Lobbyists prepare new terrorism victims push

By ISAAC ARNSDORF

With help from Taylor Gee, Kaitlyn Burton and Mary Lee

THE NEXT JASTA? The recent success of the bill letting 9/11 victims’ families sue Saudi Arabia, passed over President Barack Obama‘s veto, is emboldening other terrorism victims to seek similar openings. Lawyers for Esther Klieman, an American who was killed in a 2002 attack on a public bus in Jerusalem, have fought in court for more than a decade for restitution from the Palestinian Authority. But that case and others like it have lost on jurisdictional grounds. Now the attorneys for Klieman’s estate — Richard Heideman, Noel Nudelman, Tracy Kalik and Keyauna Fogle of Heideman Nudelman & Kalik — are lobbying for new legislation to help the lawsuits proceed.

While the Saudi bill, known as the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, applies to foreign states responsible for attacks within the U.S., this law would address non-governmental entities responsible for deaths of Americans abroad, Heideman told PI. Lawmakers could decide to write it generally or specifically on the Palestinians, he said. The lawyers say they’ll start outreach to every member of Congress in the lame duck or next Congress.

“We believe it’s an issue that ought to be one of the first steps the next Congress takes,” he said.

MEANWHILE, talk of retaliatory laws that anti-JASTA lobbyists warned about are starting to bubble up overseas. A pressure group called the Arab Project in Iraq asked the country’s parliament to prepare a lawsuit against the U.S. over the 2003 invasion. Victims of this summer’s failed Turkish coup are discussing whether a similar bill could let them sue the U.S., which President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accuses of harboring the cleric he deems responsible.

LAME DUCK: Confirming Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court, providing relief to Flint, Mich., in the water resources bill, and fixing JASTA have a “strong chance” of getting done in the lame duck, according to the latest slide deck from Bruce Mehlman of Mehlman Castagnetti Rosen & Thomas. The only must-dos for those 16 legislative days are government funding, the National Defense Authorization Act and leadership elections, he said. Possible, but less likely: the Trans-Pacific Partnership, health research, sentencing reform, orphaned tax extenders.

FIGHT NIGHT IN VEGAS. Chill out with some Debussy at the Bellagio fountain. Send tips to iarnsdorf@politico.com.

STATUS UPDATES:

Dorothy Savarese, chairman, CEO, and president of Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank, is the American Bankers Association‘s next chairman, writes The Hill’s Sylvan Lane.

Marc Cadin was named as chief operating officer and Chris Morton was named SVP government affairs at the Association for Advanced Life Underwriting.

— The Healthcare Distribution Alliance hired Matthew DiLoreto as vice president of state government affairs from the National Community Pharmacists Association and Leah Lindahl as senior director of Western state government affairs from the Colorado BioScience Association.

Lucy Gettman was promoted to chief advocacy officer leading the federal advocacy & public policy team at the National School Boards Association.

OBAMACARE’S NEXT CHAPTER: Rick Pollack of the American Hospital Association, Marilyn Tavenner of America’s Health Insurance Plans, and Steve Ubl of Pharmaceutical Researchers and Manufacturers of America agreed that they won’t support a Clinton administration push for a public option without fixes to the Obamacare marketplace, reports The Hill’s Peter Sullivan.

APP WARS: Amid a standoff between Apple and Spotify, Reps. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), Lamar Smith (R-Texas), Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), David Cicilline (D-R.I.) and Dave Trott (R-Mich.) urged FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez to investigate whether tech companies are using their app stores to choke competition, POLITICO’s Tony Romm reports. Spotify has hired Tom Manatos and spent $450,000 lobbying on antitrust issues.

HOUSE IN PLAY: More than a dozen Democratic challengers are benefiting from a legal loophole to get extra dollars from the DCCC, reports POLITICO’s Scott Bland. They’re wording TV spots in such a way so that they can split the cost of their ads with the party. “If you can find a way now that you only have to pay 50 percent of an ad, and link your opponent to Trump, and that makes strategic sense in the district, that’s a no-brainer,” said a Democratic operative.

T&I SHAKEUPS: The House Transportation Committee could see some changes this election season as the future is uncertain for members like Reps. Bill Shuster, John Mica, Jeff Denham and Rick Nolan, writes POLITICO’s Tanya Snyder. Committee members Reps. Richard Hanna, Candice Miller, Janice Hahn and Reid Ribbleare also retiring.

