Facts About PACs Podcast
The Facts About PACs Podcast is the #1 PAC podcast in America. The show is produced especially for the members of the National Association of Business Political Action Committees (NABPAC). Each weekly episode includes a recap of the association's latest activities, actionable intelligence for the employee-funded and business trade association PAC community, and an interview with a featured guest. Show host Micaela Isler is the President and CEO of NAPBAC.
Facts About PACs Podcast
Your Exclusive Ticket to Capitol Hill Bipartisanship
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PAC managers: secure your seat at "Across the Aisle," the must-attend Capitol Hill event where Problem Solvers Caucus members and corporate government relations leaders reveal how to drive real results in today's divided climate. Sarah Bonk from Business for America joins the podcast with details on this exclusive opportunity to network with lawmakers who make things happen beyond the headlines. Discover actionable strategies to mobilize your PAC's influence, build effective coalitions, and show value to your stakeholders. NABPAC members register free—your investment of time will pay dividends in PAC effectiveness.
Episode Sponsor: Chain Bridge Bank
https://www.chainbridgebank.com/
Business needs to have a say in the direction of this country, and employees want that too, and the pacts are a powerful part of that.
SPEAKER_01Welcome back to the Fact About Pacts podcast. I'm Michaela Isler, NavPAC's president and CEO, and I'm joined today by David Shield and Adam Belmark to discuss how we can find common ground in today's polarized political climate and how PACs can help bridge those divides.
SPEAKER_02Michaela, I'm really looking forward to today's conversation. This podcast is sort of the marshmallow peeps of continuing PAC education. You know, it's delicious on Easter weekend, but you can enjoy it year-round. You know, if you work for an employee funded or business trade association PAC and your organization is out there, right? It's on the hill, it's in state capitals, you're doing the work to champion the business interests, the causes that your members care about. Most of that work actually happens away from the headlines. It's hard work that people don't see or appreciate. And that's what we're going to talk about today.
SPEAKER_04David, it's the work that we need to remind our donors about, that the important issues that they care about are receiving attention. And for our practitioners in Washington, that means finding the common ground with legislators who are seeking consensus and moving the ball forward. In just a moment, we'll be talking with Sarah Bonk of Business for America about an exclusive Capitol Hill event entitled Across the Isle: How Leaders Find Common Ground in a Divided Era. That NABPAC, in partnership with Business for America and GW's Graduate School of Management, are putting on. The Facts About PACs podcast is produced especially for the members of the National Association of Business Political Action Committees. In every episode, we recap this week's NAPPAC activities, share actionable intelligence and better practices, all while connecting the PAC community. And today's episode is brought to you by Chain Bridge Bank. Are you looking for a financial partner who actually understands PACs? End the frustration. Cross the bridge to better banking with Chainbridge Bank, a group that specializes in the financial needs of the corporate and association PACSpace. Chainbridge Bank, they know PACs.
SPEAKER_01Thanks so much, Adam, and thanks so much to our friends over at Chainbridge Bank. I'm really excited about this conversation today. So let's get to it. In today's fiercely divided political climate, businesses aren't just affected by polarization. And, you know, as we say here at NABAC, we are a part of the solution. And we're excited to partner with the GW's Graduate School of Political Management and Business for America on this event entitled Across the Isle: How Leaders Find Common Ground in a Divided Era. Sarah Bonk from Business for America is joining us today to tell us more about this great event. Welcome back to the Facts About PAX podcast, Bonk. Thank you for having me back. So can you tell our listeners about this exciting lineup that you put together for this event? Sure thing.
SPEAKER_00So we've organized a powerful two-hour program, and it'll feature both lawmakers and business leaders who are actively working to bridge divides and find common ground. So we're going to start with a conversation featuring representatives Don Bacon, a Republican from Nebraska, and Chrissy Hoolihan, a Democrat from Pennsylvania. And they're both members of the Problem Solvers Caucus. They're going to share their insights on forging bipartisanship in today's political climate. So that'll be juicy. And we also have a panel titled How Business Can Break the Partisan Stalemate. That'll be moderated by Doug Pinkham, who is a familiar to many of your members. He's the former CEO of the Public Affairs Council. So that panel is going to bring together some top corporate government relations and public affairs leaders from companies like Cummins, International Paper, and Salesforce to discuss what companies can do to foster bipartisanship and build effective coalitions.
