Brownstein Podcast Series

With the presidential campaign cycle in full swing, both parties have shown renewed interest in reforming the nation’s health care system. As the House convenes its first Medicare for All hearing, questions remain about the high price tag of the proposal and whether Democratic leadership will actually bring the legislation to a vote. Drew Littman moderates a conversation with Emily Felder, Nadeam Elshami and Jerome Murray, providing insight into the likelihood of a bipartisan bill on health care reform and the future of the Affordable Care Act.

Experts have recently made a startling claim: the United States will need to invest more than $4.5 trillion by 2025 to fix its failing infrastructure. Debates over ways to generate revenue — whether to invest in new technology or repair existing systems, and how to achieve infrastructure development without promoting environmental degradation — remain ongoing. Geoff Burr, Greta Joynes and Brian McKeon, in a discussion moderated by Mark Begich, discuss ways the 116th Congress is likely to address infrastructure and the challenges that lie ahead.

The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement has been signed by each country’s respective leader, but its fate now rests in the hands of legislators. Past difficulty enforcing NAFTA labor standards have left members of Congress wary and cautious. Mark Begich moderates a conversation with Lori Harju, Milan Dalal, and the newest addition to the Brownstein team, former House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Ed Royce, in which they discuss the trade agreement’s probability of success and shed light on the global impact of it failing.

In this episode of the Finance in Five podcast series, Corporate Shareholders Jay Spader and Mark Oveson take five minutes to discuss how to distinguish different types of junior debt and the accompanying subordination agreements.

Employment Shareholder Lisa Hogan discusses Colorado Senate Bill 85, the Equal Pay For Equal Work Act, with proponent Charlotte Sweeney. Lisa and Charlotte, who tend to be on opposite sides in employment cases, try to unpack the complicated issue of equal pay and the possible impacts of this proposed legislation.

Arts Advocacy Day is a sight to behold: 85 leading national arts organizations and over 450 attendees from 48 different states roam the halls of Congress, meeting with legislators and staff to discuss policy issues affecting the arts community. Brownstein advisor and former Sen. Mark Begich sits down with artists Rita Moreno, Ben Folds and Brian Stokes Mitchell, along with Bob Lynch from Americans for the Arts, to discuss the connection between arts and the economy and the importance of inspiring arts advocacy in the nation’s youth.

With any new Congress comes notable change, and the national defense policy landscape on Capitol Hill is no exception. These changes bring new questions: What can we expect to see from a new dynamic in the House Armed Services Committee? Will the National Defense Authorization Act spur unprecedented conflict, and how much opportunity will there be to add new riders to the bill? Moderator Greta Joynes teams up Ari Zimmerman and Barry Jackson to answer these questions and more.

The 2020 campaign season is finally upon us, and the Democratic field is beginning to take shape. Scores of presidential hopefuls have already announced their candidacy, and the campaign trail is heating up in early voting states like Iowa and South Carolina. John Sonsalla moderates a conversation between Democrats Drew Littman and David Reid, along with Republican Elizabeth Maier, in which they tackle pressing issues, such as ways Leader McConnell will use his powers to target Democratic senators seeking the nomination.

Ben Folds is known for being a talented musician and songwriter, but he also performs a vital role for the music community as an arts advocate. Ben’s an active member of the Artist Committee of Americans For The Arts, a leading nonprofit arts advocacy organization that Brownstein partners with. In a conversation with Drew Littman, Ben discusses his experience navigating the political arena and talks about how issues important to the arts community can transcend party lines.

Big tech companies face increased scrutiny from a new Congress eager to address concerns over fair competition and consumer data protection. Al Mottur and Greta Joynes, in a conversation moderated by Drew Littman, explain the “tech-lash” against big Silicon Valley companies. Al and Greta address the many issues confronting tech titans in this new era of heightened regulation, including congressional oversight which could be affected by 2020 campaigns.

Tribes nationwide are seeking ways to develop sustainable economic growth, but opportunities to do so are often governed by federal policy. Ryan Smith moderates a conversation between Sarah Walters and Sarah Auchterlonie in which they discuss methods for developing economic opportunity within tribes, such as tribal lending. By addressing how tribes’ financial interests are intertwined with federal regulation and policy, like the CFPB’s underwriting rules and the U.S. Department of Labor’s enforcement of ERISA and the PPA, Walters and Auchterlonie provide a roadmap to solving issues impacting tribes doing business across the country.

