Iraqi governor hires Chartwell out of pocket in ISIS fight — The British are coming

By BYRON TAU 

With Adam Sneed

POLITICO  influence

IRAQI GOVERNOR HIRES CHARTWELL OUT OF POCKET IN ISIS FIGHT: The leader of Iraq’s Nineveh province has personally hired the firm Chartwell Consultancy for federal lobbying and public relations work “to assist in reclaiming land from Islamic State,” according to a FARA registration filed Monday. The registration says the governor, Atheel al-Nujaifi, is using his personal funds to pay Chartwell $100,000 a month for three months of work. Chartwell plans to lobby Congress and executive agencies like the Pentagon, State Department and National Security Council. The firm will also arrange for al-Nujaifi to visit the United States, make media appearances and meet with government officials. Specifically, al-Nujaifi is seeking American support for the creation of an “indigenously recruited, multicultural and multi-religious National Guard unit” based in Mosul to fight the militants, according to the lobbying contract. View the FARA filing here: http://1.usa.gov/1uHlseg (h/t BuzzFeed’s Rosie Gray)

THE BRITISH ARE COMING … WITH A NEW D.C. OFFICE FROM LONDON FIRM PORTLAND: The London-based communications consulting firm Portland has launched a new office in Washington D.C. The firm has hired David MacKay to serve as general manager U.S. — where he will oversee both the Washington and New York offices. MacKay is a veteran communications strategist who has done stints at FleishmanHillard, Hill & Knowlton andKetchum.

Portland was founded in 2011 by former Tony Blair adviser Tim Allan. The firm has been in New York since 2009 and has more than 120 staffers — representing clients including Barclays, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Google, the Kofi Annan Foundation, McDonald’sand Nestlé. On his new role, David MacKay said in a statement. “It is an honour to be joining an accomplished international agency to launch Portland in D.C. and extend its offering in the U.S. for our current and future clients. I firmly believe the Washington marketplace needs Portland’s expertise, disciplined thinking and global perspective. Portland is an organization that is not afraid to challenge the status the quo.”

GOOD FRIDAY AFTERNOON where the Washington Nationals are preparing to take on the San Francisco Giants down in Navy Yard. The Nationals are only the most recent Washington D.C. baseball franchise. Several other teams from the 19th century had the name “Nationals” — often used interchangeably with the name Senators. The two major baseball franchises in the modern era were the 1901-1960 Senators — who also used the name “Nationals.” They moved to Minneapolis in 1961, becoming the Twins and were replaced by a new franchise also called the Senators. They decamped to Texas in 1971 — leaving the nation’s capital without a baseball team until 2005. Send us your lobbying news, 

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, tips and scoops atbtau@politico.com. And keep up with PI on Twitter by following @ByronTau or @PoliticoPI.

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GOVERNORS MINGLE WITH INDUSTRY AT DGA CONFERENCE: At the Democratic Governors Association Fall Policy Conference on Friday at the Salamander Resort in Middleburg, Va., Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Delaware Gov. Jack Markell and Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla participated in a discussion with industry representatives about jobs infrastructure investments. Panelists included Alliance for American ManufacturingPresident Scott Paul, International Franchise Association President & CEO Steve Caldeira, McGuireWoods' Preston Bryant, Deloitte's Jim Ziglar, Jr. and Transurban'sJennifer Aument.

NAM CELEBRATES ‘MANUFACTURING DAY’: Friday is the third-annual Manufacturing Day. More than 1,600 manufacturers across the country are opening their doors to showcase the latest in manufacturing. President Barack Obama will attend a Manufacturing Day event in Indiana with National Association of Manufacturers member Millennium Steel. National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons and Caterpillar chairmanDoug Oberhelman kicked off the day on the opening segment of CNBC’s Squawk Box.