SPEAKER_04I'll tell you, these are important conversations, Michaela, for everyone to have and to be able to listen to. Because we've seen the other side of this where there's a feeling that companies are too involved in certain issues, and that may have caused points of contention. But clearly finding common ground across the aisle on the issues that need attention now, that's the ticket for everybody to really be able to move the ball forward in this 119th Congress.
SPEAKER_01You know, David, this is something we've been talking about on the Hill all year, that what we see and hear in the media isn't necessarily what's happening on the hill, but I think it's going to be really great to bring together members from across the aisle and really drill down on, you know, where we can all find common ground and how we can be a solution for these important issues.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, you know, Michaela, one of the challenges to running a political action committee is that the news that your contributors receive overwhelmingly are these very hot headline topics that don't affect what you're doing on your business issues. And so partnering like this with the problem solvers caucus, I love that name, with companies that actually want to work across the aisle, this is what we have to remind our contributors of that the business of legislating and actually solving problems and finding public policy solutions, that often happens quietly. It happens off the front page, and it can work, right? We can turn the heat down in Washington and actually get to solutions. And it's so great that Bonk is with us here today because she's got a fascinating case study from kind of an unexpected source.
SPEAKER_00That's right, David. So one of the highlights in the event uh will be a case study from Johnsonville Sausage called Turning Down the Temperature. We're going to be joined by their vice president of marketing, Jamie Schmelzer, and he's going to share how their sausage company is actually helping to heal divisions in our country through a bold marketing campaign that brings people together. Maybe you saw their Keep It Juicy ads during the Super Bowl.
SPEAKER_05Outrageous trending, our feet stirring us up, splitting us up. What if we came out from behind our walls and keyboards just for a sec and just go yard? Front yard. Come out bagging, jumping, check on that Johnsonville feet. Let our individual flavors blend together. Yes. Block nobody. Block party. Keep it juicy.
SPEAKER_00Is really eye-catching. And it's such a fun message. So that's really a perfect example of how companies and brands can break through the noise and all the negativity with a message about reconnecting Americans, about kind of ignoring the news and talking to one another again. And companies can do that. They can leverage their brands while being both authentic and effective.
SPEAKER_02Well, we talk a lot about how you don't want to know how the sausage is made in Washington, but it sounds like now we're going to talk about how the sausage makes things happen in our nation's capital. This is great.
SPEAKER_01I know. I love this example. I was going in the same direction, David. So, Bonk, tell us, you know, really what other practical takeaways our pack professionals will get from attending this great event.
SPEAKER_00Sure. So uh we're going to be unveiling Business for America's five strategies for business leadership in a divided area. These are five areas with actions that businesses can take to help foster civil discourse, engage their employees, drive bipartisan solutions, whether that's federal, state, or local, and build stronger communities. These are sort of the formula for how businesses can help mend these social divides and get the country going in the right direction again. We're also going to have another session with lawmakers. We're calling from Classroom to Congress. That's featuring our partners, George Washington's Graduate School of Political Management alumni. And that will include freshman Congressman Johnny Olshevsky, Democrat from Maryland, and former Maryland State Senator Chris Schenck, a Republican. They're going to discuss their experiences working across the aisle and what businesses can do to help foster bipartisanship. And that'll be moderated by GSPM alum Tiffany Waddell. And she's the Director of Government Relations at the National Governors Association. So just lots of folks who are really experienced at this. Of course, the event will provide opportunities for networking. So come for the content, but stay for the conversation and seeing some of your friends or maybe making some new connections. Really, this event is perfect for business and association professionals in public affairs, government relations, social impact, and related disciplines. It's about connecting the business community that cares about solving these problems and have a stake in overcoming divides and incentivizing bipartisanship. Of course, we think that describes the NABPAC membership perfectly. We'd love to have folks join us and be part of the conversation. And this event is really just the beginning. We hope this is the start of more events and more connections and opportunities to help forge bipartisanship in DC and beyond.
SPEAKER_04I love that we are involved with you again on this topic, Bonk, especially at GSPM. David has a deep connection there. So does Michaela. And when we talk about how the next generation is integrated, how people have an understanding of what's going on at companies where maybe they began their career or had an internship and they were exposed to things in Washington that show them both how regulatory and legislative action impact Main Street and all of the businesses that they care about.