In our latest Senate update, Democrat Brian McKeon and Republican Elizabeth Maier, along with moderator Drew Littman, discuss how the 116th Congress will set itself apart. Will substantive legislation make its way through both chambers in 2019, or has the shutdown stifled meaningful progress? Looking ahead to 2020, which senators are vulnerable for re-election and which ones can we expect to see on the presidential campaign trail? Brian and Elizabeth navigate the current tumult on Capitol Hill to answer these questions and more.

The now-20-year movement to legalize the use of cannabis shows no sign of slowing down. From efforts to harmonize federal law with state laws, to blockchain technologies linked to financing cannabis-related businesses, the industry is widening and drawing increased scrutiny. Drew Littman moderates a conversation between Will Moschella, Nadeam Elshami, Brian Wild and Milan Dalal, in which they address current DOJ enforcement actions, the future role of the federal government in regulation, and how and why support has come from both sides of the political aisle.

David Gaspers, principal city planner at City and County of Denver, joins Brownstein Shareholder Caitlin Quander for a discussion about Blueprint Denver, the city’s land use and transportation plan for the next 20 years. Through Denver’s two-year outreach and planning effort, input from thousands of Denverites has resulted in a draft plan. Learn where Denver is working to target investment and how land use decisions will be made through the lens of social equity.

Many in Washington anticipate a congressional agenda packed with investigations come January. But how exactly will those take shape? Drew Littman moderates a conversation between Greg Brower, co-chair of Brownstein’s Government Investigations practice, and Will Moschella, who prior to his career at the DOJ served as the chief legal counsel and parliamentarian of the House Committee on the Judiciary. They discuss Congress’ oversight tools and available enforcement actions, the limits of its authority and the ripest subjects for oversight in the 116th Congress.

Nina Ozlu Tunceli, chief counsel of government and public affairs and executive director of the Americans for the Arts Action Fund, and Narric Rome, vice president for government affairs and arts education for Americans for the Arts, join Brownstein Policy Advisor David Reid for a discussion moderated by our own Drew Littman on how they advocate for the arts in Washington. Nina and Narric cover the challenge of sustaining federal funding, the Arts Action Fund, how arts education can fuel the creative industry and why one of their biggest policy partners is the United States Conference of Mayors.

In our latest Policy Update, Democrat Brian McKeon and Republican Elizabeth Maier join Policy Director Drew Littman for a bipartisan discussion on what will be accomplished legislatively before the end of the 115th Congress and the impact of the tomorrow's elections. They discuss key legislation including appropriations funding, the Farm Bill, tax extenders and a possible bipartisan immigration deal will pass the finish line before January. This close to the midterms, political campaign messaging is getting more heated; our team delves into what is working for both Democrats and Republicans and how that messaging may affect outcomes.

Brownstein Senior Policy Advisor Mike Stratton joins Shareholder Melissa Kuipers Blake to discuss Mike’s role in Gary Hart’s campaign for the 1988 Democratic presidential nomination that is depicted in the movie The Front Runner. They discuss Mike’s experience as Hart’s lead advance man, how the events of 1988 fundamentally changed political reporting and their thoughts on correlations between Hart’s story and the current political environment.

Kristin Parello-Plesner, Strategic Director for OvaCure, joins Brownstein Policy Advisor Araceli Gutierrez for a discussion on how OvaCure is challenging the current paradigms in cancer research. As OvaCure signed its first US-based ovarian cancer research project at the University of Pennsylvania, Brownstein has worked with OvaCure to connect with and establish a strong network of key US stakeholders. Kristin and Araceli discuss how U.S.-Danish relations can attract more innovation to the United States and highlight the importance of social philanthropy and its critical role in funding for ovarian cancer research.

The 2018 midterm elections will set the stage for how the Trump administration will govern during the balance of the term and impact legislative and regulatory initiatives. Listen in as Corporate Department Chair Mike King moderates a bipartisan discussion with Brownstein Shareholder Greg Berger, Strategic Advisor Barry Jackson and Policy Director Drew Littman. They provide insight on hot topics that could impact businesses following the midterms, including: taxation of private equity at the state level, Medicare for all, the deficit, antitrust and infrastructure as well as the potential for increased privacy laws at the federal level.