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The State AG: Both Advocate & Influencer

In Episode 8 of State AG Pulse, Chris Allen, Ketan Bhirud, and Emily Yu dive into the remaining primaries in this year’s state AG election cycle and the increasingly prominent role played by AGs in influencing federal policy.

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Changing of the Guard in the PNW

In Episode 7 of State AG Pulse, Stephen Cobb and Keturah Taylor dive into the open seat state AG races in Oregon and Washington and other issues shaping the political landscape in the Pacific Northwest.

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Never Say Never to Federal Privacy Legislation

In this episode of State AG Pulse, Meghan Stoppel and Keturah Taylor, along with Madison Smith of Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, discuss comprehensive state privacy laws and how the uptick in recently enacted state legislation is impacting the federal privacy conversation in Congress.

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Everybody Comes From Somewhere

In this episode of State AG Pulse, Chris Allen, Jerry Kilgore and Howard Schweitzer consider AGs’ journeys both into the office and after leaving office, and the relational nature of both state and federal politics in an increasingly polarized political environment.

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Content Moderation vs. Free Expression

There is bipartisan agreement around the importance of protecting the safety of children and teens online. In Episode 4 of State AG Pulse, Jerry Kilgore, Stephen Cobb and Emily Yu look at the efforts of state AGs, legislators and the Supreme Court to achieve this.

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Swinging Through the Rust Belt, the Sun Belt and the South

In Episode 3 of State AG Pulse, Meghan Stoppel and Siran Faulders dive into the AG and other Pennsylvania races with Jim Davis and Joe Hill of Cozen Public Strategies and consider how voter demographics in PA and other swing states will play into the outcomes in November.

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High Profile Candidates, Big Issues Dominate in the NC Race

In Episode 2 of State AG Pulse, Stephen Cobb talks with Swain Wood, former North Carolina Chief Deputy AG, and WRAL correspondent, Will Doran, on the North Carolina race and the extent to which it will be dominated by the office of the attorney general, both outgoing and incoming.

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The Election of the Double Haters

To kick off Season 4 of State AG Pulse, Stephen Cobb and Jerry Kilgore team up with Howard Schweitzer and the Hon. Rodney Davis of Cozen Public Strategies to debate the key races and issues ahead of the November 2024 general election.

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Influencers, Identify Yourselves, Says FTC

Influencers have an outsized impact on what we buy. In this week’s podcast Meghan Stoppel and Hannah Cornett discuss warnings from the FTC to advertisers about how and when they should disclose endorsements from influencers.

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AGs Clock In On Wages

Beyond their traditional areas of authority – consumer protection, privacy, antitrust – state AGs frequently intervene on labor and employment matters. Chris Allen and Keturah Taylor look into recent efforts by AGs designed to protect workers’ access to certain rights and benefits.

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CT AG Reacts to Genetic Data Breach

When 23andMe suffered a data breach that potentially exposed sensitive data collected in genetic testing, Connecticut AG William Tong took action. Chris Allen and Hannah Cornett discuss the implications of the breach and identify best practices for anticipating and responding to data security incidents.

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America’s Pastime Unites AGs

A case stemming from action by Major League Baseball that left 40 minor league teams out in the cold has energized AGs on both sides of the aisle. Stephen Cobb and Keturah Taylor discuss the action by state AGs and the signals it sends.

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When Testing Systems, Don’t Use Real Data!

When more than $2 billion was withdrawn from borrowers’ accounts without their authorization as the result of a data testing error, AGs paid attention. Meghan Stoppel and Emily Yu explore why and suggest precautionary measures companies can take.

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Is SAFER Banking Finally Coming To The Cannabis Industry?

In Episode 4, Chris Allen and Emily Yu look at the history of the SAFER Banking Act and consider whether the latest legislative proposal will realize AGs’ bipartisan ambitions for a regulatory and enforcement regime for cannabis that generates additional state revenues, deters bad actors, and provides businesses with predictability and legal certainty.

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Action By MN AG Ellison Could Ripple Through Debt Servicing Industry

This episode of State AG Pulse looks at an investigation by Minnesota AG Keith Ellison into student loan providers alleged to have violated consumer protection and registration laws in his state, and the likelihood that it will sweep in other regulators and ripple throughout the debt servicing industry.

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The Laboratories of Democracy

In the season 2 finale of State AG Pulse, General Rokita of Indiana joins Jerry Kilgore and Chris Allen to talk about the challenges of upholding Indiana’s interests against the federal bureaucracy, and the power of states.

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Vermont: Small Is Mighty

Elected in November 2022, Vermont AG Charity Clark has hit the ground running, applying herself across a broad range of issues in the state from consumer protection, the environment, and privacy rights to domestic violence and women’s reproductive health.

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Wrangling Acronyms: SAGs, ORC and AI

Lori Kalani, Siran Faulders and Maria Colsey Heard explore two new issues coming into sharp focus for state AGs on both sides of the aisle because of their significant impact on consumers: organized retail crime and artificial intelligence.

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Iowa: Taking a Commonsense Approach

In conversation with fellow Midwesterner Meghan Stoppel and former Virginia AG Jerry Kilgore, newly-elected Iowa AG Brenna Bird addresses a wide range of topics, from preparing to enforce Iowa’s new privacy laws to stumping with her six-year-old.

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The Broad Sweep of State AGs’ Antitrust Authority

State AGs have a wide range of tools they can use to hold companies accountable. Milton Marquis, Jerry Kilgore and Ann-Marie Luciano explore AGs’ power to prevent anticompetitive business conduct ranging from no-poach agreements and illegal non-competes to collusion and price-fixing.