SPEAKER_00Absolutely. I think we so often see the negativity about business engagement in politics. And, you know, certainly there are upsides and downsides, but it's so important, you know, to as we live in a market-driven economy and we want all Americans to thrive. The business needs to have a say in the direction of this country. And employees want that too. And you know, the PACs are a powerful part of that. We really believe that business can play a positive role in helping to overcome the divisiveness that we see and just make government more productive for everybody, all Americans, but especially American businesses, right? So excited to be part of the conversation and delighted to partner with you all again on this.
SPEAKER_02Bonk, this really this event seems like sort of a a candle in the darkness of divisiveness, right? We're we're so focused right now on what it is that we're fighting over. And I would imagine that a lot of our employee contributors view Washington that way. Divided, dysfunctional. Can you talk a little bit about how you message to just your average employee, your average association member, that there are people who want to solve problems, that there is a coalition of folks who are trying to get things done?
SPEAKER_00Absolutely. You know, I think that the key message there really is to recognize um the old adage, if it bleeds, it leads. When we turn on the news, it's all designed to get clicks, to get eyeballs, and therefore it's in it really designed to enrage us and keep people watching. And that's unfortunate because we know that quietly there are lots of things happening on the Hill and folks actively engaging across the aisle. So finding the stories, you know, most companies have been at this for a while, but if you don't have your own stories, you can find some from some of your friends and colleagues. But there are tons of stories about how we've put together coalitions, how we've helped forge those partnerships and get things done, get really pragmatic things done. Just even a really quick example that we use often is uh, you know, some folks feel like, gosh, things are so divided and this Trump era is chaotic. And we say, well, look back to the last Trump administration when we had the uh criminal justice reform that got passed. Now, this is not a business specific issue, but businesses were involved in this. So you had very much more left-leaning civil rights organizations on one side, you had business and more libertarian groups on the other, but they came together to say this needs to get done. And uh, it was really a wonderful collaboration to see on such an important issue. Huge win, and that can happen during any administration. We don't need to feel limited by what we're seeing in the news and the, you know, whatever the headline is today that's designed to drive us apart.
SPEAKER_01Bonk, you mentioned storytelling, and I think that's a really important component here. You know, we are seeing anecdotally with a pretty high degree of strong interest when the company, the business association puts together kind of a town hall about why they're engaged in politics, the issues of importance. And we're seeing anywhere from 300 to 600 people attending these events. And that's just telling me that our employees and our members are thirsty for that nonpartisan good government facts about what really is happening on the Hill. Are you seeing that with your work? Because you know, that's very encouraging to us.
SPEAKER_00Absolutely. I mean, it certainly is a uh slow but steady progress. And Americans just in general, there's been there was a lull in civic engagement, but it feels like, I mean, certainly there's evidence of this that adults are more engaged than they have been. They're really tracking what's happening and trying to understand it, also trying to bind and be part of solutions. So it's wonderful to hear about, you know, PAC members too. I know that all these sort of money and politics get kind of lumped together, right? What I love about facts about PACs is that this is about business packs and association packs, and that's so different from super PACs and dark money, right? This is some of the most accountable money out there, the most transparent, the most tracked. So we know where it's coming from and we know who it's going to. And the fact that it's also, you know, limited very strictly. So I think when people understand that and can distinguish the different types of PACs, they have a very different feeling about why businesses are involved and the nature of the engagement in DC.
SPEAKER_03PAC managers, America's civic engagement professionals.
SPEAKER_01Well, I mean, I think I can speak for David too. I mean, one of the main reasons why I wanted to teach the PACs in Congress class at GW was for that very reason, you know, was to be able to, you know, in many ways set the record straight and provide the facts about how PACs originated, the history. And, you know, every semester I love that my students, one of the first things that I hear from them is, wow, I didn't realize PACs were a positive reform in our country. And and that really sets the tone for the rest of the semester.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, Michaela, you know, I think that we forget, because we've been doing this so long, that new generations of folks are entering the political management space, are entering the professional advocacy space, and they don't necessarily have the storytelling tools that are out there to talk to folks. And of course, our membership at NAPAC represents hundreds of thousands of folks who need to learn about how the system actually works, the role that money actually plays in politics today. So we can't spend too much time on education.
SPEAKER_01Well, Bonk, this was just, as always, a great conversation. We're really looking forward to this event in a couple of weeks. And as always, thank you for joining us today. Thank you so much for having me. Can't wait to see you there. So just remember for all of our NAPPAC members, you can register for free at NAPPAC Connect. And as always, thanks for listening. Subscribe, share, and meet us right back here for another new episode of Facts About Packs.
