Subject: POLITICO Influence, presented by the National Retail Federation: NRA and Bernie — Beacon Consulting Group closing — Mars fanatics want more NASA funding— Michael Yudin to the Raben Group
From: POLITICO Influence <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 May 2016 12:06:00 -0600

By Noah Weiland | 05/23/2016 02:00 PM EDT

With help from Brianna Gurciullo, Mary Lee and Kaitlyn Burton

FIREARM FURY: The politics of the National Rifle Association's annual conference in Louisville didn't end at the group's endorsement of Donald Trump on Friday. At the conference on Saturday, Chris Cox, the head of the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action, played a clip of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders defending his support for a 2005 law preventing lawsuits against gun companies when their materials are used by criminals. According to a report in the Guardian, Cox said to chuckles, "I don't say this often ... OK, fine, I've never said it. But Bernie's right."

Further south, Hillary Clinton was staking out the other end of the debate. At an event organized by the Trayvon Martin Foundation, she staked out a more progressive territory on the issue, slamming Trump for his role in the NRA confab: "Unlike Donald Trump, I will not pander to the gun lobby." Speaking in front of a group of mothers whose sons were killed by guns, Clinton went on: "If you want to imagine what Trump's America will look like, picture more kids at risk of violence and bigotry."

RYAN ON REGULATIONS: In a new episode of the Off Message podcast with POLITICO's Glenn Thrush, House Speaker Paul Ryan went after Clinton for what he thinks is her brand of liberal cronyism, telling Thrush, "I think she's also so old-fashioned in that ... I think she - I think, you know, railing against Uber, against new economic innovations, is just telling us, she's projecting, 'I am going to regulate the heck out of this economy, and I'm going to give the keys to the castle to the current kings so that they can pull the drawbridge up behind them.' And I think that's the kind of - that's what she represents."

MORE AMMO: Republic Consulting registered to lobby for Nordic Ammunition Company, headquartered in Raufoss, Norway. The group describes itself as a "technology-driven aerospace and defense group specializing in high-performance defense and space solutions."

HAPPY MONDAY! I'm guest hosting for Isaac today from across the office in POLITICO Magazine world. Brianna and Mary take the keys tomorrow for the remaining two weeks, so please continue sending tips to [email-masked] and [email-masked].

DOWN BALLOT: One of the biggest-spending groups, Americans for Prosperity, doesn't quite see eye to eye with the presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump and therefore has yet to dip its toes in any political spending this year, president Tim Phillips said in a conversation with POLITICO's Scott Bland. Instead AFP has shifted its resources into building more field offices and undertaking different ventures including getting involved with GOP Rep. Renee Ellmers' (R-N.C.) primary.

LOOK WHO'S BACK IN TOWN: Lobbyists are staging a comeback this election cycle, reports Byron Tau for The Wall Street Journal. Powerhouse lobbyists including Tony Podesta, Steve Elmendorf and David Jones have helped raise $5.4 million for Hillary Clinton. Bernie Sanders has taken donations from lobbyists at the National Mining Association, the Podesta Group, top marijuana advocacy group and other trade groups. Donald Trump's campaign includes lobbyists Paul Manafort; Rick Gates; John Mashburn, a veteran Senate aid; and American Continental Group's David Urban. Craig Holman, a lobbyist for the liberal group Public Citizen, which advocates more restrictions on issue and corporate advocates,
 said it is surprising that lobbyists "have been able to claw their way back into the campaign so far."

And as Kate Ackley reported in Roll Call, the top 20 federal lobbyist donors have given more than $2.5 million this cycle, motivated in part by new requests for money from joint fundraising committees.

** A message from the National Retail Federation: When retail thrives, communities across America thrive. Hundreds of retailers from across the country arrive in Washington today to share #thisisretail stories of responsibility, opportunity, advancement and community with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. 30-second video: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=4ec085a52dd5921c221210cdbc5f2af8429c37c77e0f8445a4b3a1daac08481d **

NOT ON THIS PLANET: Mars enthusiasts are lobbying lawmakers to provide more funding to NASA - saying a trip to Mars is both possible and affordable, reports Eric Niiler for Wired. The citizen lobbyists' impending uphill climb was made clear after they experienced resistance at a hearing at the space subcommittee of the House Science Committee. "What can you say to help persuade the American people that Mars is a goal that we should undertake despite the financial risks that our country faces?" asked Mo Brooks, a Republican representative from Alabama whose congressional district includes NASA's Huntsville Space Flight Center.

