News: Bratt claps back

Thursday, December 8, 2022

Bratt claps back

Dec 08, 2022

With Daniel Lippman

BRATT CLAPS BACK: The head of the Justice Department's counterintelligence division vowed today that the department would not be deterred by a string of recent legal setbacks in its attempts to crackdown on foreign influence efforts in the United States.

— "We will continue to bring hard cases," Jay Bratt said at a forum for FARA lawyers hosted by the American Conference Institute. He was rebuffing suggestions by some FARA practitioners that the high-profile acquittal of longtime Trump fundraiser Tom Barrack on charges of illegal foreign lobbying last month could trigger a retrenchment by the department.

— In his first public comments on the cases of Barrack and Steve Wynn, the casino magnate and GOP megadonor who recently won the dismissal of a DOJ lawsuit to compel him to register as a foreign agent, Bratt said that the string of public defeats "doesn't deter us in making those tough choices" and that to suggest otherwise reflected "a fundamental misunderstanding of how we do business."

— Bratt noted that the Barrack case was one of the department's most high-profile attempts to use Section 951, a statute colloquially referred to as espionage-lite, to prosecute an alleged foreign malign influence campaign. Even then, he pointed out that the facts in that case were "not much in dispute," but that the jury ultimately agreed with Barrack's defense over the government. He said the DOJ respects the not guilty verdict in the case.

— The dismissal of the Wynn lawsuit because of a long-standing appeals court precedent that similarly alarmed FARA experts , did represent a roadblock, Bratt conceded. He told attendees that should a client ever be faced with a determination from the FARA Unit that they must register, one option is to "advise them to stop what they're doing and … that ends our efforts." DOJ is still evaluating its path forward, Bratt said, which could include bringing future lawsuits in different jurisdictions when applicable, where case law is "more or less a blank slate," but might require a legislative fix.

— Bratt, who is also playing a key role in the Justice Department's investigation of potentially mishandled classified documents by former President Donald Trump, began his keynote address by quipping that he was notified by DOJ's press shop of an "uncommon level of interest" in his remarks today, which were initially slated to be closed to press. He stuck to recapping the past year in FARA enforcement.

— FARA registrations continue to trend upward, Bratt said, with the department seeing its most new registrants in the past year since 2019, around the time DOJ's enforcement crackdown began in earnest. He also revealed that the department is aiming to release its new proposed FARA regulations sometime next spring.

— During a Q&A after Bratt's remarks, attendees pressed him on the department's thinking behind recently ordering Sidley Austin to register under FARA for its work on behalf of Chinese surveillance camera company Hikvision and which Bratt had highlighted earlier as a credit to the FARA Unit's administrative process. Bratt was also asked about increased scrutiny of foreign influence over think tanks they help fund, to which he said that "some scenarios are ones that could pique" the interest of DOJ analysts.

Good afternoon and welcome to PI. Send K Street tips: coprysko@politico.com . And be sure to follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko .

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SPARE CHANGE: "Billionaire George Soros, the biggest disclosed Democratic donor in the 2022 election cycle, gave another $50 million to a super PAC in the fall , building on an already large investment in Democratic groups and candidates for the 2024 election cycle and beyond," POLITICO's Elena Schneider reports.

— "Democracy PAC, which has served as one of Soros' major political spending vehicles since 2019 , received another eight-figure infusion of cash from Soros earlier this month, according to a person directly familiar with the group's new Federal Elections Commission filing, which will be publicly released on Thursday. It's the latest sign that Soros will continue to play an enormous role in the Democratic campaign finance ecosystem, particularly ahead of the next presidential election."

— "All of Soros' 2022 campaign spending — including direct contributions to candidates and committees, as well as donations to a pair of super PACs — totaled about $50 million, likely placing atop the list of the biggest Democratic donors during the midterms, according to OpenSecrets."

— "Either directly or through his affiliated super PACs, Soros in the 2022 cycle, gave $14 million to Senate Majority PAC, the flagship Senate Democratic super PAC. That includes $1 million for the Georgia runoff, which Sen. Raphael Warnock won on Tuesday night, giving Democrats a 51-seat majority in the Senate. Soros sent another $5 million to House Majority PAC, the main House Democratic super PAC, according to the person directly familiar with the Democracy PAC filing."

AFP LAYS OUT ITS POLICY ROADMAP: As Republicans prepare to retake control of one chamber of Congress opposite an expanded Democratic majority in the Senate, Koch-backed Americans for Prosperity today laid out its policy priorities for the incoming Congress and announced an eight-figure financial commitment for a long-term campaign aimed at advancing those policies including grassroots engagement, town halls, advertising and outreach to lawmakers.

— "If there's one thing the election showed, it's that neither Party has earned the trust and confidence of American voters," Brent Gardner , the organization's chief government affairs officer, said in a statement. "Continuing down the same path that has led nearly 80 percent of Americans to say we're on the wrong track is a recipe for more economic pain. At the same time, sitting back and accepting the status quo until the next election would send a clear message that lawmakers have no interest in solving America's challenges. Neither approach is acceptable to us or to the American people."

