joe Manchin would have generated,’ he said, adding that it’s ‘pretty doubtful’ he will donate to the organization in the future.”

— “No Labels officials say they are continuing to move forward with plans to launch a presidential run and are looking at ‘sometime after Super Tuesday to determine if we offer our line and who would be on it,’ spokesperson Maryanne Martini said.”

ZOOMING IN ON A NEW CONSERVATIVE BENEFACTOR: “From the Ambien and Dramamine in millions of bathroom medicine cabinets, to the sugar substitute that makes diet sodas sweet, to the first-ever birth control pill, some of America’s most common medicines and supplements can be traced back to the G.D. Searle pharmaceutical company,” CNN’s Casey Tolan writes.

— “Now, more than a century after the company’s founding, the massive family fortune built from those scientific advances has emerged as a major benefactor of the right, mostly out of the public eye.”

— “The Searle Freedom Trust, a foundation funded by the company’s former chairman, has doled out more than $200 million in grants over the last decade, sending more money to conservative non-profits than nearly any other private foundation in recent years, according to a CNN analysis.”

— “This year, the Searle trust is poised to play an even bigger role as it empties out its coffers. Following the wishes of its founder, the late Daniel C. Searle, the trust is closing down in 2025 and planning to award most of its last major grants in 2024. That means a potential windfall during a key election year for groups that push conservative policies: As of the beginning of 2023, according to its most recent tax return, the trust had more than $59 million left to spend.”

PBM ‘DISRUPTORS’ HEAD TO THE WHITE HOUSE: “The White House on Monday is holding a listening session on pharmacy benefit managers, but the industry's biggest players are miffed they were not invited,” our Megan Wilson reports.

— “The attendees include HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra and private-sector players, such as billionaire Mark Cuban, who founded an online pharmacy aimed at circumventing the conventional PBM model. White House officials — National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard and Neera Tanden, director of the Domestic Policy Council — will also participate.”

— “The Biden administration wants to demonstrate that it’s working to tackle high health care costs, which is a top issue for voters in a presidential election year. … But the three largest industry players — UnitedHealth Group’s OptumRx, CVS Health’s Caremark and Cigna’s Express Scripts — were not invited, according to the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, a PBM trade group, which said that not being included makes it appear as if the Biden administration is ‘promoting one business model over all others.’”

A message from the National Association of Broadcasters:

— Kim Linthicum has joined Todd Strategy Group as a principal. She previously served as senior vice president of government affairs and public policy at Myriad Genetics.

— Dave Howell has joined SMI as a vice president. He most recently served as principal deputy Director of the Department of Energy’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains.

— Kathryn Monahan is now a news associate at CNN. She most recently was a senior PR and digital media fellow at Cogent Strategies.

— Naomi Goldberg is now executive director of the Movement Advancement Project. She was previously the group’s deputy director.

— Sol Ross is now director of Schneider Electric’s Sustainability Research Institute. He is an Obama HHS alum.

— Jill Jackson has been promoted to partner at Monument Advocacy. She was previously a principal at the firm.

— Jim Davis is now a partner at Prosek Partners.

— Timothy Butters has joined the board of directors at infrastructure think tank Aii. He was previously acting administrator and deputy administrator of PHMSA, as well as senior adviser at FAA.

— Kasey Lovett is joining JPMorgan Chase’s corporate responsibility communications team as vice president with a focus on local public affairs campaigns. She was most recently senior director of communications at American Beverage.

— C.M. Files is joining New America as its inaugural digital director. They previously were a vice president in the corporate affairs practice at BCW Global, leading on digital and labor issues, and are an AFL-CIO and Purpose alum.

— Dave Dorey is joining Liff, Walsh and Simmons as a partner and head of its labor and employment group. He previously was senior litigation counsel at the Fairness Center, and is a DHS and DOL alum.

— Jason Brown is now general manager of Applied Intuition Defense’s Washington office. He was most recently Google public sector’s head of professional services for defense.

— Doug Bruder is joining Applied Research Associates as director of national security programs. He was previously director of research and development for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.

— Jennie Frishtick is now a public affairs manager for the Northeast at Alstom. She was previously a government relations consultant.

— Nick Berning and Gina Coplon-Newfield are joining Sunstone Strategies as managing directors. Berning previously led the comms team at the Green New Deal Network. Coplon-Newfield previously was chief of staff for the Office of Policy in the Department of Energy.

— James Sussman has been promoted to communications officer at the International Rescue Committee. He was a media and communications manager at IRC before assuming his current role in an acting capacity for three months.

— Alice Roosevelt is now a national security associate at Invariant. She is a recent graduate of UNC Chapel Hill.

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A message from the National Association of Broadcasters:

More than 82 million Americans depend on AM radio for always-on news, sports, talk, traffic and weather. AM radio stations also serve as the backbone of the Emergency Alert System, delivering lifesaving emergency information when your community needs it most. More than 250 members of Congress are supporting the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act to ensure AM radio remains available in cars to keep Americans safe. When cell and internet services fail, free AM radio service is critical. Congress should pass the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act now. Learn more at DependonAM.com.

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