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The Age of the Multistate is Here

Elected for a second term in 2022, Attorney General Keith Ellison has led his state through the pandemic and its enormous social and economic consequences. He talks with Lori Kalani and Chris Allen about navigating those challenges and their impacts on individuals and businesses in Minnesota.

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State AGs and Feds: The Dynamics of Influence & Collaboration

Even when state AGs are not specifically authorized in a particular area, they can still be highly influential on their federal counterparts when it comes to regulation, enforcement, rulemaking and interpretation of statutes. Our team digs into state/federal collaboration: the who, what, why and how.

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Nebraska: Listening and Learning

New Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers describes himself as a very strong conservative who believes in openness in relationships and is committed to ensuring that people feel that they are being heard. In conversation with Lori and Meghan, he expands on the philosophy that underpins his dealings with AG office staff, businesses and state AG colleagues on both sides of the aisle.

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Attorneys General as State Policymakers: The NY Model

Cozen Public Strategies Managing Director Katie Schwab joins Jerry Kilgore, former VA AG, and Meghan Stoppel, former NE Consumer Chief, to debate the role of state AG as policymaker, and whether the NY model holds for the rest of the country.

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Illinois: Getting Stronger Through Adversity

Attorney General Kwame Raoul talks about some of the challenges he faced in his first term, from COVID, to a major cyberattack, to national assaults on voting rights, and how those challenges have impacted his priorities going into his second term.

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Money, Money, Money: Where does it go and why?

In this episode we draw back the curtain on attorney general settlements, including an AG’s statutory authority and motives, and the factors that determine the size and composition of a settlement, and provide insights to help businesses negotiate for the best possible outcome.

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"I View Businesses As Poverty Destroyers"

In the first episode in Season Two, new Virginia AG Jason Miyares dispels the myth that AGs are anti-business. He talks about how he views businesses as victims when it comes to data breaches and seeks to work with them rather than blame them.

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Elections Are About The Future

In this special post-election episode, host Lori Kalani talks with her partners Jerry Kilgore, Milton Marquis, Paul Connell and Mira Baylson about the outcomes in last Tuesday’s state AG races and the issues and trends that played into the results.

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Season Finale: 2022 AG Election Wrap-Up

Lori, Bernie and Mira take a final look at the incumbents and the challengers, and speculate on the make-up of what looks like a bumper freshman class of AGs entering office in 2023.

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Winner Takes All in Kansas

Lori, Bernie and native Kansan Meghan Stoppel debate the chances of the three Republican candidates in the August 2 Kansas primary, and whether the moderates will split the vote to the benefit of the polarizing Trumpian candidate.

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Money Is the Mother's Milk of Politics

In Arizona, a crowded field means having money to spend on name recognition and get-out-the-vote efforts will be the key to success. Jerry Kilgore and Paul Connell discuss the candidates that have it… and those that don’t.

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The Democrats: Playing Their Best Chess Match

Lori, Bernie and Chris engage Sean Rankin, President of the Democratic AGs Association, on the challenges and opportunities he sees for the Democratic party as it fights headwinds going into the November 2022 election.

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The Politician v. The Judge: Maryland’s Primary

The two leading contenders for Maryland AG come from very different backgrounds. In this week’s podcast, host Bernie and his State AG Group colleagues Milton Marquis and Chris Allen debate what this means for their election prospects and the future of the Maryland AG’s office.

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Local Job, National Impact

In this week’s episode, Lori gets together with fellow State AG Group members Maria Colsey Heard and Ann-Marie Luciano to talk about the evolution of the DC Office of the Attorney General into a national powerhouse, Karl Racine’s legacy as its first elected AG, and this year’s contentious race.

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Legendary Former AGs Bemoan the State of Bipartisanship

This week Lori and fellow State AG Group team member Mira Baylson are in conversation with former AGs Frankie Sue Del Papa of Nevada and Betty Montgomery of Ohio, both phenomenal leaders with distinguished track records of achievement in their states.

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New Mexico and the Plaintiffs' Bar Money-Go-Round

This week Bernie and Lori engage with State AG Group team member Chris Allen on the race in New Mexico, where the AG’s office is likely to stay blue but a red wave, if it comes, could shake things up. They also ponder AGs’ use of outside counsel to supplement – or supplant –  internal AG staff resources.

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Republicans Forecast A Red Wave

In this week’s episode, hosts Bernie Nash and Jerry Kilgore talk with Pete Bisbee of the Republican Attorneys General Association about what RAGA is, how it recruits candidates, and how it raises money to fund races. They speculate on election winners and losers, and we hear Pete’s diagnosis of potentially vulnerable Democrats and his “just crazy” prediction.

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Bless Your Heart, Arkansas

In this week’s episode, we make our prediction for who the new Arkansas AG will be, and talk about the value of meeting with your AG and what a difference an open-door policy makes.

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Nebraska: An Insider's Perspective

In this week’s episode, we get an insider’s perspective on the Nebraska open seat race and its political and business significance from Meghan Stoppel, who served as Consumer Protection Chief under the current AG, Doug Peterson, from 2017 to 2021.

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Introducing State AG Pulse

Welcome to the inaugural episode of State AG Pulse. In this first episode, Pulse hosts Lori Kalani and Bernie Nash talk with Karen White, Executive Director of the Attorney General Alliance about the 2022 open seats, the incumbents, and why money matters in state AG elections.

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