IBM taps new chief lobbyist

Politico

14-02-2025

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With help from Daniel Lippman
RAIMONDO AIDE TO LEAD IBM LOBBYING: IBM has hired Mike Harney to lead the computing giant's global government and regulatory affairs operation. Harney was most recently senior vice president of public affairs at the biometric security company Clear, but spent nearly two decades before that in the public sector.
— Harney served as chief of staff to former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, who played a key role in developing and implementing the Biden administration's semiconductor, artificial intelligence and trade policies. Harney is also a former chief of staff to Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee and a key player in AI issues on the Hill.
— Harney joins the company at a crucial time for the tech industry, as global leaders work to formulate guardrails for AI companies. He succeeds Christina Montgomery, IBM's chief privacy and trust officer and AI ethics board chair, who had been serving as interim government affairs chief following Chris Padilla's retirement last summer after 15 years running IBM's D.C. office.
FLYING IN: It's a new Congress, which means there's a new fight over whether broadcast radio stations should be required to pay artists royalties, and legendary R&B group Boyz II Men was on the Hill today to renew the music industry's push for the American Music Fairness Act.
— The ensemble delivered a letter to congressional leadership signed by more 300 music legends — including ABBA, Barbra Streisand, Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Aerosmith, Stevie Nicks and Weezer, as well as Lee Greenwood and Gavin DeGraw, who both performed during President Donald Trump's inaugural festivities — calling on lawmakers to pass the bill, which broadcasters have fiercely opposed.
— Texas truckers were also in town this week for a fly-in with the American Trucking Associations. The truckers met with all 40 offices from Texas' congressional delegation as well as Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Pete Sessions to discuss energy and environmental issues, workforce development and lawsuit abuse, and called for infrastructure investments to address bottlenecks in the industry that hit Texas especially hard.
Happy Thursday and welcome to PI. How are you lobbying on the new tariffs and budget resolution? Let me know: [e-mail]. And be sure to follow me on X: @caitlinoprysko.
ICYMI — MORE K STREETERS ON PENN. AVE: Trump isn't done stocking his administration with members of the influence industry. On Wednesday, the president filed paperwork formally nominating Kathleen Sgamma, the longtime head of oil and gas trade group Western Energy Alliance, to lead the Bureau of Land Management, as well as former Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath and CGCN Group lobbyist Aaron Szabo to lead EPA's Office of Air and Radiation, our Pro Energy colleagues write.
— A day earlier, Trump unveiled his appointees to the President's Intelligence Advisory Board, an independent body within the Executive Office of the President that oversees the U.S. intelligence community's compliance with the Constitution, which is also drawing some members from downtown.
— Among the new members are a handful of megadonors and fundraisers for the president — as is common — including Wayne Berman, who leads government affairs at investment giant Blackstone.
— Also on the list were Trump's first chief of staff Reince Priebus, the board chair of the government affairs shop Michael Best Strategies, his final national security adviser Robert O'Brien, who runs the national security consulting firm American Global Strategies, and fellow Trump 1.0 alum Katie Miller, who worked for P2 Public Affairs before rejoining the second Trump administration.
HOW WE GOT HERE: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was sworn in this afternoon as head of the nation's health agencies, closing the book on what turned out to be a relatively smooth confirmation process. Kennedy's installation portends a tremendous 'upheaval for America's $4 trillion health care industry,' but our Daniel Payne dug into why in spite of those huge stakes, the industry did 'little and [is] hoping for the best' from their newly empowered detractor.
— 'From drugmakers to doctors' organizations, groups thought to have the clout to steer policy and funding in Washington because they enjoyed bipartisan support and huge lobbying budgets have remained silent about Kennedy. They haven't spoken up even though he has accused them of fraud and conspiracy, and promised to hold them accountable.'
— 'That's not because they aren't worried, but because they didn't think they could stop him — or think the cost of speaking out would be too steep, five people representing health groups, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said. By staying mum, they hope to limit the fallout if Kennedy follows through on his plans to strip the industry to the studs.'
— 'The health care industry's muted response to Kennedy is also a reflection of how much President Donald Trump has sacrificed traditional GOP constituencies to raise a populist, working-class revolt on the interests that once held sway in the capital — and how much Republicans in Congress have gone along.'
HANGING A SHINGLE: Rachel Patterson and Sarah Meek have launched Patterson & Meek, a lobbying shop specializing in health care and disability policy with a special focus on protecting and promoting Medicaid. Patterson was most recently the director of disability policy for the White House Domestic Policy Council under former President Joe Biden, and Meek was previously an in-house lobbyist for Blue Cross Blue Shield's mid-Atlantic plan Care First.
ONE TO WATCH: 'House lawmakers Wednesday advanced several GOP bills that aim to crack down on foreign gifts and contracts at American colleges and K-12 schools,' our Bianca Quilantan reports.
