AHLA lobbyist joins Brownstein

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Jun 27, 2022 View in browser   By Caitlin Oprysko Presented by With Daniel Lippman USYK TO BROWNSTEIN: Andrew Usyk is leaving the American Hotel & Lodging Association, where he was vice president of government affairs for the past three years, and joining Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck as a policy director. Before joining AHLA Usyk was an aide for Sens. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), working on budget and appropriations issues, labor issues, and small business and economic development. At Brownstein, he'll focus on policy and regulatory changes on the Hill and in the executive branch. NEW BUSINESS: A newly launched semiconductor coalition has hired its first lobbyists to push the China competitiveness bills, which contain $52 billion in subsidies for chipmakers, over the finish line. — The American Semiconductor Innovation Coalition, whose members include companies like  IBM, Microsoft and Micron, universities like MIT, Howard University and the University of Michigan, and more, has hired Clark Street Associates to lobby on CHIPS funding and press its vision for a National Semiconductor Technology Center, an entity called for in last year's defense policy bill. Clark Street Associates has hired two lobbying firms as subcontractors, according to newly filed disclosures: Hawley LLC and former Rep. John McHugh's McHugh LeMay Associates. — Verisign, the company that manages dot-com internet domains, has hired Holland & Knight, its first new lobbying firm since 2019. Verisign has for decades had a contract with the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, but a 2018 change to the company's agreement with the federal government eliminated caps on the fees that Verisign could charge, while renewing the contract automatically — a move that prompted antitrust complaints. — Former Rep. Tom Davis will lobby on the account along with three others, focusing on "internet governance policy" and "issues related to cybersecurity and cyber notification," according to a disclosure. The company also retains ACG Advocacy and Arnold & Porter. METLIFE NAMES NEW HEAD OF U.S. GOVERNMENT RELATIONS: Chris Rosello is joining MetLife as the bank's new head of federal government relations. He was previously head of U.S. public affairs at HSBC and senior vice president for federal government relations with Wells Fargo, where he worked on implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act, and before that served as a liaison to the Hill at Treasury. Rosello will report to Susan Greenwell, the bank's senior vice president and head of global government relations. Good afternoon and welcome to PI. What's going on out there? Send your best leads, tips or other musings: coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.   INTRODUCING POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don't miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY.     A message from Meta: Doctors can practice high-risk situations risk-free in the metaverse In the metaverse, future surgeons will be able to practice advanced procedures hundreds of times before seeing real patients – helping them gain experience and master their skills. The metaverse may be virtual, but the impact will be real. Learn how Meta is helping build the metaverse.   BIDEN OFFICIALS HUDDLE WITH INSURERS ON CONTRACEPTIVES COVERAGE: "Two Cabinet secretaries met with insurers Monday to ensure they provide contraceptives without cost to enrollees," POLITICO's Sarah Owermohle reports. — "Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Labor Secretary Marty Walsh convened the meeting with 14 major health insurers and payer groups days after a Supreme Court decision overturned Roe v. Wade leaving states to decide abortion's legality. In a concurrent opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas said the court should reconsider its 1965 ruling that established a right to contraception." — "The secretaries are meeting with representatives from insurers Anthem, Centene, Humana, CVS Health, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, Express Scripts, Optum, United Health, Kaiser Permanente and those of industry trade groups America's Health Insurance Plans, the Association for Community Affiliated Plans, the National Business Group on Health, the National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans and the Alliance of Community Health Plans." — "The