The Deciders

S-3 Group co-founder John Scofield spent nearly a decade shaping strategy and messaging for the House Appropriations Committee. He explains why decoding complexity is still one of the best things he brings to clients, and why his formula for 15 years of growth is surprisingly simple.
 

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Anne Bradbury is president and CEO of the American Exploration and Production Council, the trade group for the independent producers responsible for about 80% of the oil and 90% of the natural gas produced in the United States. A former floor director for the Speaker of the House, she argues America isn’t resource constrained but infrastructure constrained, and that policy which expires with each administration isn’t tenable for companies investing on a 20-year horizon.
 

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Will Dunham, President and CEO of the American Investment Council, spent over a decade on Capitol Hill working on major bipartisan legislation where understanding both sides was critical. He now applies that same skill to a very different challenge: leading the trade association for an industry worth trillions of dollars that remains widely misunderstood in Washington.
 

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Mike Catanzaro is CEO and co-founder of CGCN Group, one of Washington's leading all-Republican lobbying and public affairs firms. He argues the working-class voters who flipped 63 of the 100 poorest congressional districts to Republicans now define the party's base — and that corporate America can't lobby around them. He also makes the case for why CGCN turns away private equity, refuses to go bipartisan, and believes trust is the one asset that survives every political cycle.

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This episode sponsored by:

American Investment Council
American Consumer & Investor Institute
Defend Forgotten America Action

Jim VandeHei is co-founder and CEO of Axios, and before that he co-founded Politico — twice building some of the most influential media companies in Washington. In this episode, he argues AI backlash is quietly building into a real political fault line and walks through the simplification framework behind his new book, Simplify: Do 50% More with 50% Less.

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This episode sponsored by:

American Petroleum Institute
American Investment Council
American Chemistry Council
Edison Electric Institute
PhRMA
Consumer Brands Association

Noah Theran runs communications for the Managed Funds Association, representing hedge funds and alternative asset managers in Washington. He says the traditional communications playbook has stopped working—and reveals what's replaced it and how leading organizations are adapting.

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This episode sponsored by:
Narrative: Solving today’s most demanding reputational and public affairs challenges at the convergence of business, media, and politics.​
535.news: Streaming live from Capitol Hill every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

Doug Thornell has spent his career helping candidates and corporations find their authentic story. The SKDK CEO argues that today, urgency is just as important — politicians and brands must move fast or get left behind. He details the campaign that took Wes Moore from 2% to the Governor’s mansion — and the blueprint it sets for Democrats who want to win.

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This episode sponsored by:
USA Facts: Turning public data into public knowledge.
Consumer Brands Association: Makers of the products you choose and the brands you trust.

A Republican and a Democrat who served at the highest levels of Congress built one of Washington’s only independent bipartisan firms — and turned down the buyers. Ron Bonjean and Rodell Mollineau of ROKK Solutions on what bipartisan means in 2026, why they stayed independent, and how the rules of corporate advocacy are changing.

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This episode sponsored by: 

Consumer Brands Association 

American Property Owners Alliance

Rhonda Bentz is Executive Vice President of Public Affairs at the Consumer Brands Association, the trade group representing the leading food, beverage, home, and personal care companies in America. In this episode, Rhonda explains how the MAHA movement is reshaping the regulatory landscape, why a patchwork of 50 state ingredient laws could create chaos for companies and consumers alike, and how the only way to win in Trump's Washington is to stop making policy arguments and start making deals.

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This episode sponsored by:
Narrative Strategies
American Council of Life Insurers 
535.news

Energy and Commerce Chairman Brett Guthrie oversees more American industries than any other committee in Congress. He explains how he moved the biggest entitlement reform since welfare, why the AI race depends on permitting reform, and what Mitch McConnell taught him about politics.

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This episode sponsored by:

American Petroleum Institute
PhRMA
American Chemistry Council
Edison Electric Institute
Affordable Health Care Initiative
Healthcare Distribution Alliance