Rational 360, a high-powered Washington, DC-based strategic communications firm and digital agency, promises to use “innovative” means and a network that extends “deep into the Halls of Congress, the White House, and Fortune 500 boardrooms across the country” to advance the “mission-critical goals” of its clients, a roster of corporations, trade associations, military contractors, policy advocates, and others. The company—one of the many inside-the-Beltway firms that crafts messaging and peddles influence—promotes itself as a purely bipartisan operation, though its top leaders are mostly Democrats with White House experience earned during the Clinton and Obama years. Yet despite these Democratic roots, Rational 360 plays the field, having recently set up a company to help elect Republicans, while also creating an offshoot to assist Democratic campaigns. Moreover, it has advised No Labels, a dark-money and self-professed centrist group that is preparing to possibly run a third-party presidential candidate in 2024 in an effort that could help Donald Trump.

With these activities, Rational 360 looks as if it is trying to profit from all partisan sides—right, left, and middle.

The company was formed in 2009 when Rational PR and the Stevens and Schriefer Group, an advertising outfit, created a firm to pitch large corporate clients. The eight partners at the time included Patrick Dorton, who had been a top aide in the Clinton White House and the chief spokesman for  Arthur Andersen LLP during the accounting firm’s 2002 collapse, which occurred due to its role in the Enron and Worldcom financial scandals. 

Dorton is now the CEO of Rational 360, and the other top officers of the company include notable Democratic veterans. Brian Kaminski, a managing director and co-founder, notes in his company bio that before he joined the firm he “gained communications experience on Capitol Hill in the Office of [Democratic] Senator Barbara Mikulski, in the Office of the First Lady, and at the Democratic National Committee.” Melissa Green, a managing director and senior counsel for the company, was an aide in the Clinton White House and began her career at the political consulting firm of prominent Democrats James Carville and Paul Begala. Joe Lockhart, another managing director, was a press secretary for President Clinton. The firm, true to its bipartisan pitch, also includes officers and staffers with Republican pedigrees.

“People generally think of Rational 360 as a Democratic-run firm, but here they are trying to help Republicans,” says a person familiar with Rational 360’s operations. “And with this arrangement, could they have a candidate on both sides of the same election?”

According to Federal Election Commission data, Rational 360 has done no work for federal candidates or political action committees, except a modest bit of consulting in 2020 for Americans for Tomorrow’s Future, a Republican super PAC, for which it was paid $5,000. But in 2021, it created an offshoot entity to provide digital media services to Democratic candidates—without identifying this group’s link to Rational 360. 

For the first time in US history, UAW members at the Big Three automakers are on strike at the same time. The walkout began when the union’s contract expired early Friday morning.

UAW President Shawn Fain announced the initial strike targets during a Thursday night speech. The short notice is part of a new strategy under which the union is striking at targeted sites, rather than across a company. The goal is to maximize leverage by keeping automakers guessing about when and where workers will withhold their labor.

Roughly 13,000 UAW members are striking. The union has more than 145,000 members across the Big Three.

The initial targets are the General Motors assembly plant in Wentzville, Missouri, the Stellantis (formerly Chrysler) assembly complex in Toledo, Ohio, and part of a Ford assembly plant in Wayne, Michigan. Roughly 13,000 UAW members are striking at those facilities. All three make trucks and SUVs, which have been key to US automakers’ profitability.

The UAW has more than 145,000 members across the Big Three. Fain said on Thursday that the union is prepared for everyone to go on strike if needed—stressing that all options remain on the table.

The UAW and the Big Three remain far apart in their negotiations. The union is pushing for a more than 30 percent increase in pay over the course of the four-year contract. Members also have been fighting for guaranteed cost-of-living adjustments, an end to tiered-pay systems that put new hires at a disadvantage, a return to defined-benefit pension plans, a four-day work week without a reduction in pay, and a right to strike over plant closures. The auto companies have offered to increase pay by between 17.5 and 20 percent, but remained opposed to the UAW’s top demands, Fain said earlier this week.

The Premier League is back! 

So naturally, Marcus, Luke, Jim and Andy are here to discuss the possibility of Pep Guardiola covering Phil Foden in chocolate and Roy Hodgson feeding worms to Crystal Palace’s next manager.