Affordable Care Act requires payers to cover at least one form of contraception for each Food and Drug Administration-approved method without a co-pay and provide alternatives if someone's preferred contraception is denied. However, advocates for broad coverage say insurers are skirting the rules and denying coverage in some cases. The House Committee on Oversight and Reform last month said insurers also were not consistently providing alternatives." ON THE CLOCK: With time dwindling on Congress' legislative calendar, deep-pocketed tech behemoths, as well as their less affluent antitrust critics, are stepping up efforts to sway lawmakers to their sides on a pair of antitrust bills. Both sides are increasingly focusing their energies on one person, The Washington Post's Cat Zakrzewski, Will Oremus, Gerrit De Vynck and Cristiano Lima report: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. — Over the weekend, the left-leaning tech advocacy group Fight for the Future "drove billboard trucks with 12-foot-wide screens to Schumer's homes in New York and Washington, blaring a video of comedian John Oliver urging Congress to pass the legislation." The decision to target Schumer was a simple one, said Evan Greer, Fight for the Future's director: 'He is the key. … This was a way to get creative and put this right in his face.'" — "Friends and foes alike of the landmark legislation, two bills that seek to rein in the business practices of the country's largest tech companies, have their eyes on Schumer, who will decide whether the legislation will make it to the Senate floor for a vote." — "In recent days, it's not just proponents of the bills who have sought to sway Schumer. The leaders of Google and Amazon have personally called the Senate majority leader. His office said he tells anyone who calls him to discuss the legislation the same message: 'Senator Schumer supports the legislation and is working with Senator [Amy] Klobuchar and others to get the necessary votes to pass it,' said Schumer spokesman Justin Goodman." — "It's a wonky yet momentous political battle that has united an unlikely alliance of would-be trustbusters from left and right against some of the wealthiest corporations in world history. With time running out for this Congress to pass them, those corporations are putting up the political fight of their lives." TRUMP INC: " Donald Trump never stopped raising funds from his supporters after the 2020 presidential race. His companies, meanwhile, continued to charge his political outfits for goods and services. As a result, the former president has been able to convert about $1.3 million of donor money into business revenue since he lost the 2020 election, according to a review of the latest federal filings" by Forbes' Dan Alexander. — "In the months immediately following the election, much of the money came via Trump's official campaign committee, Donald J. Trump for President, Inc.," which handed over $113,000 to the former president's businesses between the election and the end of 2020. But it didn't stop there, with the renamed Make America Great Again PAC sending $526,000 to Trump's companies through February of this year, including monthly $38,000 rent payments. — "Then there was Trump's leadership PAC, Save America," whose finances have attracted attention from the select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. "Leadership PACs often allow politicians to dole out money to other candidates they support. In Trump's case, the group also served as a vehicle for directing donor money into his business. From February 2021 to May 2022, Trump's leadership PAC spent $213,000 at Trump properties." Jobs Report — John Fetherston has joined Husch Blackwell Strategies as a principal in the Phoenix office. He was most recently a director at Veridus. — Bill Guidera is now head of public affairs at CLEAR. He previously was director of federal and state public affairs at Netflix. — Elliot Mamet has been named an American Political Science Association congressional fellow and a Steiger Fellow at the APSA Centennial Center for Political Science & Public Affairs. He most recently received his PhD in political science at Duke. — Dan Hoffmann is now media manager for global corporate affairs at Amazon. He is a former senior director at Bully Pulpit Interactive and is a founding member of mental health nonprofit Project Healthy Minds. — Former Attorney General Bill Barr is now a distinguished fellow at the Hudson Institute. He'll continue to be engaged in legal work and consulting. — Alex Kisling will be vice president of comms at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He previously was director of strategic comms at the Atlantic Council. — Madeline Sarver is now an account director in crisis and issues management at WE Communications. She previously was director of public affairs at Locust Street Group. — Jordan Bonfitto is now director of government affairs at the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. He most recently was at the Global Cold Chain Alliance, and is a Trump USDA and White House alum.   