White House Correspondents Insider

Behind the scenes of the most powerful city in the world — Washington, D.C. — and those who cover it.

Heather Podesta + Partners Rebrands as Invariant

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Heather Podesta at the GOP Convention in 2016. Photo courtesy Haddad Media.

The powerful bipartisan lobbying firm founded by Heather Podesta a decade ago is rebranding itself as Invariant.

Heather Podesta + Partners started out with two employees – including its namesake, Heather.  After the first year, the firm boasted a roster of six lobbyists.  Today, the multi-million dollar firm is the largest woman-owned lobbying firm in the nation and prides itself on professionals working with key policymakers across party lines.

Podesta said in a statement that “Now in our 10th year, this firm is so much bigger than just me. We need a name that captures our team’s commitment to clients. The more Washington changes, the more our clients need us to be constant. Dependable. Invariant.”

Clients include the American Beverage Association, Cigna Corp, News Media Alliance, Fitbit, Red Bull, Herbalife, the National Cannabis Industry Association, Prudential Financial and Home Depot.

The firm’s name change is effective as of March 29.  For more information, please visit their website at Invariantgr.com.

Ann Hand Releases Inaugural Gift Collection

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Inauguration Scene By White House photo by Paul Morse [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons. Jewelry

An American staple and the go-to jewelry designer to Washington, DC’s most famous residents and visitors, Ann Hand has been accessorizing women and men for the past three decades.

Hand continues her tradition of creating inaugural jewelry celebrating the swearing-in of another president.  She predicts that it is “going to be interesting to watch this incredibly different family.” Her $75 “Made in America” Trump inaugural pin is already on back order. “The factory is rushing to do as many as they can.”

“My jewelry reflects our pride in government, the military, our faith, our family and the various organizations, corporations and charities that make up the national tapestry of our country and the values we hold dear,” she recently stated.

In 1993, Hand received her first commission to design a brooch commemorating the reinstatement of the Freedom statue atop the US Capitol. Since then she has received dozens of commissions from a wide variety of groups, corporations, and national organizations such as the Smithsonian, the White House, the Departments of State and Defense, all of the branches of the United States Military, the Ritz Carlton, Mount Vernon, the National Historic Trust, and the Congressional Medal of Honor Society.

You can see Ann’s fabulous work and find more information on ordering from her jewelry collection celebrating President-elect Trump’s upcoming inauguration at AnnHand.com.

Meeting Between Trump, Press Execs Goes Off the Record

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Throughout the transition, much attention has been paid to those coming and going from Trump Tower in New York City.  Among recent visitors includes executives and anchors from TV news, attending an “off the record” meeting with the president-elect.

Organized by Kellyanne Conway, the Trump campaign manager, attending networks include ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN and Fox News.  Spotted via a C-SPAN camera, notables such as CNN’s president Jeff Zucker and anchor Wolf Blitzer were in attendance.  Also spotted was NBC News president Deborah Turness and MSNBC president Phil Griffin.

According to Brian Stelter, other meeting participants included NBC’s Chuck Todd and Lester Holt; CNN’s Erin Burnett; CBS’s Norah O’Donnell, Charlie Rose, John Dickerson, and Gayle King; and ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, David Muir and Martha Raddatz.

The New York Times released a statement prior to the meeting announcing that publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. “and others are meeting with the President Elect tomorrow at the request of his team.  There will be a small, off the record meeting first, followed by an on the record session with Times reporters and editorial columnists.”

A report on Politico also pointed out that even as he asked for a “cordial” relationship, Trump complained that NBC had used unflattering pictures of him.

But Trump also attempted to build the groundwork for a positive relationship between his incoming White House team and the media. One meeting participant said that a New York Post account – described as Trump giving the attending media a “dressing down” — was overstated.

However, Trump cancelled this morning’s “on-the-record” meeting himself over Twitter.

Eileen Murphy, the top spokeswoman for the New York Times, said the paper “was unaware that the meeting was cancelled until we saw the President-Elect’s tweet this morning.”

U.S. CHAMBER UPS SUZANNE CLARK TO NUMBER 2 EXECUTIVE

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Rich Galen, Suzanne Clark, and Dr. Faruk Taban. Photo courtesy of Haddad Media.

Rich Galen, Suzanne Clark, and Dr. Faruk Taban. Photo courtesy of Haddad Media.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has announced the promotion of Suzanne Clark as senior executive vice president, the Chamber’s number two executive, leading their Government Affairs division.

“Suzanne is the ideal choice to lead this all-star team,” said Chamber president and CEO Thomas J. Donohue. “Her prior experience as the Chamber’s chief operating officer, as president of the National Journal Group of Atlantic Media, and as CEO and owner of a Washington-based public policy research organization gives her an unparalleled perspective on the issues and public attitudes facing our members. She is an individual of high energy, keen intelligence, and total integrity who enjoys the trust and confidence of the Chamber’s board, key members, federation partners, and me.”

Sullivan succeeds Giovanni Coratolo, who retired earlier this year.

“With a new administration and Congress on the way, we couldn’t have assembled a better team at such an important moment for the business community and our country,” concluded Donohue. “We are well positioned for success in 2017 and beyond.”

Media Calls Out Breaches in Protocol by Trump Team

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The Press Room at the debate, Photo Courtesy of Haddad Media

Photo Courtesy of Haddad Media

Donald Trump’s transition team was criticized by the media for two breaches in traditional protocol.  Both incidents centered on the President-elect’s staffers failing to notify reporters of the President-elect’s schedule and Trump travelling without his travelling press corps.

