| | | | |  | | By Caitlin Oprysko | | | With help from Daniel Lippman LONGTIME CRAPO AIDE LANDS ON K STREET: Mike Quickel, who retired from the public sector last year after more than two decades working for Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), has joined the lobbying firm Hollier & Associates as a partner. — Quickel was Crapo’s lead tax and budget policy adviser, serving as policy director during the senator’s time as ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee and as chair of the Senate Banking Committee. — His arrival at Hollier & Associates constitutes a reunion with the firm’s founder, former Crapo chief of staff Will Hollier, who first hired Quickel in Crapo’s office back in 2000, Quickel told PI. It also comes at an opportune moment given Quickel’s tax policy expertise and the likelihood of Crapo assuming the gavel on the tax-writing committee should control of the Senate flip after the election — putting Quickel’s former boss in a key role steering the extension of a slew of expiring tax provisions from the 2017 bill Crapo helped author. — In an interview, Quickel said he may register to lobby once his mandated “cooling off” period ends in July, and expects to work on many of the same issues under the Finance Committee’s purview. “Depending on how things play out next year,” he said, “there seems to be a … market for people who have that experience, those connections.” FIRST IN PI — BLUE DOG AIDES HANG A SHINGLE: House Democrats’ razor-thin minority may have helped gut the ranks of the moderate Blue Dog Caucus in the current Congress, but two top aides to former leaders of the centrist bloc are launching their own lobbying and public relations firm aimed at capitalizing on their time building coalitions on the Hill. — The Corcoran Street Group will be led by Brad Howard, who previously was a lobbyist at The Vogel Group and served as the top aide to former Blue Dogs Co-Chair Stephanie Murphy. Howard will be joined by Sally Adams, who was chief of staff to former Rep. Tom O’Halleran (D-Ariz.), another former leader of the centrist group. — Howard told PI in an interview that as a former comms staffer and campaign manager, he had a public affairs itch that direct advocacy alone couldn’t always scratch. “None of these decisions on Capitol Hill are made in a vacuum,” Howard said, but often come as the result of outside coalitions and pressure. The firm will likely work on some of the same issues as Howard and Adams’ former bosses on the Hill, including tax, trade, defense and public safety. — He added that the Corcoran Street Group will also strive to be nimble for its clients by striking up brief strategic partnerships to fill gaps as needed (Howard was involved in a similar initiative for state lobbying pushes with The Vogel Group). — “When you have such a volatile political environment, in a volatile economic environment … a lot of companies are looking for efficiency,” Howard argued. “Not every company can afford a full-time comms firm, a full-time [government relations] firm, a full-time research or regulatory firm.” Happy Tuesday and welcome to PI. Send lobbying tips: coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.
| | A message from Sallie Mae®: Despite continued delays, completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) remains an important step to help make college more accessible and affordable. We must ensure students and families, especially first-generation students and those from undeserved communities, can complete the FAFSA with confidence and connect to free money like scholarships, Pell grants, and other critical federal aid. | | | PBM OVERHAUL ON THE BRINK: Our colleagues Ben Leonard, Megan R. Wilson, David Lim and Daniel Payne report that “bipartisan legislation to overhaul how pharmacy benefit managers operate is in flux after negotiations broke down over the scope of the reforms, according to seven lobbyists and two congressional aides granted anonymity to discuss the talks candidly.” — “Drugmakers have funded major advertising and lobbying campaigns to convince Congress that PBM practices are to blame for the high prices patients face at the pharmacy. Community pharmacists have raised similar concerns and lawmakers of both parties agree there’s a problem,” but “lawmakers haven’t been able to reconcile” the different approaches proposed by the House and Senate. — “The discord between the two chambers has some lobbyists and policymakers pointing fingers at the House — including Democratic lawmakers who are reportedly rejecting the Senate Finance Committee’s more aggressive reforms, and Republicans who don’t want to mandate changes to PBM practices in the commercial market beyond Medicare.” — “The disagreements over reforming PBM practices helped tank an initial health policy deal lawmakers considered adding to appropriations legislation — with some lobbyists blaming [Senate HELP ranking member Bill] Cassidy for insisting on the HELP Committee's proposed reforms.” ANNALS OF DARK MONEY: “Tammy Murphy has been talking like a campaign finance reformer, calling the amount of money in politics ‘disgusting.’ But as New Jersey’s first lady, Murphy spent a year and a half leading a dark-money group without disclosing donors. Now she has a super PAC supporting her bid to replace Bob Menendez in the U.S. Senate,” our Matt Friedman writes. — “Like many other Democrats, Murphy is taking a familiar position — working within a system that she says she wants to dismantle. ‘The amount of money in politics is really disgusting. I will be the first to say that. We need to overturn Citizens United. I can’t say it any more clearly than that,’ Murphy said during a debate with her main Democratic primary opponent, Rep. Andy Kim, last week.” — “It’s a common progressive talking point in Democratic primaries to oppose the landmark Supreme Court ruling that expanded dark money and led to unlimited spending on political advertising,” a position that Kim also supports. “But Murphy’s public position overlooks the participation of her and her allies in the campaign finance system she now opposes, drawing accusations of hypocrisy.” — “From February 2022 until late October 2023, Murphy chaired a PAC and a nonprofit that have spent millions of dollars to promote the agenda of her husband, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy. The bulk of that money was spent through the nonprofit 501(C)(4), Stronger Fairer Forward, which never publicly disclosed its donors.” — “Meanwhile, Murphy claims Kim is being dishonest about his campaign finance purity by exploiting a loophole in a pledge he frequently cites to refuse corporate PAC contributions.” ODD BEDFELLOWS: “Elon Musk is a constant critic of President Joe Biden — but his car company is the biggest winner from Biden’s effort to expand the nation’s supply of electric vehicle chargers,” per our David Ferris. — “Tesla is installing more charging plazas than any other company funded by Biden’s 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law, according to an exclusive analysis of public records for POLITICO’s E&E News by the data consulting firm EVAdoption. Tesla has won almost 13 percent of all EV charging awards from the law, earning it a total of more than $17 million in infrastructure grants.” — “This comes on the heels of other wins for Tesla, which makes more electric vehicles and operates more charging stations than anyone in the United States, and is cementing its charging technology as the nation’s de facto standard.” — “And it comes despite repeated friction between Musk and Biden: The Tesla CEO has mocked the president as ‘a damp sock puppet in human form’ who ‘is treating the American public like fools,’ while the White House has condemned Musk for actions such as endorsing an antisemitic post on his social media network X.” — “The government funding will effectively embed Tesla’s distinctively shaped red-and-white chargers into the experience of not just Tesla drivers, but of all EV users on America’s highways. It is a win for Tesla, but also a form of capitulation: By agreeing to build federally funded stations, the iconoclastic company is also agreeing to play by the same rules as everyone else.”
| | | | On the ground in Albany. Get critical policy news and analysis inside New York State. Track how power brokers are driving change across legislation and budget and impacting lobbying efforts. Learn more. | | | | | | | | | — Liz Demaree has joined the government relations practice at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough as a senior policy adviser. Demaree was previously a senior vice president at Podesta.com, the firm launched by Tony Podesta. — Alyson Sincavage is joining Cisco as director of government affairs. She most recently served as chief counsel and staff director for the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety, and is an Alex Padilla, Tom Udall and Tim Kaine alum. — Rachel Weiss is now a senior adviser for external affairs to Director of Medicare Meena Seshamani focused on the Inflation Reduction Act and Medicare Advantage. She was previously vice president of health care advocacy at Arnold Ventures. — Patrick Kane has joined the Motion Picture Association as vice president of digital strategy. Kane previously led digital communication strategy for the British Embassy. — Michael Stwarka is joining The Herald Group as vice president. He previously was a managing director at Targeted Victory. — Chris Herrmann is now U.S. program coordinator at the European Council on Foreign Relations. He most recently was the Brent Scowcroft Award Fellow at the Aspen Institute. — Tom Perriello was named the new U.S. envoy for Sudan. He was formerly a representative for Virginia