A message from Meta:   New Joint Fundraisers Adam Gray Victory Fund (Adam Gray for Congress, California Democratic Party) Jamie Victory Fund (Democratic Party of Oregon, Jamie for Oregon) Kildee Axne Victory Fund (Reps. Dan Kildee, Cindy Axne) Lori Chavez-DeRemer Victory (Dreamakers PAC, NRCC, Lori Chavez-Deremer for Congress) OZ VICTORY FUND (Doctor Oz for Senate, Dose Of Reality, Optimism and Zeal Pac (Dr Oz PAC)) New PACs Classical Liberal Caucus (PAC) Defenders of Truth in Maryland PAC (Super PAC) DREAMAKERS PAC (Leadership PAC: Lori Chavez-Deremer) Freedom First Coalition (PAC) RESPECTFULLY PAC (PAC) True Democrats Only PAC (Super PAC) Valley Voices for Truth PAC (Super PAC) Wyomingites Defending Freedom and Democracy, Inc (Super PAC)   STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president's ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today.     New Lobbying Registrations 3 Click Solutions, LLC: Lion Elastomers Alston & Bird LLP: Interpublic Group Balch & Bingham, LLP: Westwater Resources, Inc. / Alabama Graphite Products Cavarocchi Ruscio Dennis Associates, L.L.C.: Society Of Gynecologic Oncology Clark Street Associates: American Semiconductor Innovation Coalition Conaway Graves Group, LLC: Ftx Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, LLP: 69Th St. Tenants Corp. Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, LLP: The Center At West Park Lnc. Dla Piper LLP (US): Primo Center For Women And Children Electronic Frontier Foundation: Electronic Frontier Foundation Ferox Strategies: Emd Serono, Inc. Ferox Strategies: Food Corps Ferox Strategies: Global Grab Ferox Strategies: Zebra Technologies Corporation Hawley LLC: Clark Street Associates On Behalf Of American Semiconductor Innovation Coalition Holland & Knight LLP: Freeport-Mcmoran, Inc. Holland & Knight LLP: Ouster, Inc. Holland & Knight LLP: Verisign, Inc. Horizons Global Solutions LLC: Live Oak Banking Comapny Invariant LLC: Association Of Food And Drug Officials Invariant LLC: Mercari, Inc. Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP: Iai North America K&L Gates, LLP: Skytran, Inc. Leavitt Partners, LLC: Sickle Cell Disease Partnership Lifecare 2.0, LLC: Lifecare 2.0 Mason Street Consulting, LLC: Mind 24-7 Maynor LLC: Torch Technologies, Inc. Maynor & Stiers, LLC: Paragon Research Corporation Mchugh Lemay Assoc., LLC: Clark Street Associates On Behalf Of American Semiconductor Innovation Coalition Mehlman Castagnetti Rosen & Thomas, Inc.: Pgm Of Texas, LLC Mike Davis, LLC: Keller Postman LLC Miller & Chevalier Chartered: Gusto Mr. Gaylord Hughey: Mutualink, Inc Porterfield, Fettig & Sears, LLC: Wise US Inc. Quill Advisers LLC: Au Strategies, LLC Quill Advisers LLC: National Restaurant Association Radiant Nuclear: Radiant Nuclear Rasky Partners, Inc.: City Of Davenport Rasky Partners, Inc.: Prysmian Cables And Systems USa LLC Robin & Associates: Rain Carbon Inc Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP Dba Taft Advisors LLC Fka (Taft, Stettinius & Hollister, LLP): St. Bernard Port, Harbor And Terminal District The Elevation Association, LLC: Hikvision USa, Inc. The Ferguson Group: Town Of Mount Pleasant, Sc The Ferguson Group: Ward And Smith On Behalf Of The Carteret County Beach Commission The Madison Group: Bluevine Inc. Venn Strategies: Cabot Corporation Venn Strategies: Ea Engineering, Science, And Technology Von Batten-Montague-York: Embassy Of The Federal Republic Of Somalia Yorktown Solutions: Velta New Lobbying Terminations Rock & Associates: Wellness Pharmacy A message from Meta: The metaverse may be virtual, but the impact will be real Meta is helping build the metaverse so aviation mechanics will be able to practice servicing different jet engines – preparing them for any complex job. The result: A more skilled workforce. Learn how Meta is helping build the metaverse.     Follow us

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