The White House press corps was not informed of Trump’s plans to return to New York Thursday after his first meeting with President Obama after the election.

On “The Situation Room,” CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, a former White House correspondent, noted that “it is truly unacceptable.  The President-elect and the President.  A pool of reporters should be with them on a trip like that.”

Earlier on Thursday, the White House Correspondents’ Association rebuked the President-elect’s team for Trump leaving his travelling press corps in New York as he journeyed to Washington.

“The White House Correspondents’ Association is deeply concerned by President-elect Donald Trump’s decision to reject the practice of traveling with a ‘protective pool’ of reporters for his first visit to Washington since the election,” Jeff Mason, the president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, said on CNNMoney.

EXCLUSIVE: Manafort and Priebus Deny Any Possibility Trump or RNC Hacked

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The Republicans have set up camp in enemy territory at a boxing arena in South Philadelphia where they will host a series of press conferences during the week of the DNC. Paul Manafort, Trump’s campaign manager, Reince Priebus, Chairman of the RNC, and Sean Spicer, Chief Communications Director of the RNC spoke on the record and organized a brief Q&A for the audience. Responding to a question from Tammy Haddad, CEO of Haddad Media, Paul Manafort and Reince Priebus denied any possibility of the Trump campaign or the RNC being hacked.

The theme of their setup was “Enough” complete with dice, cornhole, and other games all “rigged” for Hillary to win as well as a poster with a “setlist” of her scandals dating back to the 1980s.

You can watch the full video here.

Bloomberg Politics Debuts Two New Biweekly Podcasts

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“Masters in Politics” will be hosted by Tammy Haddad and Betsy Fischer Martin
“Culture Caucus” will be hosted by John Heilemann and Will Leitch

Bloomberg Politics today announced the debut of two new podcasts as 2016 presidential primary voting begins.“Masters in Politics” will be hosted by veteran Washington journalists Tammy Haddad, former executive producer of MSNBC’s “Hardball,” and Betsy Fischer Martin, former executive producer of NBC’s “Meet the Press.” In their biweekly podcast, Haddad and Fischer Martin will explore the high-stakes world of politics from the modern masters in politics themselves: the candidates, strategists and fellow journalists on the campaign trail. The podcast will also include regular reporting and analysis from Bloomberg journalists.The debut episode will feature Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush along with renowned Bloomberg Politics & Des Moines Register pollster J. Ann Selzer, who will share her insights on the mood of the voters in this volatile election season. This first podcast will be released online on Tuesday, Jan. 19.

Bloomberg Politics will also launch “Culture Caucus” — a new podcast hosted by Bloomberg Politics Managing Editor John Heilemann and Bloomberg Politics contributor Will Leitch. Together they will explore the intersection of politics and pop culture with special guest hosts and personalities from the worlds of politics, entertainment, tech, sports, business and beyond.

The first episode of “Culture Caucus” will post online on Friday, Jan. 15 and feature an extended discussion of the tumultuous state of late-night political comedy in the wake of Jon Stewart’s exit from “The Daily Show”‘ and Stephen Colbert’s move from Comedy Central to CBS — as well as an interview with legendary venture capitalist Fred Wilson, who provided the initial funding for Twitter, Kickstater and many other high-profile web start-ups. “Culture Caucus” will also air biweekly, posting online every other Friday at 10am ET.

These two new podcasts join Bloomberg Politics’ suite of multi-platform products for political coverage, including a news site, digital video, social media and a nightly political broadcast. The podcasts also come on the heels of Bloomberg Radio’s launch in Washington, D.C. last month.

“These podcasts are an exciting new step for us as we head towards the thick of the election season,” said Al Mayers, Global Head of Bloomberg TV & Radio. “‘With All Due Respect’ and Bloomberg Politics have already brought a new audience to Bloomberg Media, and we look forward to expanding that reach in the coming weeks.”

Bloomberg’s first “Masters” Podcast (“Masters in Business” hosted by Barry Ritholtz) looks at the people and ideas that shape markets and business. Other Bloomberg podcasts include “Odd Lots” on the hot topics in markets, finance and economics, with hosts Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway; “Bloomberg Benchmark” focused on the global economy with hosts AkiIto, Tori Stilwell and Dan Moss; and “Deal of the Week,” on the biggest deals and M&A trends, with host Alex Sherman. They are all available on the Bloomberg Terminal, Soundcloud and iTunes and at http://www.bloomberg.com/podcasts/.

Both Bloomberg Politics podcasts will be produced by Haddad Media and Feature Story News.

Read more via politico.com: Bloomberg Politics launches podcasts hosted by Tammy Haddad, Betsy Fischer Martin, Will Leitch, John Heilemann

Washington Insider Podcast Featuring Jon Meacham

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Jon Meacham is the author of the New York Times best-selling biography of President George Herbert Walker Bush, “Destiny and Power.”

Mr. Meacham was interviewed at a Washington Women Technology Network event by WWTN co-founder Tammy Haddad and Megan Murphy, Bloomberg DC Bureau Chief.

Questions were also taken from the audience in the Gallatin Room of The Jefferson Hotel in Washington, DC on November 20, 2015.

Download the podcast on AudioBoom or iTunes.