and most recently served as executive director of Open Society Foundations. — Elizabeth Fusick has returned to the American Sugar Alliance as its director of communications. She was previously a communications consultant for the trade group at North Bridge Communications and is a Ron DeSantis alum. — Eric Holder will remain chair of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, which he founded with Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi, for the next decade. — Ryan Tyson and Andrew Romeo, two veterans of DeSantis’ presidential campaign, are joining P2 Public Affairs. Tyson was the DeSantis campaign pollster and will lead the firm’s newly established research vertical, and Romeo, who was the campaign’s comms director, will focus on advising clients on communications-related matters. — White House deputy press secretary Olivia Dalton is planning to leave the administration to work in a comms role for Apple, Bloomberg’s Jennifer Jacobs reports. — Ashley Powers is now counsel in Miller & Chevalier’s government contracts counseling and litigation practice. She most recently was senior counsel in the contract law division of the CIA’s Office of the General Counsel. — Hari Sevugan is joining Shallot Communications as a senior adviser. He is the founding partner of Narrator Message & Media. — Claudia Larson is joining the Edible Oil Producers Association as president and CEO. She previously was senior director of government relations and head of nutrition policy at the National Milk Producers Federation. — Erin Moriarty-Siler and Beck Havens are joining New Heights Communications. Moriarty-Siler will be director of media relations and previously was an election comms strategist for Common Cause. Havens will be director of digital and has previously done work with the Teamsters, SEIU and Power the Polls. — Ben Arcuri is now director of government relations for the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. He previously was federal legislative director for the National Association of Home Builders. — Dora McCann is the new director of government affairs at the Transportation Intermediaries Association. She previously worked in the Senate and as a federal lobbyist on transportation issues. — Jonathan Schwantes has joined Microsoft’s congressional team. He previously worked as a lobbyist and senior policy counsel at Consumer Reports.
| | | | A message from Sallie Mae®:   | | | | | Guthrie Victory Fund (Rep. Brett Guthrie, BRETTPAC — The Leadership PAC of US Representative Brett Guthrie, NRCC)
| | GRACE PAC (Leadership PAC: Grace Napolitano)
| | New Lobbying REGISTRATIONS | | 10 28 Consulting LLC: Smith And Company (Smith & Co) LLC Adams And Reese, LLP: Alabama State Port Authority Adams And Reese, LLP: Betabox, Inc. Adams And Reese, LLP: New Schools For Alabama Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP: Clearingbid, Inc. Association Of Cancer Care Centers (Fka Association Of Community Cancer Centers): Association Of Cancer Care Centers (Fka Association Of Community Cancer Centers) Avoq, LLC (Fra Team Subject Matter, LLC): Xr Association Brian Glackin & Associates LLC: Mccord Health Inc Brian Glackin & Associates LLC: Shetland Space Centre Ltd. Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP: Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc. Cornerstone Government Affairs, Inc.: Hidden Level, Inc. Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, LLP: Long Island Children'S Museum Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, LLP: Stillman Development International Ens Resources, Inc.: Vallejo Flood And Wastewater District Hollier & Associates: Bloom Energy Invariant LLC: Primary Products Ingredients Americas LLC Mcguirewoods Consulting (A Subsidiary Of Mcguirewoods LLP): Auto Care Association Porter Group, LLC: Bendito Resources, Inc. Prasam: United Launch Alliance, LLC The Picard Group, LLC: Moss Lake Ngl Project LLC Valcour LLC: Pontis Partners, LLC (For Friends Of United Hatzalah, Inc.) Vectis Dc: Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority
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| | A message from Sallie Mae®: As a responsible private lender, Sallie Mae advises students and families to explore free money like scholarships and grants before borrowing. The gateway to much of this aid is through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®), which provides access to more than $100 billion in scholarships, grants, state-based, and federal financial aid. Recent delays and complications accessing the form point to broader issues with the federal financing system for higher education, but it’s still critical that students and families complete the FAFSA to maximize the free money available. See how Sallie Mae helps students and families navigate and complete the new FAFSA. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