We also discuss Jadon Sancho’s 'banishment' from Manchester United and what it means for him and Erik Ten Hag. Join us!

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A new bill has reached the desk of California Gov. Gavin Newsom that would bar the state’s public and charter schools from suspending or expelling students in sixth through twelfth grades for “willful defiance,” a largely undefined violation frequently meted out to students of color. The statewide ban, in force until 2029 once signed by Newsom, builds on the state’s efforts to slowly phase out this form of suspension and expulsion. If it’s enacted, California will be the first state to go from using the practice to banning it outright.

Already, in 2014, California became the first state to pass a partial ban on “willful defiance” suspensions—which are permitted in 25 other states, according to research by Temple University’s Policy Surveillance Program. The 2014 ban, which only applied to students in third grade or younger, was followed by a 2019 bill  that covered fourth and fifth graders permanently and middle schoolers through 2025. Newsom signed that bill, and appears poised to sign the new, broader ban, but his office hasn’t confirmed if or when that’ll happen.

ACLU California Action, which supports the ban, has said that the definition of willful defiance is too “subjective and overly broad,” with some students being suspended for “dancing, dress code violations, or not paying attention in class.” School officials’ judgment of whether a student is “talking back,” another common ground for willful defiance suspensions, can also be shaped by biases. The bill, introduced by State Sen. Nancy Skinner, does not limit other types of suspensions, such as those related to violence.

“We have other alternatives. We don’t need to kick the kid out.”

At an April hearing of the California Senate’s education committee, Skinner pointed to the use of willful defiance suspensions for small infractions like not taking a hat off or smirking at a teacher. The bill encourages teachers and administrators to de-escalate conflict with students and emphasizes that suspensions are a punishment of last resort.

“I completely appreciate a teacher could have a particularly bad day…this kid sets them off,” Skinner said in the hearing. “But we have other alternatives. We don’t need to kick the kid out.”

Federal prosecutors on Thursday charged Hunter Biden with lying about his drug use when he bought a gun in 2018.

The three-count indictment is the latest twist in a series of legal issues for Hunter Biden that could impact the reelection campaign of his father, President Joe Biden. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Tuesday announced an impeachment inquiry into President Biden that is based largely on Hunter’s past efforts to profit off of his perceived access to his father.

The new charges against Hunter Biden follow the late June collapse of a plea deal that his lawyers had negotiated with the US attorney in Delaware, David Weiss, under which Biden would have pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor tax crimes, along with a felony gun charge that could have been wiped off his record if he adhered to the deal’s terms. That agreement fell apart when questions from US District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika revealed that prosecutors and Biden’s lawyers had differing understandings of its provisions.

When Attorney General Merrick Garland assumed office in 2021, he left in place Weiss, a Donald Trump appointee, in an effort to avoid the appearance of interference with the ongoing investigations into Hunter Biden. Garland last month gave Weiss special counsel status in an attempt to further ensure his independence. And Weiss has insisted he has faced no pressure from Garland, President Biden, or others to curtail the probe.

Still, congressional Republicans have alleged that Weiss is going easy on the president’s son, and they have touted the disputed accounts of two IRS whistleblowers who claim their investigation into Hunter Biden’s alleged tax evasion was limited by political pressure. The notion that Hunter Biden is receiving special protection is a virtual article of faith on the right. Prosecutors on the case have faced threats and harassment from people convinced they are failing to enforce the law, NBC News reported Thursday.

Editor’s note: The below article first appeared in David Corn’s newsletter, Our Land. The newsletter comes out twice a week (most of the time) and provides behind-the-scenes stories and articles about politics, media, and culture. Subscribing costs just $5 a month—but you can sign up for a free 30-day trial of Our Land here. Plus, David Corn’s American Psychosis: A Historical Investigation of How the Republican Party Went Crazy, a New York Times bestseller, has just been released in a new and expanded paperback edition. 

There is an authoritarian danger that threatens American democracy. It is a separate peril from Donald Trump and his tens of millions of rabid supports. It is the right-wing infrastructure that is publicly plotting to undermine the checks and balances of our constitutional order and concentrate unprecedented power in the presidency. Its efforts, if successful and coupled with a Trump (or other GOP) victory in 2024, would place the nation on a path to autocracy.