SPECTRUM: POLITICO’s Margaret Harding McGill and Tony Romm report who’s under consideration to lead the FCC if Clinton wins: major fundraiser Susan Ness; Nielsen executive Karen Kornbluh; Phil Verveer, senior counselor to Chairman Tom Wheeler; Alec Ross, former digital adviser to Hillary Clinton at the State Department; Daniel Sepulveda, an ambassador who’s leading efforts at State on internet freedom issues; Blair Levin, a former FCC official and architect of the National Broadband Plan; Catherine Sandoval, commissioner on the California Public Utilities Commission; and Phil Weiser, University of Colorado law professor who advised the National Economic Council under President Barack Obama.

COLONIALS: Former Texas state senator Wendy Davis headlines a stop at George Washington University today on a gun violence prevention bus tour by Americans for Responsible Solutions, the group led by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and astronaut Mark Kelly. The Smoot Tewes Group is running media for the tour.

SPOTTED at Third Way reception last night at Baby Wale: Yebbie Watkins, chief of staff to Rep. Jim Clyburn; Jesse Price, Eli Lilly; Ian Rayder, Cisco; Rob Hall, Entergy; Mark Henson, chief of staff to Rep. Jim Himes; Chad Metzler, legislative director to Sen. Angus King; Izzy Klein, Roberti Global; Kathleen Black, Coca-Cola; Jeff Navin, Boundary Stone Partners; Robert Diznoff, legislative director to Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.

— Last night 50 women in food policy gathered at a happy hour organized by Liz Clark of the National Confectioners Association, including Julia Gustafson, Corn Refiners Association; Chris Heggem, House Agriculture Committee; Eileen Lauzon, Hershey; Lee LeBlond, Sen. Richard Burr’s office; Janae Brady, Senate Agriculture Committee; Jasmine Dickerson, Feeding America; Louise Hilsen, Kelley Drye & Warren; Laura Klick and Beth Goldstein of Squire Patton Boggs; Liz Hermsen, Sen. Bob Casey’s office; Shannon Campagna, Kelly Horton and Melissa Weber of Mars, Inc.; Susan Whiteside and Elise Fennig of NCA; Lee Sanders, American Bakers Association; and Maureen Enright of the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative.

— Last night the Business Roundtable and RATE Coalition hosted a happy hour for the 30th anniversary of the 1986 tax overhaul at Irish Times,where members like Bill Bradley, Tip O’Neill, and Dan Rostenkowski used to negotiate. Dave Camp spoke. Also spotted: Matt Miller, BRT; Cristina Crooks, Carolyn Lee and Laura Siegrist with NAM; Ashley Wilson, U.S. Chamber; Andrew Mills, Niskanen Center; Scott Salmon, Shell; James Gould, who worked on the ’86 bill, now with Ogilvy; Tucker Shumack; Brian Johnson, tax lobbyist for API; Annie Policastro, UPS; Michelle Dimarob, Altria; Kathleen Black, Coca Cola; and Brad Bailey, formerly with Speaker John Boehner.

— Last night over 200 people attended the Advocacy Leaders Network fall happy hour, which featured beer and bourbon tastings at the offices of Beekeeper Group. The event was co-sponsored by Veritone, VoterVoice and RAP Index. Spotted: Brad Fitch, CEO Congressional Management Foundation; Cheryl Miller, Verizon; Matt Fitting, American Heart Association; Gadi Ben-Yehuda, American Association for the Advancement of Science; Randy Dwyer, American Farm Bureau Federation; Kristen Prather, Credit Union National Association; Michael Lewan, National Marine Manufacturers Association; and David Lusk, Key Advocacy.

NEW JOINT FUNDRAISERS:
Nevada North Carolina Victory Fund: Non-Qualified Non-Party, Joint Fundraiser

NEW PACs:
American Greatness: Independent Expenditure-Only Committee, Unauthorized
Mountaineer Justice PAC: Non-Qualified Non-Party, Unauthorized
Ohio Association of Realtors Political Advocacy Fund (OAR-PAF): Independent Expenditure-Only Committee, Unauthorized

