Latest news with #BallardPartners
New York Post
09-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Susie Wiles says her 'nasty' spat with Ron DeSantis is in 'rearview mirror': 'He's a good governor'
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles downplayed past rancor between her and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, stressing on the latest episode of 'Pod Force One' that drama is in her 'rearview mirror.' 'I think he's governing Florida — which is my home state — he's a good governor, and whatever personal differences he had or whatever deficiencies he thought I had are long past my thinking about them,' Wiles, who masterminded DeSantis' narrow 2018 gubernatorial victory, told Post columnist Miranda Devine. Every week, Post columnist Miranda Devine sits down for exclusive and candid conversations with the most influential disruptors in Washington. Subscribe here! However, Wiles did confirm Devine's characterization of the falling-out, in which she stated that DeSantis allies 'were very nasty to you and tried to really destroy your career.' 3 Susie Wiles brushed aside her past row with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and praised his governance. Tamara Beckwith/NY Post A longtime Florida GOP operative who managed now-Sen. Rick Scott's successful 2010 gubernatorial campaign, Wiles chaired Trump's 2016 effort in the Sunshine State before throwing her lot in with DeSantis in the following cycle. In his victory speech, DeSantis commended Wiles as the 'best in the business.' But only months later, Wiles was abruptly booted from Trump's 2020 campaign and left Ballard Partners, a prominent Tallahassee and DC-based lobbying firm, amid reported friction with the DeSantis camp. 3 President Trump praised Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis while touring the Everglades' 'Alligator Alcatraz' last week. REUTERS DeSantis allies believed that Wiles was behind a leak of memos circulated among the governor's political staff that suggested wealthy donors could leverage their contributions to meet, dine with and even play golf with the Republican. DeSantis denied ever seeing that controversial memo. Wiles returned to the Trump fold late in the 2020 campaign, as polls showed him consistently trailing Democrat Joe Biden. She initially served as an unpaid adviser to that year's Republican National Convention organizers. In response, the New York Times reported, DeSantis quietly had his fundraiser, Heather Barker, encourage donors not to open up their wallets. Full Episode Wiles got back on the winning track by assisting Republican Glenn Youngkin in pulling off an upset in the 2021 Virginia gubernatorial race and closely assisted Trump with his activities ahead of the 2022 midterm elections and the former president's subsequent entry into the 2024 race — in which she served as co-campaign manager alongside Chris LaCivita. Reflecting on Trump's resounding defeat of DeSantis in the 2024 Republican presidential race, Wiles insisted 'it had nothing to do with me.' 3 President Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have since mended fences after their bitter 2024 GOP primary battle. AFP via Getty Images 'It was the president's time, and he did the things that a candidate has to do to get through those early primary states, the first four in particular [Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina]. 'The president had done it before; he knew what was involved. We had an organization, an apparatus that supported him and frankly, there was never any question that it was going to end up like it did.' The Post reached out to DeSantis' team for comment.
Hans India
23-06-2025
- Business
- Hans India
SGEF Chairman Suresh Reddy calls Brain D Ballard
Khammam: Shyamala Gopalan Education Foundation Founder Chairman N Suresh Reddy called on Brian D. Ballard is an American lobbyist and founder of lobbying firm Ballard Partners in USA on Saturday. Reddy discussed various matters of the foundation and others . The SGEF foundation which was established on the names great science Shyamala Gopalan and services to poor based on Khammam
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Fact Check: Pam Bondi used to lobby for Qatar — but no proof she personally made $115K per month
Claim: U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi used to work as a lobbyist for Qatar, earning up to $115,000 per month. Rating: What's True: Bondi said during her Senate confirmation hearing that she lobbied for Qatar while working for Ballard Partners. Ballard Partners filed documentation with the Department of Justice corroborating this statement. What's False: However, Bondi said Ballard Partners — not she personally — received $115,000 per month for their lobby work for Qatar. Department of Justice documents corroborated that statement. What's Undetermined: It was unclear how much of the $115,000 per month Bondi personally received. Around May 11, 2025, amid reports that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi had cleared the Trump administration to receive a $400 million luxury plane as a gift from the Qatari royal family, a claim (archived) circulated that Bondi used to work as a lobbyist for the Middle Eastern country, earning up to $115,000 per month. A popular version of the claim on Facebook read: "Fun Fact: Attorney General Pam Bondi – the one who approved Trump's illegal Qatari airplane gift – was paid $115,000 PER MONTH as a lobbyist for Qatar." The claim also appeared on X (archived), Threads (archived), Bluesky (archived), Reddit (archived) and TikTok (archived). Snopes readers messaged us asking if it was true. At her Senate confirmation hearing for the role of attorney general in January 2025, Bondi confirmed that she "represented the country of Qatar" during her time working for Ballard Partners, a Florida-based lobbying firm. However, during that same hearing, Bondi said it was Ballard Partners and not she personally that received $115,000 per month for lobbying work for Qatar. It was unclear how much of its earnings from the yearlong contract with the Embassy of the State of Qatar Ballard Partners paid to Bondi. Department of Justice documents filed by Ballard Partners corroborate Bondi's statements about her work and the money paid to Ballard Partners. Therefore, we rate this claim a mixture of true, false and undetermined elements: It's true that Bondi lobbied for Qatar, but unknown how much money she personally made monthly for this work. Bondi appeared before the Senate on Jan. 15, 2025, for her confirmation hearing for the role of attorney general. U.S. Senate Democratic Whip D*ck Durbin, who is a ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, asked Bondi why she had not declared her work for Ballard Partners, including her alleged $115,000 monthly salary, as a conflict of interest before the hearing. Bondi said (time code 49:30): Well, Senator, first, that was the amount my firm received. I believe multiple people represented the country of Qatar within my firm. My role — and I'm very proud of the work that I did, it was a short time and I wish it had been longer for Qatar — was anti-human trafficking efforts leading into the World Cup, which is something I'd like to talk about later, too. I was registered as FARA along with many members of my firm. That was the sole portion of my representation for Qatar. Sen. Thom Thillis, a Republican senator from North Carolina, later asked Bondi about the $115,000 claim again (time-code 1:52:13): Tillis: And you also made it clear that you had a number of practitioners within the firm working on it. So this narrative that you were getting $115,000 a month from Qatar is correct or not? Bondi: Not correct. FARA, which Bondi referenced in her reply to Durbin, is an abbreviation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act and a unit within the Department of Justice. This act requires companies (and people) like Ballard Partners, who are "engaged in political activities" with "foreign principals" to register with the Department of Justice. The act doesn't prohibit work such as lobbying for foreign governments like Qatar, but does require businesses to disclose what they are doing and details around payment for their work. Documents filed by companies like Ballard Partners are publicly available through the Justice Department's website. Two such documents — one filed in July 2019 and another in May 2020 — detailed Ballard Partners' work with the Embassy of the State of Qatar and named Pam Bondi. According to the May 2020 document, "Registrant will provide principal with advocacy services relative to US-Qatar bilateral relations, and will provide guidance and assistance in matters related to combating human trafficking." Registrant, in this case, was Ballard Partners and the principal was the Embassy of the State of Qatar. According to the July 2019 document, Bondi was a "key person" in Ballard Partners' contract with the Embassy of the State of Qatar, indicating she played a principal role in the work. The embassy paid Ballard Partners $115,000 per month for work spanning from July 1, 2019, to June 30, 2020. The document did not specify how Ballard Partners should distribute the earnings from the contract. The May 2020 document (Attachment A) further explained that Bondi left Ballard Partners on Nov. 7, 2019, after the start of the Qatari contract but returned on March 19, 2020, and continued her work lobbying for Qatar. Bondi temporarily left Ballard Partners to defend President Donald Trump during his first impeachment trial. Trump denied any wrongdoing and was ultimately acquitted in the Senate. Ballard Partners. Exhibit B to Registration Statement Pursuant to the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as Amended. 23 July 2019, Ballard Partners, Inc. . Supplemental Statement Pursuant to the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as Amended. 29 May 2020, PBS NewsHour. "WATCH LIVE: Pam Bondi Testifies in Senate Confirmation Hearing for Attorney General | Day 1." YouTube, 15 Jan. 2025, "Search Filings." The United States Department of Justice, The Nomination of the Honorable Pamela Jo Bondi to Be Attorney General of the United States | United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary. Accessed 13 May 2025.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Florida Legislature OKs $27M in claims bill payments