— The group is prepping a "large-scale" ad campaign early next year to roll out its plan to the public, and will seek meetings with lawmakers from both parties to tout AFP's proposals, which touch on labor policy, financial regulations, tax changes, and health care, immigration and criminal justice overhauls along with reining in government spending and administrative rulemaking.

MICHAEL BEST STRATEGIES LAUNCHING DEFENSE PRACTICE: Erik Berdy is joining Michael Best Strategies, where he will help launch and lead a new defense and national security practice. Berdy was most recently special assistant for legislative affairs to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Trump and Biden administrations. Michael Best's Lucia Alonzo and Molly Martell will also become part of the new practice.

NO LABELS LATEST: The centrist group No Labels has named former NAACP chief Benjamin Chavis as a national co-chair — joining Joe Lieberman, the former Democratic senator, and outgoing GOP Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland.

— The move came hours after the publication of Daniel's story in which former employees detailed what they believe can be a difficult workplace for minority and female colleagues amid a cutthroat culture where staffers are routinely fired or pushed out. No Labels officials dismissed the complaints as coming from aggrieved ex-employees and said the demanding workload is justified by the goals of the organization.

— Chavis, who was previously a volunteer with the group, said in the story that No Labels has a "commitment to diversity and inclusion and treating all people with decency and respect." In an email to supporters, the group said it was "thrilled Dr. Chavis has agreed to help lead the movement, not only because of his iconic reputation, but because his career reflects exactly what we want No Labels to become --- a force for good that changes Washington for the long term."

— In a brief interview, Chavis said he had been in discussions with No Labels leaders for the last eight months about becoming a national co-chair and his agreement to serve in that role "had nothing to do with the article in POLITICO." No Labels did not respond to a request for comment on the announcement.

SBF'S OTHER BENEFICIARIES: "The nonprofit Campaign Legal Center — a leading nonpartisan political watchdog that's hounded Donald Trump and scores of other politicians with legal challenges and ethics complaints — recently accepted more than $2.5 million in contributions from embattled 'crypto-king' Sam Bankman-Fried," Insider's Dave Levinthal reports.

— "The Campaign Legal Center confirmed to Insider that Bankman-Fried, who is now himself facing significant legal and ethical scrutiny, gave the organization about $2.5 million since 2021. Bankman-Fried gave $1.06 million to the Campaign Legal Center's advocacy arm during 2021, and $1.5 million — split between the group's advocacy and charitable arms — during 2022."

— "Brendan Quinn , a spokesperson for the Campaign Legal Center, says the nonprofit organization cannot return or give away Bankman-Fried's money because the money is already spent."

— The watchdog "has previously suggested political candidates who receive contributions from tainted sources have options for giving back the money. … Asked whether the Campaign Legal Center would consider disgorging an amount of money equivalent to what Bankman-Fried contributed, Quinn noted that the Campaign Legal Center is not a political candidate or committee. 'When a campaign is asked to disgorge an already-spent contribution, it generally does so by giving an equivalent amount to a charity. CLC is a charity,' Brendan Quinn said."

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Jobs Report

— Banner Public Affairs has hired Ryan Losak as vice president of government relations. He was most recently a legislative assistant to Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.).

— Mike Goscinski has joined IHRSA, The Global Health & Fitness Association, as vice president of government affairs and the trade group's first full-time, in-house D.C.-based lobbyist. He was most recently senior director of external affairs for the National Automatic Merchandising Association.

— Bonnie McLaughlin has joined RH Strategic Communications as vice president to expand its public sector portfolio. She was most recently executive director of global partnerships and marketing at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

— Sydney Gart has been hired as a finance assistant at Fulkerson Kennedy & Company. She most recently was a finance assistant for Sen. Maggie Hassan's (D-N.H.) campaign.

— Geoff Dietz will be director of federal affairs for The Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas. He was most recently a manager of government affairs for TotalEnergies.

— Richard Sorian, senior vice president of communications for 340B Health, is retiring at the end of this year after more than 40 years in the Washington, D.C., health care policy world.

— David Lauteri is now director of renewable energy policy at Quanta Services. He previously was head of legislative affairs for Mitsubishi Power.

— Megan Harrington is now deputy director of government affairs at Kroger. She previously was senior policy adviser for Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio).

— Anna Buhlinger is now a federal affairs director at the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies. She previously was federal government affairs director at the American Land Title Association.

— Susan Lagana has joined the strategic comms and public affairs team at Invariant. She previously was a partner at Brunswick Group and is a DOT alum.

New Joint Fundraisers

Winning for America Fund (Sen.-elect Eric Schmitt, WINNING FOR AMERICA PAC)

New PACs

CareSource Mission Political Action Committee (CareSource Mission PAC) (PAC)
Early Vote Action PAC (Super PAC)

New Lobbying Registrations

Actum I, LLC: Masimo Corporation
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP: Avis Budget Car Rental, LLC
Dentons Global Advisors Government Relations LLC: Climateview Ab
Ervin Graves Strategy Group, LLC: Pmt Group
Tenpenny Law LLC: City Of Osawatomie Kansas

New Lobbying Terminations

None.