BIG TOBACCO LAUNCHES LOBBYING BLITZ TO BLOCK MENTHOL BAN: The Los Angeles Times' Emily Baumgaertner, Ben Stockton and Ryan Lindsay have an interesting look out today at tobacco companies' efforts to stoke fear in Black communities as a tactic to water down or block restrictions on menthol cigarettes — proposals for which are pending across the country and at the federal level. "About 150 cities and counties have placed some sort of restriction on the sale of menthol cigarettes, most issuing an outright ban," the Times writes, as has the state of Massachusetts. — The investigation comes as FDA is working on a nationwide ban on menthols, a proposal that drew interest from dozens of groups meeting with the White House, per The Associated Press. — Reynolds American, whose Newport cigarettes are the top-selling menthol brand, "has hired a team of Black lobbyists and consultants, including former congressman Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.), and sponsored the organization led by civil rights activist and MSNBC political show host the Rev. Al Sharpton. Those figures have in turn stoked fears among Black communities about what the bans could mean," the L.A. Times reports. — The paper's investigation also found that "individuals and organizations working on Reynolds' behalf have failed to properly declare their links to the company. Lobbyists for the company in Denver successfully killed a bill that would have banned menthol cigarettes. And in Los Angeles, protesters were paid to attend a rally organized by a group with close ties to the company." STELLAR HIRES FORMER AIDE TO SMALL BUSINESS CHAIR: Stellar Development Foundation , the nonprofit organization behind blockchain firm Stellar, has hired Adam Minehardt as its head of federal government relations. — Minehardt was previously director of federal affairs at Citigroup. Before that he served as chief of staff to Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-N.Y.), the chair of the House Small Business Committee, who held a hearing in 2020 on the benefits of digital currencies for small businesses but in a hearing on stablecoins earlier this year "asked a Treasury Department official if Congress could help 'go after crypto investors trying to use Puerto Rico as a tax shelter,'"according to Decrypt. — Stellar was one of the many crypto firms that hired its first federal lobbyists in the past few years. Its lobbying spending skyrocketed last summer as the industry sought changes to a tax provision in the bipartisan infrastructure bill, from $30,000 in Q1 2021 to $530,000 in the final three quarters of the year. — It currently retains a team of lobbyists at Cypress Advocacy that includes former deputy White House chief of staff Rick Dearborn and former House Financial Services staffers. CONSERVATIVE WATCHDOG SUES FEC OVER LIBERAL DONOR'S CITIZENSHIP: "A government watchdog group is urging the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in a lawsuit filed on Monday to take action on a complaint against a Swiss billionaire who has funneled money to Democratic causes," The Hill's Brett Samuels reports. — "Americans for Public Trust filed the lawsuit in district court in Washington, D.C., alleging the FEC has been slow to act on its May 2021 complaint against Hansjörg Wyss. The watchdog group cited various media interviews and a government filing indicating Wyss is not a U.S. citizen, which would make donating to political candidates or political action committees illegal." — "Americans for Public Trust cited a 2021 Securities and Exchange Commission filing in which Wyss listed his citizenship as a 'citizen of Switzerland' as well as a 2021 interview with Swiss news outlet Blick to argue that Wyss can't donate to U.S. political candidates. The group also cited a 2014 speech in which Wyss said he only carries a Swiss passport, not a U.S. passport or green card." — "The lawsuit alleges that Wyss used two nonprofit organizations, the Wyss Foundation and the Berger Action Fund, to contribute millions of dollars to the Sixteen Thirty Fund and the New Venture Fund, two so-called dark money groups that fund liberal causes through operations like The Hub Project and Demand Justice." CRYPTO COMPANIES SNAP UP LAWYERS: "The cryptocurrency industry is ramping up efforts to recruit more legal talent as it faces increased regulatory pressure while looking to be accepted by and become part of mainstream finance," The Wall Street Journal's Mengqi Sun reports. — "Crypto exchanges and companies are poaching attorneys left and right, from both law firms and other crypto companies, bringing them in-house to help navigate an evolving regulatory landscape while helping to curb outside legal expenses, industry participants said. Law firms, which are sometimes losing their partners to in-house positions, are also building up their crypto practices to maintain that valuable expertise." — "The increased demand for lawyers also marks a turning point for crypto, whose early supporters often expressed skepticism of regulation. The industry has been expanding rapidly with hopes of attracting more mainstream investment opportunities and many are embracing the stance that they want regulatory clarity."
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