FIRST IN WAR, FIRST IN PEACE, FIRST IN THE NATIONAL LEAGUE (FOR FUNDRAISING?):Baseball’s playoffs have just begun, but the Washington Nationals have already won the pennant in America’s other favorite pastime: fundraising. Federal candidates, parties and PACs have spent at least $245,000 on Nationals tickets, gear, and box seats during this election cycle, according to records compiled by CQ Moneyline. Most of that money went to hosting fundraising events at Nationals Park or buying baseball tickets for donors, constituents and lobbyists. The Nationals collected even more than the Redskins — for decades This Town’s preferred sports franchise.

Aside from the location just minutes from Capitol Hill, and the team’s success in recent years, part of the Nats’ appeal for fundraisers comes from the natural rhythms of the sport. Unlike professional basketball and football, where noise-filled stadiums stifle conversation and fast-paced play demands constant attention, baseball allows lobbyists and donors time to actually develop a relationship with a lawmaker. “They last significantly longer, and you can sort of come and go,” GOP fundraiser Lisa Spies said of baseball’s appeal to donors. “It’s a more relaxed environment. You can sit and chat during the game.” http://politi.co/YX1ePP

AMERICA’S OTHER OTHER PASTIME: BASHING LOBBYISTS: Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus struck a populist tone in his “Principles for American Renewal” speech on Thursday. “Bureaucrats, lobbyists, and out-of-touch politicians need to get out of the way and give American workers and businesses the freedom to create jobs,” Priebus said. “Over-taxing and over-regulating create jobs for the wrong people: Lobbyists and bureaucrats in DC. As money pours into D.C., they take jobs away from the people that need them: Middle class moms and dads…young people just out of high school or college…minority communities where unemployment is above average.”

RETAILERS HIT SOUTH DAKOTA: The National Retail Federation and South Dakota Retailers Association have launched a new statewide campaign, “This is Retail: South Dakota,” in Sioux Falls this week. SDRA Executive Director Shawn Lyons and NRF Vice President Mike Cys hosted a small business retail roundtable with Rep. Kristi Noem (R-S.D.) to discuss data security, health care and an online sales tax. The associations also presented the congresswoman with its “Hero of Main Street” award for her support of the retail industry.

ELSEWHERE IN THE INFLUENCE WORLD:

ASSOCIATIONS QUIETLY LOBBYING AGAINST RUSSIA SANCTIONS: Kevin Cirilli reports; “Trade groups representing some of the nation's biggest financial services and energy firms are using the recess to urge lawmakers and their staff to soften Russian sanctions legislation. The groups, including the U.S.-Russia Business Council and the National Foreign Trade Council, are meeting with lawmakers and staff in an effort to prevent the bill from moving forward.”http://bit.ly/1rEXlvM

WALL STREET PUTS ITS BET ON THE GOP: “Wall Street is pumping more money into Republican campaigns this election cycle, betting that a flip in the Senate could usher in revisions to a key financial reform law,” the Washington Post reports:http://wapo.st/1uHqvLL

ROVE’S 2014 FUNDRAISING HAUL? 100 MILLION: A new WSJ report puts to rest questions about the network’s fundraising ability and health. http://on.wsj.com/1rRETik

NEW JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMITTEES (Members of JFC):

None

NEW PAC REGISTRATIONS:

Beat Reid (super PAC)

Committee for Safe Neighborhoods and Lower Taxes (super PAC)

The Survey Group PAC (super PAC)

NEW LOBBYING REGISTRATIONS: (Firm: Client)

American Defense International, Inc.: Leidos

Arnold & Porter: Wacker Polysilicon North America LLC

Becker & Poliakoff: Centene Corp.

Becker & Poliakoff: Monroe County

FTI Government Affairs: Integrated Diagnostics, Inc.

Kasowitz, Benson, Torres, and Friedman: UNITE Here

Ogilvy Government Relations: Tangiers Group International

Parsons Corporation: Parsons Corporation

Peck Madigan Jones: Legacy Community Health Services

The Colwell Group: USI Insurance Services

NEW LOBBYING TERMINATIONS (Firm: Client (Type of Termination))

Billy Van Pelt Consulting-Government Relations: Elisabeth M. Goth (Q3 Termination Amendment)

Welch Resources, Inc.: WOOLPERT (Q3 Termination)

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