Trump’s desire to be a strongman ruler are no secret. He has repeatedly uttered statements that reveal a craving to be in total control of the US government. As he mounts a second campaign for the White House, his team has openly discussed his plans to consolidate government power in the White House should he win. The New York Times recently reported that his crew aims “to alter the balance of power by increasing the president’s authority over every part of the federal government that now operates, by either law or tradition, with any measure of independence from political interference by the White House.” The Washington Post ran a story in April headlined, “Trump touts authoritarian vision for second term.”

These plans include altering the rules governing the civil service so that tens of thousands of federal workers—maybe more—would be subject to immediate dismissal by the White House. That would mean that Trump could fire employees at federal agencies who do not pledge their loyalty to Trump—or who question the legality or appropriateness of White House directives. Say, Trump or an underling orders the IRS to audit the tax returns of a political foe and an IRS career official objects, that person could be pink-slipped.

Yet this effort to reshape the US government extends far beyond the fevered fantasies of one failed casino owner and his henchmen and henchwomen. Much of the right-wing establishment—including its leading think tanks and policy shops—are part of the attempt to concentrate federal power in the hands of Trump or another Republican president.

Today, we thought we’d drop in a fascinating chat from this week’s episode of OTC. Dotun Adebayo, Andy Brassell and Nicky Bandini discussed Paul Pogba’s positive doping test, where it might leave his career and how we’ve ended up at this point.

Listen to the full episode HERE and make sure to subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's Ask OTC and loads more from On The Continent this season!

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Marcus, Jim, Andy and Vish are here to officially announce: England will win the Euros. Definitely. No doubt about it.

That’s mainly because all the other nations are falling to bits. Portugal are managed by both Bert and Ernie, Leonardo Bonucci will litigate Italian football into oblivion and Germany are turning to Felix Magath.

We also hear about David Beckham’s bid to become Superman and make some national team selections via the help of astrology

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After a huge weekend for German football and Costa Rican football mascots, Marcus Luke, Jim and Vish are here to discuss it all!

We react to England’s drab draw with an inspirational Ukraine side and the problems it underlines for Southgate - plus, there’s the small matter of Hansi Flick’s exit as Germany head coach. The answer to all those problems? Get Jurgen Klinsmann in, of course!

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Marcus and Jim jumped on the mics after Scotland took a decisive step towards Euro 2024! And one of our Scottish listeners tells England fans to “sook his baws”.

Plus, a West Ham fan and potential scratch card winner travels to Ghana to watch Mohammed Kudus, there’s a devastating blow for the PIF Posse, and qualification for World Cup 2026 gets underway. Yes, really.

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Take it from us, the U21 European champions: get yourself an oeuf. That’s our advice for the Lee Carsley-less France U21s.

Marcus, Vish, Andy and Jim are back with more pearls of wisdom to kick off your weekend! We discuss Gareth Southgate’s small headache over who will partner super headache Harry Maguire, while Andy calls the Netherlands Burnley and Marcus gets more excited about Jude Bellingham than perhaps anything. Ever.

Join us!

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International football is back, people! Marcus, Luke, Andy and Vish discuss reports that the FA are eyeing up Pep Guardiola with Gareth Southgate set to leave after the Euros… and quickly decide that leaving Pep to his own devices for months on end would be a terrible idea.

We also discuss Mauro Icardi’s new car and Michael Owen reaching new levels of pointlessness. And there’s the small matter of Jordan Henderson’s first interview since moving to Saudi Arabia - we have an honest conversation about him and his England selection!

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Like the bloke next to Stevey Cooper’s ear, Marcus, Luke, Vish and Jim are back to scratch your Premier League itch!

We discuss Arsenal’s dramatic win over Manchester United, Spurs’ avuncular uncles, and - most importantly of all - who we’d want to be sat next to from the Los Angeles FC guest list against Inter Miami. Just keep Marcus away from Owen Wilson, please.

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A taste of some of our favourite moments from last month on the show!

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Arsenal prodigy Ethan Nwaneri has been given the opportunity to train with the first team ahead of their match against Manchester United this weekend. Nwaneri holds the distinction of being the club’s youngest-ever appearance maker in the Premier League and has continued to progress in the club’s youth system.