NEW LOBBYING REGISTRATIONS:
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld: Infosys Limited
American Defense International, Inc.:TSG Therapeutics Pte Ltd.
Best Best & Krieger LLP: Las Virgenes-Triunfo Joint Powers Authority
Capitol Hill Consulting Group: Offshore Marine Service Association
Caplin & Drysdale, Chartered: Efficiency Energy, LLC
Capstone National Partners: CUNA Mutual Group
Capstone National Partners: International Association of Medical Equipment Remarketers and Servicers
Capstone National Partners: Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation
Capstone National Partners: National Cooperative Bank, N.A.
Capstone National Partners: Visual Arts Rights Coalition
Crowell & Moring LLP: The Academy Advisors
DQB International: Texas Biomedical Research Institute
Dutko Worldwide, LLC d/b/a Grayling: Card and Associates (for Alliance Health Networks)
FTI Government Affairs: Colonial Pipeline Company
George J. Hochbrueckner & Associates, Inc.: STS Global, Inc.
Harbinger Strategies, LLC: Iron Mountain
HillStaffer, LLC: Alternative & Direct Investment Securities Association/ADISA
JMH Group, formerly Jamian Mcelroy & Hamlin, LLC: ATC Materials
JMH Group, formerly Jamian Mcelroy & Hamlin, LLC: Cambium Networks
Lugar Hellmann Group: PepsiCo, INC
NVG, LLC: American Psychiatric Association
NVG, LLC: Forscey, PLLC (on behalf of Adventist Health System)
RNL Consulting LLC: Genworth Financial
Strategic Federal Affairs: St. Clair County Community College
Todd Strategy, LLC: CareDx, Inc.
Whitmer & Worrall, LLC: Utilities Technology Council
Winning Strategies Washington: Zoll

NEW LOBBYING TERMINATIONS:
Artemis Strategies: Genworth Financial
Manatt, Phelps, And Phillips: Town Of Stratford
Alpine Group, Inc.: Ascensia Diabetes Care Us Inc.
Alpine Group, Inc.: Crispr Therapeutics
American Defense International, Inc.: Tcom
Ariale Strategies, L.L.C.: Becker & Poliakoff On Behalf Of Shotspotter
Ariale Strategies, L.L.C.: Becker & Poliakoff On Behalf Of Streetcred
Ariale Strategies, L.L.C.: Project C.U.R.E.
Capitol Strategies Partners LLC: American Airlines
Cavarocchi Ruscio Dennis Associates, L.L.C.: Society For Maternal-Fetal Medicine
Cloakroom Advisors LLC: Linden Care LLC
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Crosby & Higgins Llp On Behalf Of Melrose Credit Union
Hanka Advisor LLC: Madison County, Indiana
Holland & Knight LLP: City Of Austin TX
Manatt, Phelps, And Phillips: Norwalk Redevelopment Agency
Manatt, Phelps, And Phillips: Parent-Child Home Program
Manatt, Phelps, And Phillips: The Horace Bushnell Memorial Hall Corporation
Mcgregor Group, LLC: Solomon P. Ortiz Holdings, Llc (On Behalf Of Waste Control Specialist)
Mwr Strategies, Inc.: Suez
Podesta Group, Inc.: Monster Energy Company
Rasky Baerlein Strategic Communications: Maguire Group
Rasky Baerlein Strategic Communications: National Flea Market Association
Sbl Strategies, LLC: J.B. Hunt
The Ferguson Group, LLC: Glendale-Ca City Of
Thorn Run Partners: Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.
Van Scoyoc Associates: Montana State University-Bozeman
Van Scoyoc Associates: University Of Montana
Alpine Group, Inc.: Health Net, Inc.
Arent Fox LLP: Transit Labs, Inc.
Arnall Golden Gregory, LLP: Comptia (Formerly Technology Association Of America)
Ass’N Of Private Sector Colleges And Universities (Fka Career College Ass’N): Ass’N Of Private Sector Colleges And Universities (Fka Career College Ass’N)
Capitol Decisions, Inc.: Intellidyne, LLC
Cornerstone Government Affairs, LLC: Metabiota
Crossroads Strategies, LLC: Radiation Therapy Alliance
George J. Hochbrueckner & Associates, Inc.: Globecomm (Globecomm Systems, Inc.)
K&L Gates LLP: Solvay America, Inc.
Kadesh & Associates, LLC: Sempra Energy
Kadesh & Associates, LLC: Syngenta Corporation (Through Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP)
Kadesh & Associates, LLC: The National Parks Conservation Association
King & Spalding LLP: Bacardi U S A Inc
Mcdermott+Consulting LLC: Sensus Healthcare
Morgan Meguire, LLC: Transmission Agency Of Northern California
Morris J. Amitay, PC: Victims Of Terrorism – East Africa
O’Hara Federal Strategies, LLC: Oxfam America
Sidley Austin LLP: Western United Life Assurance Company
State University Of New York Maritime College: State University Of New York Maritime College
Strategic Health Care: Advantage Health Solutions Inc
Strategic Health Care: Medavail Technologies, Inc.
Strategic Health Care: Section 508 Coalition
The Walter Group: Renenco Group
Thompson Advisory Group: NL Systems, LLC
Winston & Strawn LLP: American Bureau Of Shipping (ABS)
Winston & Strawn LLP: DHL Holdings (USA) Inc

*We are correcting an error that appeared in the Politico article. Keyauna Fogle is a non-attorney employee at Heideman Nudelman & Kalik, PC

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