CAMPAIGN FINANCE FUN: This morning the Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation announced Explore Campaign Finance, an open source web tool that includes decades of campaign finance data. The resource comes from Solomon Kahn, a Technology and Democracy Fellow at the Ash Center, who believes that aggregating campaign finance data "allows the public to better understand where contributions to federal office holders come from."

FINAL WEEK: Beacon Consulting Group is closing its doors permanently on Friday and terminated its lobbying contracts with nine different organizations, including the Carnegie Hall Corporation and Cenikor Foundation. Christopher Fisher, vice president of Beacon, confirmed the closing.

MOVERS:

- The Raben Group announced that Michael Yudin is joining the firm's senior team as a principal, working with the organization's education team in the Washington office. Yudin is a six-year veteran of the Department of Education under President Barack Obama. Yudin replaces Joel Packer, formerly the director of educational policy and practice at the National Education Association, who since served as a principal for Raben and retired this month. Whitney Tome will serve as counsel and lead the firm's new environmental initiative. Daniel Forkkio is coming in as director of finance. 

- Lauren Toomey starts today at the London Stock Exchange Group in Washington after two years in Rep. Jeb Hensarling's (R-Texas) office, including as legislative counsel. 

- Carlton Carroll left API after six years to go to the communications office at AICPA, working on behalf of the financial sector.

- Collin Berglund joined Rational 360 as a digital director. He comes from Burson-Marsteller, where he did PR for government agencies, infrastructure projects, sports organizations and Fortune 500 companies.

COMING ATTRACTIONS:

- Tuesday, more than 200 members of the propane industry will be on Capitol Hill discussing community gas systems and advocating for the truck driver 34-hour restart provision.

- The Government Relations Labor Forum is hosting a lunch today with Cook Political Report's Amy Walter at Capitol Hill's Charlie Palmer Steak.

SPOTTED: The Washington State Society brought a taste of the Pacific Northwest to the banks of the Potomac with their annual Potlatch dinner. Among the attendees was retiring Rep. Jim McDermott, whose longtime service was honored with video tributes by Gov. Jay Inslee, Reps. Dan Newhouse, Derek Kilmer, Denny Heck, Suzan DelBene, Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Adam Smith, Rick Larsen, and Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray. Former Rep. Norm Dicks, Casey Sixkiller from Sixkiller Consulting, Jeff Bjornstad from W2A, and Christy Gullion from the University of Washington were also in attendance.

NEW PAC REGISTRATIONS:
Hope4uall (Independent Expenditure - Person or Group, Unauthorized)
Patriots United (Independent Expenditure-Only Committee, Unauthorized)

NEW LOBBYING REGISTRATIONS:
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP: West Coast Aggregate, LLC
Carmen Group Incorporated: Cafritz Interests
Carmen Group Incorporated: Federal City Development Partners
Carmen Group Incorporated: Southwest Business Improvement District
Hall, Render, Killian, Heath & Lyman, P.C.: Beloit Health System
Liz Williams and Company: Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities
Liz Williams and Company: FAA Managers Association
Liz Williams and Company: General Atomics Aeronautical Systems
Liz Williams and Company: Public Properties
Mrs. Alyson Parker: National Retiree Legislative Network
Polsinelli PC: Eagle Engineering
Republic Consulting, LLC: Nordic Ammunition Company (doing business as NAMMO, Inc.)
The Federal Group, Inc.: Unlimited Power, Ltd.
The Madison Group: United Launch Alliance LLC

NEW LOBBYING TERMINATIONS:
Beacon Consulting Group: Carnegie Hall Corporation
Beacon Consulting Group: Cenikor Foundation
Beacon Consulting Group: Haymarket Center
Beacon Consulting Group: MANY (Mid-Atlantic Network of Youth and Family Services)
Beacon Consulting Group: Mystic Seaport Museum
Beacon Consulting Group: National Head Start Association
Beacon Consulting Group: Nurse-Family Partnership
Beacon Consulting Group: Safer Foundation
Beacon Consulting Group: WestCare Foundation Inc.

** A message from the National Retail Federation: Retail is more than great products, or the sound of a cash register. More than a storefront, or a website. It's working together as a community, creating the things people want, today. It's the smile at the end of every transaction and the effort and innovation that customers don't see. It's a shop on your street that feels like family, and a store on the other side of the world that you can reach from your phone. It's a lifetime of opportunities, from first jobs to lasting careers. It's every person, every product, every exchange, and everything that consumers need. Retail impacts everyone, everywhere, every single day. And when retail
 thrives, communities across America thrive. Video: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=0bc84608d4e5e3f8f0e282a5b2030ea03889455845e713eba7d8d037f38f7dfd #thisisretail **

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