Rep. Fiona McFarland says she'll file another sovereign immunity bill for the 2026 session. (Photo via the Florida House) Lawmakers during this past session refused to make changes to the state's heavily criticized and often politicized claims bill process, but at the same time signed off on $27 million worth of payments in lawsuits that had been filed against local governments. A Florida Phoenix review of the 2025 session shows the Legislature passed nine claims bills totaling $26,938,364 in liability that will be passed on to local governments or entities acting on their behalf. The City of Gainesville is responsible for the largest claims bill (HB 6251), which will allow the payment of $10.8 million against the city for the negligence of a utility employee who ran a stop sign on his way home from work. The accident left Jacob Rodgers paralyzed from the waist down. The bill analysis shows that of the total claim, $2.6 million-plus will go to his attorneys and another $137,500 will be paid to lobbyists who, according to the lobbyist disclosure system, are Matthew Forrest and Adrian Lukas with the firm Ballard Partners. Conversely, the smallest claim bill passed during the 2025 session (SB 22) was for $200,000 and involved Joe Dimaggio Children's Hospital and the death of a seven-year-old-child, referred to in the record as E.E.M. The hospital, part of the South Broward Hospital District, did not oppose the claims bill, filed on behalf of Eric Miles Jr. and Jennifer Miles, E.E.M's parents. Claims bills are required because Florida enjoys sovereign immunity for state and local governments as a legal sovereign from civil lawsuits filed in state court. The state does, however, allow negligence claims against itself and its subdivisions — agencies, cities, counties, and public hospitals — within limits. Set in statute, those limits are $200,000 per person and $$300,000 per occurrence. Injured parties can sue for damages and collect within those limits. But jury awards beyond those limits cannot be collected without the Legislature first approving a claims bill. The claims bill process is lengthy and allows the defendant to challenge a jury verdict — two reasons why, Rep. Fiona McFarland says, she has twice filed legislation to change the law. Her latest effort, HB 301, was one of the most heavily lobbied bills in Tallahassee this session, drawing 214 lobbyist registrations. The original bill would have increased the caps to $1 million per person and $3 million per occurrence. She later agreed to tag on an amendment that increased the caps to $500,000 per person and $1 million per incident for claims accruing on or after Oct. 1 and $600,000 per person and $1.1 million per occurrence for claims that accrue on or after Oct. 1, 2030. While the amended bill passed the House by comfortable margins it never was considered by the Senate. 'I'm very disappointed,' McFarland told the Florida Phoenix as the session drew to an end. She promised she'd sponsor the bill during the 2026 session. While McFarland pushed the bill to change what she called an arbitrary process, a bid to raise the limits was opposed by local governments and public hospitals. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Axios
12-05-2025
- Business
- Axios
Behind the scenes: Ballard back in West Wing
Florida-based lobbyist Brian Ballard is no longer in the White House dog house, after scoring a Friday sit-down with President Trump and his chief of staff. Why it matters: Ballard, a longtime Trump fundraiser and adviser who once lobbied for the Trump Organization, earned the ire of the White House after his firm circumvented the regular channels for lobbying on behalf of a cryptocurrency client. A Ballard Partners associate persuaded Trump at a fundraiser to issue a March 2 Truth Social post that benefited the company Ripple Labs, a Ballard client. Trump's post blindsided the White House's crypto czar, David Sacks, who promptly complained. The intrigue: Several Trump allies struck back Thursday via a brutal Politico story that detailed the controversy and said Ballard was frozen out. That would be close to a death sentence for a firm whose substantial Washington presence is tied in great part to his access to the president and senior administration officials — including Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, who worked for Ballard years ago. So Ballard cut short a European vacation and scored a meeting with Trump and Wiles. Inside the room:"They had a good conversation," said an administration source familiar with the "very cordial" meeting. "The president spoke his piece. Brian spoke his, and apologized." "There's a reset. It's back." The big picture: The underlying story provides a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse of the way power flows around Trump — and shows just how difficult it is for Trump's staff to keep special interests at bay. "Ballard's not a pariah, at least not anymore," said a second source familiar with the meeting. "You don't get a 30-minute meeting with the president and Susie and not have clout."
