GOP staffer tasked with saving Google from trouble in D.C.

Google crammed its long-vacant prime D.C. coverage job Friday by hiring Mark Isakowitz, a Capitol Hill staffer and longtime Republican lobbyist whose most important challenge might be serving to the search big confront its litany of authorized and political battles in Washington.

Isakowitz is the chief of employees to Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman, who dealt the web business a critical legislative blow last yr with a brand new regulation making web sites responsible for content that enables sex trafficking. Google also faces multiple antitrust probes, as well as accusations — from GOP lawmakers and President Donald Trump — that it suppresses conservative speech.

In his new position, Isakowitz will fill a job last held by Susan Molinari, a former Republican congresswoman from New York. She departed late last yr amid a broader shakeup of the company's lobbying operation led by Google international public coverage chief Karan Bhatia, a George W. Bush administration alumnus.

Isakowitz's personal lobbying background consists of representing Google nemesis Oracle and fellow tech giants Apple and Cisco.

"Mark is understood extensively as probably the greatest strategists in D.C.," stated Stewart Verdery, a Republican lobbyist and CEO of Monument Advocacy, including that Isakowitz additionally brings bipartisan attraction to the job. "I might rank an extended record of Republicans on a partisanship scale earlier than I’d get to his identify.”

However Oracle government vice chairman Ken Glueck, whose company has waged quite a few authorized battles towards Google, expressed doubts that this newest shuffling of the decks will make a lot distinction — regardless of acknowledging that "Mark is the most effective."

"He’s sensible. He’s a really, very sensible man. He’s extremely affable. He’s a friendly man. Everyone likes Mark. He’s an incredible hire,” Glueck stated. “That’s the problem, proper? Enron hired a number of nice individuals."

So what does this mean for Google?

Google may have a brand new commander because it enters the D.C. struggle in earnest. Google's spending on lobbying truly shrank for the first half of this yr, together with its lowest quarterly complete since 2011, despite the cascading threats the corporate faces in Congress and the chief branch. (In distinction, Amazon and Facebook shelled out record sums to foyer the federal authorities.)

At the very least, Isakowitz's hiring ought to deliver higher stability to the corporate's Washington operations after a yr of change. Bhatia has put his stamp on Google's public policy operations since taking up last summer time, restructuring the firm's inner lobbying and coverage teams and setting modifications in motion that have led some employees to take on new roles and others to depart the company.

Bhatia additionally axed greater than a half-dozen of Google's external lobbying outlets, after years of Google spending growing sums of money to affect public coverage in Washington. Google shelled out a report $21.2 million to lobby the federal authorities in 2018 — however amid its inner modifications, its spending in the first half of this yr has been trending downward.

Who's Isakowitz?

As Portman's chief of employees since 2014, Isakowitz has had a hand in tax reform, commerce coverage and opioid laws. Notably, Portman's workplace additionally took the lead on a bit of legislation that rankled Google and others within the tech business: the Stop Enabling Intercourse Traffickers Act.

That bill amended a key 1996 regulation that has shielded on-line corporations from legal liability for content posted by their users. Now lawmakers are mulling further modifications that would expose web sites to lawsuits over content associated to illegal drug gross sales, violent extremism and youngster exploitation.

Before the Hill, Isakowitz spent 16 years on the all-GOP lobbying firm Fierce, Isakowitz & Blalock, the place his shoppers included Ford, BP America and Coca-Cola. He was beforehand a lobbyist for the Nationwide Federation of Unbiased Business, and has worked on congressional, gubernatorial and presidential campaigns.

"Mark's means to know both a company's culture and their wants in Washington can be invaluable to Google," stated Josh Ackil, a Democratic lobbyist and associate at Franklin Sq. Group, which previously lobbied for Google. "His business sense, political talent and information of how D.C. works puts him on the prime of the listing."

What is going to he face at Google?

Google, like other massive tech corporations, is dealing with unprecedented ranges of scrutiny in Washington and the states. Among the most quick threats is the Justice Division's investigation of the company for potential antitrust violations. Google is concurrently dealing with an antitrust investigation launched by the attorneys basic from 48 states, Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. They're taking a magnifying glass to Google's online search and digital advertising businesses, and have begun peppering the corporate with questions on its previous acquisitions.

Whereas Google has faced comparable inquiries in Europe in current years, the united statesinvestigations come at a time when political rhetoric towards the business is at an all-time excessive.

Republicans accuse Google, Fb and Twitter of harboring a conservative bias that leads to their speech being suppressed on-line. That has animated a variety of hearings on Capitol Hill, including one this summer time during which Bhatia faced questions earlier than a Senate Judiciary panel.

Separately, Google is dealing with the prospect of federal privacy legislation that would curtail its collection and use of shopper knowledge. Google's YouTube just received slapped with a $170 million advantageous from the Federal Commerce Commission over its handling of youngsters's knowledge.

The states are also proving to be a battleground. California has pulled ahead of Congress in passing its own privacy legislation, the California Shopper Privacy Act, which tech companies oppose. Simply this week, the multimillionaire developer who championed the privacy regulation in California introduced plans to pursue another privacy-related poll initiative.

Hence the necessity for somebody with Isakowitz's resume, some critics of Silicon Valley stated Friday.

“In some ways, this is an old-school strategy that the tech business is catching up on,” stated Lisa Gilbert, vice chairman of legislative affairs at Public Citizen. "This is how banks and pharma and lots of other huge industries have lengthy lobbied and employed employees and considered utilizing a revolving door."

Does it matter he's a Republican?

Silicon Valley is understood for its liberal politics, but the prime levels of their Washington workplaces typically lean right. Other huge know-how companies, together with Fb and Amazon, even have leaders in D.C. with ties to Republican politics.

That can be particularly essential as various Republicans, including Trump, have taken to hammering the business.

Zach Graves, head of policy for the conservative group Lincoln Networks, stated Isakowitz's Republican bona fides might assist Google — in the event that they're for more than just present.

Tech corporations typically "don't empower them to do the issues that are actually essential to get conservative buy-in," Graves stated. "The query isn't just whether or not they have a symbolic Republican, however whether or not that individual is empowered enough to actually form their policies and product selections."

However the tech backlash hasn't solely come from the correct. Democrats have been sharply important of the business with regards to election interference on social media and market concentration, with progressives like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) leading calls to break up the companies.

Verdery, the Republican lobbyist, stated Isakowitz's broad background can nonetheless be an enormous asset to Google.

"While everyone is concentrated understandably on the current fights round competition and privacy, an organization as wide-ranging as Google has wants far past one set of hearings," he stated. "Someone has to have the ability to see a wide range of points — tax, commerce, overseas relations, workforce — and develop strategies throughout many stakeholders — Congress, businesses, interest teams, commerce teams, and so on.”

Article originally revealed on POLITICO Magazine

Src: GOP staffer tasked with saving Google from trouble in D.C.
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