Regarded as one of the most promising young talents in the country, Nwaneri has consistently showcased his potential beyond the youth level. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has been closely monitoring his development and sees him as a player who could contribute to the first team in the near future.

As Arsenal prepares for their challenging fixture against United, a report from All Nigeria Soccer indicates that Arteta has extended an invitation to Nwaneri to train with the senior squad. This opportunity provides the manager with another chance to assess the youngster’s progress and readiness for potential involvement with the first team.

Just Arsenal Opinion

Nwaneri is a player we all look forward to seeing in our first team, just like Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe.

Stan Collymore has offered his prediction for the result of the upcoming match between Arsenal and Manchester United.

Mikel Arteta’s men have started this season in high spirits, but they dropped points against Fulham and would be eager to get back to winning ways as soon as possible.

United has been inconsistent at the start of the season, so it is a game between two clubs desperate to impress and take all the points and Collymore believes he knows the team that could win.

He predicts exclusively on Caught Offside:

“Looking ahead to this weekend’s fixture, I think if you offered Erik Ten Hag a point now, he’d snatch your hand off but I actually believe Arsenal could edge it.”

Former Arsenal player Paul Merson has suggested that Liverpool could consider selling Mohamed Salah for £200 million and using £150 million of that amount to acquire Bukayo Saka in January.

Liverpool recently rejected a £150 million bid for Salah on deadline day and are expected to receive another offer, this time from Saudi Arabia, valued at £200 million before their transfer window closes. Despite transfer interest, Salah has not indicated a desire to force a move, and Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been clear about his intention to keep the star player.

However, Merson has suggested that Liverpool might contemplate accepting such a significant sum for a player who may have a limited career span remaining and then reinvesting in talent like Bukayo Saka in the January transfer window.

He said on Sky Sports:

“Do they sell him for £200m, and then in January see if they can get Saka from Arsenal for £150m?

Arsenal, having made both incoming and outgoing transfers during the recent transfer window, still have some players who could potentially leave the club. According to a report from Talk Sport, Saudi clubs are still in the market for talent from top European clubs, and Arsenal may see some departures to the Middle East.

One player who is mentioned as a potential departure is Gabriel Magalhaes. The Brazilian defender, who was a regular starter for Arsenal since joining the club, has lost his place in the starting lineup this season. It is suggested that he might be tempted by the financial incentives offered by clubs in the Middle East.

Another player who could make a move before the transfer window in the Saudi Pro League closes on September 7th is Nicolas Pepe. The Ivorian winger has reportedly been told to leave Arsenal and was unable to secure a transfer before the deadline day in other European leagues. As a result, there is speculation that he may consider a move to the Saudi Pro League.

Just Arsenal Opinion

Pepe is a player we need to get rid of because we simply do not need him at the moment. The Ivorian has done badly since he joined us and does not seem like he will ever get better.

Arsenal defender William Saliba has named Alexander Isak as one of the top three strikers in the Premier League, despite not having faced the Swedish forward. Isak has emerged as a standout player for the current Newcastle team, which is set to participate in the Champions League this season.

Since joining Newcastle, Isak has consistently displayed excellent form and has impressed with his performances in each game he plays. He is in contention for a starting spot alongside Callum Wilson but appears to have the advantage due to his consistent and high-quality displays, which make him a formidable opponent for defenders.

Saliba’s recognition of Isak’s talent underscores the impact the Swedish striker has made in the Premier League, even though he has yet to face off against certain opponents like Saliba but the Arsenal star rates the ex-Borussia Dortmund player highly.

He tells Sky Sports:

“I would probably say Haaland and then Rashford second and then Isak, I never played against him but I saw him and he is so good as well.

What can Arsenal expect from Man United?

If Arsenal fans think the performances of their team has been far from satisfactory, then United fans will have no sympathy for their Premier League counterparts.

Despite sitting on six points after three games, Erik Ten Hag’s men have failed to truly convince their fanbase that they are in for a treat this season.

In their opening match against Wolves, United were lucky to take away all three points, as the Wanderers had several opportunities to snatch a win at Old Trafford.

In their second game, Hag’s side were deservedly beaten by Spurs 2-0. Fans from the red side of Manchester would have felt the same nerves when they went 2-0 down against Nottingham Forest inside the opening five minutes.