— The House Education and Workforce Committee advanced measures that would lower the threshold for college foreign gift reporting requirements; restrict federal funding from K-12 schools that have partnerships with a cultural or language institute directly or indirectly funded by China; bar schools from accepting funds or entering into contracts with Chinese entities altogether; and require schools to allow parents to review curricula provided by or purchased with foreign funds, among other things.
— Tim Walberg, who chairs the House Education and Workforce Committee, warned during the markup that 'Chinese Communist Party influence in American classrooms is pervasive across all levels of education,' assertions that prompted pushback from his Democratic counterpart Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.), who 'said the bills do not improve education and contradict the Trump administration's efforts to dismantle the Education Department.'
ANNALS OF DARK MONEY: 'A small and financially opaque drug research nonprofit group based in Ohio has managed to get its research cited extensively in high-prestige publications such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Reuters,' but a review of public records by the Washington Examiner's Robert Schmad 'found that the organization, 46brooklyn Research, has strong ties to the pharmaceutical industry, a detail not present in the news coverage of its work.'
— '46brooklyn, the seemingly small nonprofit research operation, is entangled in a financial network leading to the top lobbying arm of the pharmaceutical industry. It has been planting what it presents as independent research, which often supports the policy goals of drug manufacturers, across the legacy media. The group's ties to Big Pharma, however, are seldom disclosed by reporters.'
— 'Few financial details are available about 46brooklyn directly, as the group reports less than $50,000 in revenue per year, which allows it to file a 990-N tax return, a form containing less information than a traditional nonprofit disclosure.'
— 'The answer as to how a nonprofit research organization with seemingly so few resources can have this degree of impact can be found by examining a for-profit consulting firm called 3 Axis Advisors,' whose website says its staff 'dedicates significant time and resources to power 46brooklyn Research.'
— 'The two entities share the same four staff members, according to their respective websites. By taking in revenue through a for-profit arm and generating research through a nonprofit group, 46brooklyn is able to avoid filing a traditional, more detailed nonprofit disclosure form. Indeed, 3 Axis Advisors takes in considerable income, with much of it coming from organizations linked to the pharmaceutical industry.'
SPOTTED dining at Iron Gate last night, ahead of today's House Foreign Affairs hearing on USAID, per a tipster: Former USAID Administrator Andrew Natsios; Samah Norquist, the former Trump chief adviser to USAID's head of international religious freedom; Rev. Galen Carey of the National Association of Evangelicals; and Bill O'Keefe from Catholic Relief Services.
Jobs report
— The Council on Foreign Relations is adding David Lipton and Rebecca Patterson as senior fellows in the David Rockefeller Studies Program. Lipton most recently was counselor to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Patterson is an investor and macroeconomic researcher.
— Beacon Global Strategies is adding Craig Singleton as a senior adviser and Dwayne Clark and Alex Rubin as associate vice presidents. Singleton is senior director for China at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Clark previously was a professional staff member for the House Foreign Affairs GOP. Rubin previously was an analyst at the CIA's China Mission Center.
— Sarah Schakow is now director of public affairs at Cisco. She most recently was deputy assistant secretary for media relations at DHS and is a Gary Peters and Joe Donnelly alum.
— Abby Kohlman is now senior counsel in Akin's white-collar defense and government investigations practice. She most recently was a federal prosecutor in the Justice Department's Fraud Section.
— Summit Strategies has added Jean Roehrenbeck as a vice president. She most recently served as acting assistant secretary of governmental affairs at DOT.
— Faiq Raza has joined the Roosevelt Group as a senior adviser. He most recently served as the Pentagon's liaison to Capitol Hill on acquisition and sustainment matters.
— Aisling McDonough has joined Stanton Park Group. She was previously chief of staff and senior health policy adviser to former Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.).
— BGR Group managing director David Urban has joined the board of directors of the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate.
New Joint Fundraisers
None.
New PACs
CAMPAIGN CRYPTO PAC (Hybrid PAC)
DTAB PAC (Super PAC)
Free For Freedom 2028 (Super PAC)
New Lobbying REGISTRATIONS
A10 Associates, LLC: Certik
A10 Associates, LLC: E-Force Marine
A10 Associates, LLC: First Source Electronics LLC
A10 Associates, LLC: Honeycomb Digital Investments, LLC
A10 Associates, LLC: Kucoin
Advanced Policy Consulting, LLC: Coalition For Community Solar Access
Backstop Strategies, LLC: Uts Systems
Crest Hill Advisors LLC: Ctia - The Wireless Association
Crosswinds Solutions: Trails Preservation Alliance
Hill, Gosdeck & Mcgraw, LLC: American Building Materials Alliance
King And Co: Kick Ass Concepts
Klein/Johnson Group: Hearst Television Inc.
Mercury Public Affairs, LLC: The Manitowoc Company, Inc.
Mr. David Distefano: American Nitrile
Mr. Thomas Marquez: 4Sight Labs
Mr. Thomas Marquez: Ombra
Nestpoint Associates LLC: Ideal Innovation Corp.
Schoening Strategies: American Lighting Association
New Lobbying Terminations
A10 Associates, LLC: Cdr Maguire Inc.
A10 Associates, LLC: Monette Farm
A10 Associates, LLC: Origin Property Group
A10 Associates, LLC: Waterkeeper Alliance
Brimley Group Inc.: American Civil Liberties Union
Brimley Group Inc.: Correctional Leaders Assoc. (F.K.A. Assoc. Of State Correctional Administrators)
Brimley Group Inc.: Just Detention International
Morgan Casner Associates: Affiliated Sante Group